I Know What You Did Last Summer – Review

Movie Summary

It’s summertime in Southport, North Carolina, and Ava has come home because Danica and Teddy were having an engagement party, and her boyfriend in high school, Milo, was going to be there. It was the 4^th of July, so everyone was extra festive, and being that Teddy comes from money, his father, Grant, basically runs and owns the town, there was an open bar and almost anything your heart could desire.

Unfortunately for the group, though, Teddy, high off a successful party, decides they should all go up Reaper’s Curve for a better vantage point. Add in Stevie, who hasn’t been an active member in the group for years, and it seems like the best day ever will become the best night ever.

That is until Teddy, playing in the road, causes a man to go off the cliff, and with his father’s connections, and swearing his friends to secrecy, believing he buried the issue. But, a year later, it seems someone is aware of what the secret wants them to pay for letting a man die and decides to not only brutalize them, but their loved ones as well.

Cast and Characters

Ava (Chase Sui Wonders)

• Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]

• Character Summary: Ava sees herself as Danica’s best friend, and despite not seeing each other in ages, as soon as they reconnect, it is like nothing changed. But, one thing Ava questions is, like nothing has changed between her and Danica, can the same be said regarding her high school boyfriend, Milo?

Danica (Madelyn Cline)

• Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
• Character Summary: Danica is a pretty girl whose focus is on skin care, maintenance, and the financially stable bachelors of Southport.

Teddy (Tyriq Withers)

• Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
• Character Summary: Teddy is Grant’s only child, who follows the pattern of most of Danica’s love interest in that he is rich, has a bit of a drinking problem, and likes to party.

Milo (Jonah Hauer-King)

• Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
• Character Summary: Milo is Teddy’s best friend, with whom he has an eyebrow-raising bromance, which includes Milo calling Teddy “Daddy,” and he is Ava’s ex.

Grant (Billy Campbell)

• Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
• Character Summary: Grant owns Southport through his money and influence, and since the events of 1997, he has used his money to erase the past and turn Southport into a tourist spot for the affluent.

Stevie (Sarah Pidgeon)

• Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
• Character Summary: Stevie is one of the few characters who doesn’t have a silver spoon and whose life is notably complicated. While Ava doesn’t have her mom, Stevie appears not to have anyone, and to add to her issues, she is a recovering addict, her father stole from her, and she doesn’t have the privilege the rest have to not hold a steady job. She works at a local bar to make ends meet.

What To Expect In “I Know What You Did Last Summer” (Rated R) – Content Overview

• Dialog:
  • Cursing: Occasional
  • Suicide Mention(s): Yes
• Violence:
  • Gun Violence: A Gun Goes Off Once Or Twice
  • Gore/ Blood/ Body Horror: Bleeding, Depiction of Open Wounds, Notable Disfigurement
  • Notable Violence: Torture, Intense Fight Scenes
• Sexual Content:
  • Sexual Situations: Implied
• Miscellaneous:
  • Drinking: Yes
  • Drug Use: Recreational
  • Smoking: Yes
  • Jump Scares: Constant

Links

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• Official Site Link

Review and Commentary

Low Point(s)

Unless You Are A Fan Of Any Actor, You May Not Care Who Lives or Dies [64/100]

The biggest issue with I Know What You Did Last Summer is that it doesn’t have characters who are likable or flawed in a way that makes them human. More so, what is presented are characters you wouldn’t mind being in a SaW movie. For example, we’re a Chase Sui Wonders fan, and she is probably the only reason we saw this, but this movie did nothing for me as someone who has watched most of her work.

For example, she has returned home after all these years, and it is noted that her mom is dead, right? But, we don’t see her father or anyone in her family home throughout the entire movie – even when her life is threatened. The same goes for the majority of the characters, sans Teddy. Friends and family, outside of the group being hunted, do not exist, and in terms of building up who each character is? That is barely done.

We know Teddy is rich, likely heir to his father’s empire if he gets his act straight, but you don’t really get to know him in a way that makes him human. Yes, Stevie had it rough, but being told her father did her dirty, she used to be an addict, it never evolves beyond a flimsy backstory. Then, with Milo, beyond being Ava’s ex, and his odd homoerotic relationship with Teddy, there isn’t anything there, which brings us to Danica. Honestly, you may hope she is the first to die.

Why? Well, because everyone is written to be too hip, stereotypical, and Danica is subject to the worst of this. Add in her privilege, no sense that she has any desire to be anything but a housewife to a rich man, and it makes the potential of her death, like everyone else’s, meaningless. Heck, you may even root for the villain, considering what everyone did or co-signed, which I don’t think is supposed to happen.

The Big Reveal Falls Flat [62/100]

Being that I Know What You Did Last Summer operates like Scream, where the mystery of who is the killer is as important as who the targets are, and there is usually a twist thrown in, I gotta say, the twist fell flat. But it isn’t because you instantly know who it is, but again, because you don’t care about these characters.

But, focusing on who it is revealed to be, it just makes you roll your eyes. The reason isn’t strong, how they reveal themselves is partly due to the villain’s getup becoming too hot, and them explaining why they did it feels very hokey. It just overall doesn’t feel like a huge amount of effort was put in, but there was hope that, with no other horror film around the release date, and a budget of only $18 million, this could be a surprise hit.

It Sets Up A Sequel [61/100]

Without giving away all the surprises, familiar faces show up in the film to help the transition to the new generation taking over, including in a mid-credits scene. The thing is, nothing about the sequel that is presented feels worth pouring millions into. The requel itself is ho-hum, so while it is nice to see a certain someone alive and get a check in, them being presented as being back in the fold because someone new has the fisherman’s getup and hook? It’ll probably make you roll your eyes more than get excited.

Overall

Our Rating (62/100): Negative (Acquired Taste)

I Know What You Did Last Summer feels like a straight-to-streaming release that somehow snuck its way into theaters. It doesn’t feel worth the price of admission, on its own, and despite some of the talent attached, the script is too weak to utilize anyone involved to the max. Leading to an uninspired film that seemingly hoped that, with Scream on a hiatus, it could try to take advantage of the gap it left and revive a franchise that I wouldn’t say is high up on horror franchise classics. In fact, a part of me wonders if this movie only exists to keep the rights to the source material.

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