Summer is usually a time for fun and games, but some teens get much more danger than they bargained for after beginning to suspect their neighbor is a serial murderer.
Once Summer of '84 kicks in, it kicks hard, and in its darkest moments, I was hoping the filmmakers had sprung on us a dream-sequence fake-out, perhaps in honor of Brian De Palma.
More subdued than it's predecessor, Summer of '84 is still a love letter to a near forgotten time in cinema. Sit back, relax and let yourself be whisked back to the simpler time of 1984.
A modest little suspense puzzle that simulates rather than builds on vastly better 'my neighbor may be a murderer' stories from Rear Window to Stranger Things.
Summer of '84 proves to be a worthy addition to the movement, with both a knack for the old familiar steps, and the ability to hit some brand new creepy beats.
Mystery-wise, the film teases viewers pretty effectively, with plenty of jolts that suggest the boys are on the right track balanced by other signs they're making something out of nothing.
Delivers a sense of nostalgia as it spins a tale that mixes equal parts comedy and real-world horror. A small film like this is such an artistic pleasure and a refreshing relief from the empty-headed, big-budget fare.
Summer Of '84 never really gives us a reason why these kids should be friends, and although we spent most of the film watching them hang out, the direction is too stiff to call it a proper hangout movie.
