Summer of Sam 4 stars (Out of 4) Reviewed by Mac VerStandig critic@moviereviews.org http://www.moviereviews.org June 28, 1999 ***USA Release Date - July 2, 1999***
A powerful and unforgettable film, Spike Lee's Summer of Sam is, to date, the best drama of 1999. The chief feature of the production is its background setting, one so intriguing that it is capable of being an entire plot: New York City in the summer of 1977. By adding a fictionalized subplot putting several characters under a magnifying glass, the film is able to not only use these rich events, but a study of human paranoia resulting from them as well. The movie uses these great settings and shockingly forthright violence to tie these plots together so well.
In the summer of 1977 New York City had a heat wave bringing temperatures well over 100 degrees, the Yankees were on there way to a world series victory led by Reggie Jackson's three dramatic home runs, a blackout occurred that put the city that never sleeps in a zombie-like state for days, and the city's first genuine serial killer, David Berkowitz, calling himself "Son of Sam," roamed the streets preying on innocent young women.
As the temperatures rise, and the body count increases, a certain insanity comes about the city that is only further stimulated by the other events. Spike Lee's fictionalized group of characters from the Bronx, led by Vinny (John Leguizamo) slowly fall victim to the paranoia that a serial killer presents, and seek a scapegoat to reassure themselves of their safety. Using fractured logic they reach the conclusion that this murderer, whoever he may be, must be from their neighborhood. So a list of everyone they consider to be a weird-o is drawn up, and at the top of their list is aspiring punk rocker Ritchie (Adrien Brody) who soon becomes the subject of continuous persecution from the group.
Son of Sam (Michael Badalucco) actually has less than 15 minutes of screen time in this production. The time that he is on screen proves to be some of the most horrifying and frightening moments of the entire film. Every murder he commits during the movie is shown with explicit detail for a period of time just long enough to make it sink real deep inside of you. Not once during any of these beautifully choreographed murders do you see the killer's face, just those of people realizing that they are about to lose their lives.
Summer of Sam also features a strong sexual content aside from the violence and obvious use of foul language. Several scenes focus on conversations regarding oral sex techniques, and styles. One scene includes three-way sexual activities. Being that a subplot of marriage problems with Vinny and his wife (Mira Sorvino) comes about, this otherwise excessive sexual content is actually a building block of the film's excellence.
The production includes an incredible panoply of background settings and musical pieces. Scenes range from the streets of New York to Studio 54, with music from groups like ABBA to Elton John. The film also uses a delightful contrast technique using upbeat music as the murders take place, creating an incredible chill.
When David Berkowitz announced that he had received orders to kill from a dog, people were equally shocked and amused. He had been a strong presence in New York City for over a year, and that was his reasoning. Comparatively, Summer of Sam is both shocking and entertaining, making it a strong presence and great film at the same time.
The review above was posted to the
rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the
review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright
belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due
to ASCII to HTML conversion.
Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews