I STILL KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER
* 1/2 (out of 4) - an unremarkable movie
Release Date: November 13, 1998 Starring: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Freddie Prinze Jr., Brandy Norwood, Mekhi Phifer, Muse Watson, Matthew Settle, Bill Cobbs, Jennifer Esposito Directed by: Danny Cannon Distributed by: Columbia Pictures / Sony Pictures Entertainment MPAA Rating: R (intense terror violence and gore, strong language, some drug use) URL: http://www.execpc.com/~kinnopio/reviews/1998/istillknow.htm
The obvious reason for producing a sequel to an immensely popular movie is to acquire continued profits. The rationale is sound, but in many cases of this and recent years, the sequel is a shoddy product that's exposed for the cash-milking vehicle it really is. Last year's SPEED 2 and SCREAM 2, as well as this year's SPECIES II have all been products that have been decisively less than satisfactory. In some cases, a sequel can even discredit its predecessor, as with the latest neo-slasher flick, I STILL KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER. Whatever uniqueness the original might've had now seems trite and overplayed when paired with this abominable thriller.
Julie James (Jennifer Love Hewitt) and Ray Bronson (Freddie Prinze Jr.) are back from the original to star in I STILL KNOW, reprising their roles in typical fashion. Julie and Ray experience a rather predictable falling-out at the beginning of the movie, leaving the door wide open for newcomer Will Benson (Matthew Settle). Will and Julie hit it off, and along with friends Karla (Brandy Norwood) and Tyrell (Mekhi Phifer), the foursome heads off to a radio station-giveaway vacation in the tropics. Unfortunately, things aren't so peachy once they arrive, and with a regularity you could set your watch by, the infamous fisherman (Muse Watson) is back with his hook. It's another bloody showdown, complete with cliffhanger ending.
There's not much that's original about I STILL KNOW, and with the market saturated by Gen-X thrillers like this one, it's unlikely that I STILL KNOW will get any recognition other than that of a bad sequel. For die-hard fans of the genre, this will be required viewing material, but the bottom line is that the material here is just recycled from the original I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER. The aura of thrillerism surrounding the plot isn't heightened by skillful scripting or camera work, but rather a tense, string-based score and manipulative editing. The man with the hook ends up becoming very belittled this time around when the script gives him too many lines of dialogue -- he goes from being a scary figure to a nutcase in a few short and painful moments.
Much of the mystery is dropped for the sake of getting the point. The whole reason the plot exists - Julie and Karla must guess the capital of Brazil in order to win the trip from the radio station - is a dead giveaway, lessening suspense and creating a hurry-up-and-wait timing problem. And, whereas the killer's identity might've been a question in the first movie, it's almost a given here, which changes the dynamic of the movie drastically. Three or four teens run automatically from a man in a rain slicker they nonchalantly refer to as "the killer." They're almost used to it, and the performances show it - not Hewitt, nor Prinze, nor Brandy, nor Phifer give a decent show. And so, in the end, it's left wide open for a third movie and - most likely - a brand new supporting cast. God help us.
-- Craig Roush kinnopio@execpc.com -- Kinnopio's Movie Reviews http://www.execpc.com/~kinnopio
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