I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER (1997)
A Film Review Copyright Dragan Antulov 2003
Following the success of SCREAM in 1996, Hollywood studios tried to cash in on new popularity of teen horror. However, in case of I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER, this effort wasn't successful due to misreading of the original SCREAM formula. Wes Craven's film worked because it was both updated version and parody of 1980s teen horror films. In case of I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER, the whole "parody" part of the formula was ejected, with predictable results.
The script, based on 1972 novel by Lois Duncan, is written by Kevin Willaimson, best known for his work on SCREAM and teen-themed TV show DAWSON'S CREEK. The plot, set in small North Carolina fishing town, begins with four arrogant teenagers celebrating Fourth of July with night trip to the beach. While returning, they hit a bystander with a car and, fearing that the incident might destroy their careers and future lives, decide to dump still living man to the sea. One year later they start receiving letters with words "I know what you did last summer" and it becomes apparent that they are stalked by homicidal maniac who wants to kill them one by one.
I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER was one of rare 1990s horror films based on literary source and because of that Kevin Williamson's script at times gave impression of being something more than a cheap excuse for having pretty teenagers slashed on screen. In those brief moments this film looks more like a serious drama of growing up and the way how life quickly destroys young people's dreams and ambitions. Those moments are brief and almost unnoticeable - for most of the time I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER is textbook example of the cliches so cleverly mocked in SCREAM. Here those cliches aren't mocked - they are taken seriously and the film lacks humour on any level. Even those less familiar with rules of the horror genre won't have much problem in determining the ending. Director Jim Gillespie, on the other hand, creates few interesting scenes, but he can't compensate script flaws and on-screen butchering soon becomes repetitive and boring. I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER is, in essence, standard 1980s teen horror which, nevertheless, lacks some of the genre ingredients - the gore is toned down and nudity, one of 1980s standards, is absent. On the other hand, young cast - Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Freddie Prinze Jr. and Ryan Philippe - does its best while trying to put some life into one-dimensional and not particularly believable character; their efforts are overshadowed by Anne Heche in small, but very creepy supportive role. In the end, I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER could be recommended only to the most fanatical genre aficionados.
RATING: 3/10 (+)
Review written on December 4th 2003
Dragan Antulov a.k.a. Drax http://film.purger.com - Filmske recenzije na hrvatskom/Movie Reviews in Croatian http://www.ofcs.org - Online Films Critics Society
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