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I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997) More at IMDbPro »

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391 comments in total

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32 out of 55 people found the following comment useful :-
Nothing special here..., 13 December 2001
Author: bob the moo from Birmingham, UK

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Four teenagers celebrate their last days in a small fishing town and end up on a beach, drinking heavily. When driving back into town they hit a man crossing the road and decide to dump the body in the sea rather than risking their futures on a manslaughter charge. However when dumping the body the man turns out to be still alive. They drown him and vow never to speak of it again. However one year on someone is stalking the four and begins to take revenge for the previous summer's actions.

This was made once Scream made teen slasher movies cool again. However here there is none of the ironic humour or self-referencing that made Scream good. Rather this is a straight up horror thriller that lacks anything to make it special or standout from the rest. The plot revolves around a murdered fisherman, with several red-herrings thrown into the mix. The red-herrings don't really work and to be honest you pretty much don't care about the ins and outs of who's doing the killing. Really however the plot is a bit of a disappointment and it doesn't really involve you.

The biggest failing of the film is the performances. The murderer is not as effective as ones like Ghostface or Freddy - partly because he lacks screen presence but also because we all feel sorry for him - after all he's not crazy, he's only taking revenge. The teens in question make it worse - with the exception of Love Hewitt and maybe Prinze they are pretty unpleasant people - spoilt brats mainly. From the start onwards you want them to be killed - it makes it even harder to care about what's going on when you don't care if the characters live or die.

Overall this is a rather tame horror movie - low on bodycount and gore, only some action scenes are tense and exciting but most things you can see coming a mile away. The red-herrings are left unexplained at the end (why is Ray the only one not targeted?) and the end is both lazy and insulting - and of course leaves it open for a sequel. Great.

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10 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
True, it's another teen slasher flick, 13 November 2003

Author: Kristine (kristinedrama14@msn.com) from Chicago, Illinois

In the late 90's, there had seemed to be a trend of the Dawson's Creek meets Halloween slasher flicks, some had big hits like Scream, and some kinda missed like Urban Legend, then right in between came I Know What You Did Last Summer based off the book of the same name and I do mean just based on the book because the book and the movie are two entirely different tales. The book was more of a moral story while this was just a plain slasher teen flick, but over all I would say that I Know What You Did Last Summer was a decent horror flick. It starred the biggest stars of it's time: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Freddie Prinze, Jr., Jennifer Love Hewitt, and Ryan Phillipe, and surprisingly they clicked pretty well, but I think that's because they just all have to play pretty white kids with problems, lol. But it's all good, this was a fun little horror flick.

Four high school friends have graduated and are celebrating the fourth of July. They all have big plans: Julie is planning to go to Harvard, Helen is going to New York to become an actress, Ray is staying in town to help with the business of fishing, and Barry has a wrestling scholarship. They all are just having a big party and while driving home they accidentally hit a man, killing him. Freaked out and scarred for what might happen since alcohol is involved, they dump the body in the river hoping that it'll go away. But a year later when the friends re-unite, they are receiving letters claiming that someone knows what they did. Barry is then hit by a car, Helen's hair is chopped off, and Julie gets bodies put into her car trunk; they all must face the fisherman who is after them with a big hook and it seems like he does not want these kids to live.

I Know What You Did Last Summer has typical Dawson's Creek drama, but it's all good, I mean it was written by Kevin Williamson who wrote the series. But the cast did click very well and as cliché'd as the movie was, it's still good for a scare. Sarah does have one of the best damsel in distress chase scenes ever, that was pretty intense I have to admit. I Know What You Did Last Summer is a fun flick I would recommend to watch at midnight in the dark, you're gonna get jumpy a few times.

7/10

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30 out of 54 people found the following comment useful :-
Everyone should love this film!, 1 February 2000
Author: lastact from Guildford, Surrey

Exactly, everyone should - but why? Because it is an excellent film, containing a good storyline (though not one of the best) and some promising new actors and actresses. In regards to the storyline, not many viewers realise that the film was actually based on a novel written before Kevin Williamson even thought up the idea to create another horror flick - therefore the general outline is not his, and so some people's comparisons between this and Scream can be considered as wrong. However, they are right in the sense that the typical horror elements are all there, and some are similar to Scream. I feel that the statement on the video cover "scarier than Scream" is to some extent true, especially the climatic ending (I won't spoil it for any of you left to see the film)!

I enjoyed the acting performances, though sometimes the screams did get slightly out of hand - near the end, one popped up every other minute or so! Despite this, the characters were portrayed very well, and you could really notice the distinctions between them, and which characters you were likely to prefer. However one drawback to the characters was how obvious it was to spot who was going to bite it - all my sister had to do was look at the characters in a group and guess straight away.

On the whole though, I found it to be a good horror film, done proud by the talents of writer Kevin Williamson and of the cast. If you are looking for a good scare, or simply taste other films after experiencing the wonder that is "Scream", then "IKWYDLS" should be your first choice - with its many 'jumps' making you enjoy the ride all the way!

ENJOY, and most importantly, SCREAM ON!!!

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9 out of 13 people found the following comment useful :-
I Wish I Knew What I Was Doing Watching This, 14 June 2003

Author: livealot from New Zealand

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

MINOR SPOILERS

What a Dull Film. I Know What You Did Last Summer had a good idea. 4 teenagers run over a person one fateful summer night. They dump the body and vow to never speak of it again.

One year later, they break the promise - for a good reason. It seems that someone knew what they did last summer and is out to get them. So they all get killed off, one by one. It's formulatic stuff, poorly executed formulatic stuff.

There is no thrills, I'm not scared at any point in the movie, for a horror - that is sad. No one in the cast gave a truly memorable performance, so it is truly a poor film. I'll admit that I liked the ending, the only true saving grace of this movie.

I'm surprised that I actually watched to the end. 3/10

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17 out of 29 people found the following comment useful :-
Surprise! It's another teen slasher flick, 14 January 2007

Author: mjw2305 from England

Four students out for a summer party accidentally run down an old fisherman, in the panic they decide to dump the body in the sea rather than report the accident. After swearing never to mention that night again, but one year later someone else is not letting them forget about it.

It's a fairly typical teen slasher flick, beautiful girls, shallow plot, cheesy dialogue; you know the usual stuff. It's formulaic and clichéd, but who cares it's great fun, it has plenty of action and thrills; and the cast are pretty good.

Not as good as some films in the genre, but it certainly entertains.

6/10

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8 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
A decent teen slasher film, but one can't help feeling that Kevin Williamson missed a big chance to send up traditional horror archetypes once more..., 21 April 2005

Author: Extraordinary Machine

I Know What You Did Last Summer

It's the Fourth of July, and Julie (Jennifer Love Hewitt, TV's "Party of Five"), Ray (Freddie Prinze Jr.), Helen (Sarah Michelle Gellar), and Barry (Ryan Phillippe) are intent on celebrating their graduation from high school, which, for them, means driving to a secluded beach, getting drunk, telling ghost stories and making out with each other. But later that evening, on the way back to town, they accidentally hit a man with their car, apparently killing him. After thinking things through, the group reluctantly decides to dump the body in the sea, and swear to take the secret of what they did that night to their graves. One year later, a still guilt-ridden Julie returns from college to her hometown, and finds an incriminating message in the mail: somebody knows what they did last summer. After rounding up her circle of former friends, she tries to figure out who alive could have seen them leave a man for dead. But the events surrounding the accident may be more complicated than any of them had originally thought.

Last year, screenwriter Kevin Williamson came out of nowhere with 'Scream, a self-referential satire on the teen slasher oeuvre wrapped warmly in classic Wes Craven thrills. Unexpectedly, but deservedly, a surprise runaway box office success followed. Based on the reception of his feature debut, and before Craven and the folks at Dimension came knocking for a 'Scream' sequel (due out this winter), Williamson took it upon himself to bring author Lois Duncan's novel 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' to the big screen. The end product is a decent teen slasher film, but one can't help feeling that Williamson missed a big chance to send up traditional horror archetypes once more.

As the world of 'Last Summer' wasn't originally Williamson's own creation, it's to be expected that the film not be strung through with the same knowing streak of humour that was the driving force behind 'Scream'. Or maybe it's just that Williamson had grown tired of the same old jokes, and opted to shun them out of 'Last Summer' altogether. But through opting to stay within the lines for his latest film, Williamson has gutted what made his first so special. Sadly, 'Last Summer' does not stand apart from the crowd of horror films that Kevin Williamson so skilfully mocked ten months ago. That said, this is perhaps the first slasher film to come out since 'Scream', and, against the odds, this serves to the film's advantage, as it's almost quite enjoyable watching the clichés play out in front of you exactly as predicted.

Ironically, British director Jim Gillespie ('Joyride'), in his first Hollywood production, has made a good effort to mimic the works of Wes Craven, specifically with the commanding score by John Debney. Marco Beltrami's work on 'Scream' is the template used by Debney here, and the versatile composer manages to accentuate the tension well, despite signalling some of the scares. However, Gillespie makes the mistake of depicting the death scenes too graphically. Gore could have been used well in 'Last Summer', but Gillespie leaves the camera rolling for too long during the vicious attacks on the killer's victims, which end up more repulsive than anything. Gillespie ain't no Craven, that's for sure.

The cast (or should I say group of attractive teens that are waiting to be offed?) also seem to be taking this project a little too unsmilingly, with actors Freddie Prinze Jr. and Ryan Phillippe more concerned with trying to see which one of them can ham it up the most than actually developing characters worth caring about. Jennifer Love Hewitt is decent enough here, but her performance never fully convinces. It's up to Sarah Michelle Gellar to strap ably into "damsel in distress" mode (something that the actress should know about, starring on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" week after week), and does more than necessary to make the audience truly feel for Helen Shivers as she laments her shattered dreams. Jamie Lee Curtis, you might want to keep an eye on your Scream Queen coronet.

The final act of the film is hard to resist, as it stages a series of nice set pieces that keep you close to the edge of your seat at all times, right up to the agreeably trite, sequel-friendly ending. But Williamson needs to learn how to wean the parody away from his screenplays without completely robbing them of any innovativeness. I admire the man for not repeating himself, but he seems to have progressed right into a career corner with 'Last Summer'. 'Scream 2' will most likely return him to the top of the pyramid once again, but I'd rather not think about what might happen after that.

~ 7/10 ~

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10 out of 16 people found the following comment useful :-
One Good Movie!!!, 16 April 2008

Author: Dragoneyed363 from United States

I Know What You Did Last Summer was one of the very first horror movies I watched so right off the bat I thought it was the bees knees.So I'm looking through my movies a couple of years later and what do I see!So I thought I would put this movie in,because I had forgotten all about it,and I hadn't watched it in a while.After I was finished this time I thought it was even better than before!I Know What You Did Last Summer was an outstanding movie,and I don't see why everybody bags on it all the time!It wasn't horrible people!The celebrities had the best characters I have seen in a horror movie and they pulled them off!This is a good movie and has a really good sequel and I just don't see what is so terrible about it! (Don't even think about watching the 3rd film!!!!!)

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10 out of 16 people found the following comment useful :-
Are you sure you did what you think you did?, 29 June 2001

Author: Michael O'Keefe from Muskogee OK

Very good horror flick. Sometimes a little obvious, but yet still fun to watch. The gore comes in quick bursts. The suspense keeps you on the edge of your seat and then hooked. Four friends are stalked by an unknown killer after accidentally hitting a man with a car and dumping his body.

The foursome is made up of Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Freddie Prinze Jr. and Ryan Phillippe. As far as acting ability goes Hewitt and Prinze showed their potential for bigger things. Anne Heche plays one of her most strangest roles and does so with conviction. Muse Watson plays the fisherman swinging a mean hook. This scary enough to keep you happy, slasher fiends.

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4 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
Still great, after all these years..., 22 June 2009

Author: daBronze from United States

Its kind of hard to believe "I Know What You Did Last Summer" came out almost 12 years ago...

I recently watched the movie on Blu-Ray (which looked amazing) and its shocking how well it has held up over the years, its still a lot of fun. When you look back at the whole teen-horror slasher craze in the late 90s due to the success of "Scream" I would say "I Know What You Did Last Summer" is easily the best of the bunch. Great script, fantastic directing and an all-star teen cast. All the actors and actresses in this movie were teen icons in the 90s.

Overall - a great movie that is still entertaining over 10 years later 9/10

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4 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
I love this movie., 27 August 2006

Author: CanadianRose14 from United States

When I first watched this movie I only watched it for Sarah Michelle Gellar. But after seeing it I loved everything about it. And I came on here expecting at least a 6.5. But a 5.2? The story is original. Four teens are in great danger one year after their car hits a stranger whose body they dump in the sea. Everyone gave great performances, esp. Sarah Michelle Gellar. On top of that, this movie was frightening. This movie is great and I definitely recommend it. It is definitely a movie you should watch for both entertainment and originality purposes. It is definitely one to see if you enjoyed 'Scream'. The many plot twists and the many scares it will give you makes it an excellent movie.

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