I walked into the brand new I Know What You Did Final Summer time revival with an open thoughts. Truthfully, I used to be by no means a fan of the unique movies, they at all times felt they have been made to experience off the coattails of Scream. Nonetheless, curiosity bought the higher of me.
Possibly this film can be the one to shake issues up, add a intelligent twist, or not less than give the franchise some contemporary vitality. Sadly, that didn’t occur. What we bought is a film that doesn’t simply lean on nostalgia, it virtually clings to it like a life raft.
From the beginning, the movie makes it clear it’s taking part in issues secure. The story is mainly a remix of the primary two movies with a few minor modifications, however nothing that reinvents the wheel. Each beat feels acquainted.
Worse, it’s so predictable you can work out who the killer is fairly shortly if you happen to’re paying consideration. There’s no rigidity, no surprises, only a sequence of paint-by-numbers moments wrapped in slasher clichés. The script can even remind you in regards to the yr 1997 roughly each fifteen minutes, as if repeating the date makes the callbacks really feel intelligent.
As for the tone of the movie, As an alternative of leaning into suspense and horror, the film appears to embrace comedy… deliberately or not. The viewers in my screening laughed by way of the entire thing. Not as a result of the jokes landed, however as a result of the whole expertise teetered on the sting of “so dangerous it’s good.”
The characters are so silly as they make one ridiculous dangerous determination after one other, and the dialogue is foolish. The characters are fully unlikable. Each single one appears like a caricature of a Gen Z stereotype, written with out an oz. of depth or appeal.
It’s arduous to root for anybody once you’re busy rolling your eyes at their dialogue or ready for the following dumb transfer that may get them killed. If that was the objective, then mission completed, I suppose.
The unique films weren’t that nice both, however not less than that they had a sure earnestness. Right here, the writing feels lazy, like nobody cared sufficient to present these folks any purpose to matter.
At its core, this film is a nostalgia machine working on fumes. It desperately desires to recreate the vibe of the late ’90s slasher increase whereas additionally showing self-aware, nevertheless it by no means balances both strategy. As an alternative, it serves up a hole imitation that errors references for substance.
There’s even a line from Jennifer Love Hewitt’s character saying, “Nostalgia is overrated,” and I couldn’t assist however snort as a result of the film itself is proof of that.
Ultimately, I Know What You Did Final Summer time isn’t scary, sensible, or authentic. It’s not even a responsible pleasure. It’s a shiny, uninspired retread with nothing new to supply. In case you’re into senseless slasher fluff and need to snort at absurd selections and dangerous writing, you may discover it entertaining in a “hate-watch” form of method.
For everybody else, that is one film you possibly can skip.
