Richard Brody’s Summertime Movie Picks

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The recent heat wave may be only a memory—but enshrining memories is what movies do, and many of them rely on harsh summer climates as crucial elements of drama. In the mid-twentieth century, when few residences were cooled during the summer, most movie theatres were air-conditioned: even as characters sweated, viewers chilled. Here are a few of my favorite sunbaked delights, to stream at home at your preferred temperature.— Richard Brody

Clarke Peters in “Red Hook Summer.” Photograph from David Lee / Variance Films / Everett Collection

“ The Lost Patrol ” (1934, John Ford)

This First World War drama, about British troops fighting in th