How to survive the barren wasteland that is the late summer movie season

It's tough times out there for moviegoers.

The summer's splashiest blockbusters have come and gone, while the fall's buzzy prestige dramas remain well out of reach -- there is truly a cinematic wasteland between crappy Steven King adaptation The Dark Tower and hopefully-not-crappy Steven King adaptation It (September 8).

What's a film fan to do?

Well, you could use this time to become a more well-rounded person. Reconnect with that old friend from high school, and make plans to meet her new baby. Buy a Rosetta Stone course and make yourself multilingual. Finally crack open the copy of Infinite Jest that's been gathering dust on your nightstand for the past two years.

Or forget all that, and get creative with your moviegoing.

Once you've gone off the beaten path, you'll find plenty besides The Emoji Movie to keep you occupied, even in the dog days of summer. Here's how to make it through the barren wasteland that is the late summer movie season, without losing your mind.

Dig up some indie gems

The first and most obvious place to look for films worth leaving the house for? Your local arthouse. While August is a slow time for studio movies, indies get to shine all the brighter without the shadows of all those $200 million CG extravaganzas looming over them.

Columbus (August 4): John Cho gets the leading-man role he deserves in Columbus, a subtle but exquisite drama about the rare connection between two strangers. Think of a slowed-down Before Sunrise, or Once with architecture.

Ingrid Goes West (August 11): Do we really have to tell you, Mashable reader, about the dangers of social media obsession? Ingrid Goes West was one of the buzziest films out of Sundance, garnering high praise for Aubrey Plaza's off-kilter performance and O'Shea Jackson Jr.'s comedic chops.

Good Time (August 11): In the years since Twilight, Robert Pattinson's built himself a solid career in the indie / arthouse space, and word out of Cannes is that he's never been better than he is in this stylish New York-set thriller.

(Re)discover the classics

Alternatively, August is a great time to (re)discover some old favorites on the big screen. Check your local listings to find out which repertory screenings are lined up for the month, or keep an eye out for these nationwide re-releases. (Me, I'll be spending my month digging into MoMA's Future Imperfect series and Film Society's '77 programming.)

Terminator 2: Judgment Day 3D (August 25): Yeah, yeah, you've seen this one a million times on DVD and you still catch scenes here and there on basic cable. But when's the last time you really saw it properly – from start to finish, in a dark theater, with no interruptions? (More info here.)

Castle in the Sky (August 27-28): Fathom Events is hosting two-night-only re-releases of a different Studio Ghibli movie each month for six months. August's is Hayao Miyazaki's Castle in the Sky, the first-ever film from legendary animation outfit. (Tickets and showtimes here.)

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (September 1): Steven Spielberg's sci-fi classic turns 40 this year, and to celebrate it's getting a brand-new restoration and re-release. (Look for details here.)

Play catch up on all those early-summer releases

Or maybe you'd rather just stay in, crank up the AC, and watch something at home. Lord knows there are plenty of options – including all those films you missed earlier in the summer, when the release calendar was much more exciting.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (August 8): All right, so you've probably seen this one already. But don't you kinda want to watch it again?

Rough Night (August 25): Scarlett Johansson's R-rated comedy is actually pretty perfect for watching at home, where you and your friends can get as wild and wasted as the characters onscreen.

Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (August 29): There's a severe shortage of high-quality kids' entertainment out there, or so my colleagues who are parents keep telling me. Here's the rare offering that'll entertain the little ones without grating your last nerve.

It Comes at Night (August 29): This is one of those movies that critics seem to love and general audiences seem to ... not love as much. Turn off the lights, grab a blanket to hide behind when things get creepy, and find out which side you fall on.

Just watch TV instead

Once upon a time, summer was an off season for TV, which generally ran from fall to spring. In the era of Peak TV, though, there's something new to watch all year round. Wait out the rest of the late-summer movie slump by kicking back with a TV binge.

Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later (August 4, Netflix): Who'd have thought this 2001 flop would go on to spawn not one, but two Netflix miniseries? While Ten Years Later can't match the magic of the original, it's an amusing reunion for fans.

Get Shorty (August 13, Epix): If you're looking for a movie to watch but having no luck, you could probably do worse than a TV show about making movies (and also about the mob). Chris O'Dowd stars as a criminal fixer trying to break into Hollywood.

The Defenders (August 18, Netflix): It's gonna be a few months until Thor: Ragnarok assembles some of your favorite big-screen MCU heroes, so click over to Netflix to see the MCU's scrappier small-screen heroes form the Defenders.

The Tick (August 25, Amazon): Still haven't had your fill of superhero shenanigans? Amazon brings back the beloved comic-book sendup, this time with Peter Serafinowicz in the title role.