The Kings Of Summer review

Independence days...

Why you can trust 12DOVE Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

Royally fed-up with living under their parents’ roofs and rules, best mates Joe (Nick Robinson) and Patrick (Gabriel Basso) turn runaways, building a makeshift shack in the woods.

First-timers Jordan Vogt-Roberts (director) and Chris Galletta (writer) march on well-worn terrain with fresh confidence; their coming-of-ager dishes up laughs and lyricism, sweetness and surrealism.

Like the boys’ home away from home, it’s a bit ramshackle: the Malick-y montages evoking endless summers can feel, well, endless.

But it puts hilarity on repeat too, and the kids are superb – the ups and downs of the Joe/Patrick friendship ring true, while oddball Moises Arias steals scenes left, right and off-centre.