I Know What You Did Last Summer
(B+ or 3/4 stars)
4 teens fall into great danger after trying to cover up a hit & run in the provocatively titled 'I Know What You Did Last Summer', directed by Jim Gillespie. Last year, 4th of July: Julie, Helen, Barry, & Ray (Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Freddie Prinze Jr.) are out celebrating their graduation when an awful accident befalls them. On a dark & winding highway, with Ray at the wheel, their car hits a fisherman & kills him! Besides themselves, the foursome elect to dump him in the ocean, rather than report the accident. They get away with it ... or so it seems.
Now, 1 yr. later, someone begins stalking them; even sending letters to Julie claiming "I know what you did last summer". Terrified, she gathers her other friends to decide how to deal with this unenviable situation. They've all been depressed since last yrs. incident anyway. So this new wrinkle is not doing anything for their already fragile psyches. Can they accept what they did? Who saw them commit the crime on that fateful night exactly 1 yr. ago? OR, perhaps their victim was never really dead? Regardless, whoever is after them is ruthless in their retribution. The dead bodies start piling up (by way of fish hook). And Julie, being the most mentally tortured over the July 4th incident, is most susceptible to the killer's revenge.
One of the reasons I enjoyed this film and last yrs. 'Scream' is that they've rejuvenated that brand of slasher films that came out in abundance throughout the 1980's; and not the sequels. 'Scream' is an all-around better movie than this (scares, humor, thrills, etc.). But this film acquits itself well. 'I know ...' contains all the hallmarks of said slasher movies: cute, large-breasted women as main protagonist(s), main characters dying virtually every 10-15 minutes, requisite scary costume (in this case, a fisherman with his hook), each character is defined by 1 or so personality traits (that's all), the music is a good cue for when something horrible is about to happen, & there's blood everywhere (though not as gushing as other flicks).
The main story is interesting; especially in a side plot where the friendships of these 4 people are affected by the accident. They're all depressed, confused, & angry (at themselves & at each other). You don't usually get something as intriguing as this in a horror flick. The acting is standard; with Hewitt being the most effective; basically at sulking & screaming. Ryan Phillipe & Freddie Prinze Jr. are onboard because they'll melt hearts. Hewitt & Gellar, ditto. The other performance of note is Anne Heche's creepy Missy Egan; a Deliverance-esque character who lives deep in the woods. Overall, while 'I know ...' won't win any awards for great filmmaking, I found this to be a polished movie full of frights (look out for a sequence in a department store), scares, laughter, tension, suspense, screams, beautiful people, & blood. What it lacks in logic & sense, it makes up for in other intangible areas. I mean, come on, what more do you want from a horror flick?
Now, 1 yr. later, someone begins stalking them; even sending letters to Julie claiming "I know what you did last summer". Terrified, she gathers her other friends to decide how to deal with this unenviable situation. They've all been depressed since last yrs. incident anyway. So this new wrinkle is not doing anything for their already fragile psyches. Can they accept what they did? Who saw them commit the crime on that fateful night exactly 1 yr. ago? OR, perhaps their victim was never really dead? Regardless, whoever is after them is ruthless in their retribution. The dead bodies start piling up (by way of fish hook). And Julie, being the most mentally tortured over the July 4th incident, is most susceptible to the killer's revenge.
One of the reasons I enjoyed this film and last yrs. 'Scream' is that they've rejuvenated that brand of slasher films that came out in abundance throughout the 1980's; and not the sequels. 'Scream' is an all-around better movie than this (scares, humor, thrills, etc.). But this film acquits itself well. 'I know ...' contains all the hallmarks of said slasher movies: cute, large-breasted women as main protagonist(s), main characters dying virtually every 10-15 minutes, requisite scary costume (in this case, a fisherman with his hook), each character is defined by 1 or so personality traits (that's all), the music is a good cue for when something horrible is about to happen, & there's blood everywhere (though not as gushing as other flicks).
The main story is interesting; especially in a side plot where the friendships of these 4 people are affected by the accident. They're all depressed, confused, & angry (at themselves & at each other). You don't usually get something as intriguing as this in a horror flick. The acting is standard; with Hewitt being the most effective; basically at sulking & screaming. Ryan Phillipe & Freddie Prinze Jr. are onboard because they'll melt hearts. Hewitt & Gellar, ditto. The other performance of note is Anne Heche's creepy Missy Egan; a Deliverance-esque character who lives deep in the woods. Overall, while 'I know ...' won't win any awards for great filmmaking, I found this to be a polished movie full of frights (look out for a sequence in a department store), scares, laughter, tension, suspense, screams, beautiful people, & blood. What it lacks in logic & sense, it makes up for in other intangible areas. I mean, come on, what more do you want from a horror flick?