REVIEW: I Still Know What You Did Last Summer By Luke Buckmaster (bucky@alphalink.com.au)
Cast: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Brandy, Mekhi Phifer, Matthew Settle, Freddie Prinze Jr., Jennifer Esposito, Muse Watson, Bill Cobb Director: Danny Cannon Screenplay: Trey Callaway
Australian theatrical release: November 26, 1998
On the Buckmaster scale of 0 stars (bomb), to 5 stars (a masterpiece): 1 star
In Scream, the killers are teenagers who slice their way into the news, loving every second of rampaging across town weary kooky white masks. In Urban Legend (which has been slated for a January '99 release), one particularly troubled college student decides to bring myths like "there's an axe-murdered in your back seat" to life. Upon the release I Know What You Did Last Summer, audiences tried to guess the identity of the murderer, examining the four central characters then moving back into sub-characters, then sub-sub-characters. The dire mistake that was made in the script of IKWYDLS was that the killer - a man with a very nasty hook - was none of these characters, and revealing his identity was just as useful as a poke in the dark with a sharp stick.
Well, the man with the hook is back. And he, um, isn't happy. Surprise surprise, Mandalay Entertainment is taking a stab at a movie franchise, this time hiring director Danny Cannon and screenwriter Trey Callaway; a completely different combination from the Jim Gillespie-Kevin Williamson duo responsible for the original. The only man of these four whose contribution is credible (if not crucial) is Williamson, the sharp writer behind Scream, Scream 2 and Halloween H20. Even though his script for IKWYDLS failed to remain as quick-witted as some of his other efforts, there were at least two or three genuinely well-written scenes. Its sequel has no such luck.
It is now two years since the original group of teenagers (one of them the lovely Sarah Michelle Gellar) committed hit and run on an abandoned highway, but Julie James (the even lovelier Jennifer Love Hewitt) has not been able to shake it from her memory. When Julie's best friend Karla (Brandy, of TV's Moesha) wins an all expenses paid trip to the Bahamas, they both take their respective boy friends along and get ready for the time of their lives. Little do they know, fisherman Ben Willis (Muse Watson) is still out to get Julie for aiding in the near fatal accident, and decides to gatecrash their party with a splurge of blood and revenge.
There is nothing in I Still Know that hasn't been done better before. The thought of a killing spree on a luxurious holiday island is quite appealing, but the setting fails to enhance the film because the setting is not necessary. Visions of sun and surf diminish when the island is tormented by an aggressive storm; so what is left looks sort of like parts of the theme park in Jurassic Park. At least something that the original film did was make use of its urban surroundings - the beauty pageant, the street parade, the clothing store - but nothing that its sequel does seems to justify its need for doing so.
Jennifer Love Hewitt is yet again gorgeous to look at, this time in a "I'm not gonna die on this island" sort of way. She carries the film as far as she can, but good-looking actors in teen slasher films rarely have much to do except look the part. Brandy doesn't contribute anything that couldn't be found in an episode of Moesha, and the rest of the cast looks suitably silly in barely developed roles.
Those even vaguely familiar with the horror scene with recognize the usual cinematic traits: uncomfortable music builds up for the kill or the bluff, characters make the worst possible choices for their survival, and the killer is seen without a disguise only at the very end. Every one of these elements are included in I Still Know, and Cannon makes it all so formulaically that the film is almost a satire. It definitely could have been one, if the screenplay had not deluged itself in its own seriousness. One of the reasons why Scream worked so well was that it wasn't afraid to take the piss out of itself on occasion moments, keeping tongue-in-cheek with the audience and subsequently remained witty and sly. Calloway's screenplay suggests no such accomplishments in this flick, as I Still Know's story is developed with bad timing and the sluggishness of an inexperienced writer.
I Still Know What You Did Last Summer is a cheap thrill. It is designed for audiences who want a shriek and a squeal, and nothing in particular to keep in their memory. Get in…get out. There are better killers to watch.
Email bucky@alphalink.com.au to subscribe to my newsletter (unless, of course, you already have) or lukebuckmaster@hotmail.com for any inquiries or feedback
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