Review: ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’

Review by James Lindorf

Amazon Prime Video decided that 15 years was too long to go between vehicular manslaughters. That streak will end with their updated take on 1997’s “I Know What You Did Last Summer.” While that original movie stayed close to the premise of the Lois Duncan novel, there are several critical changes in this new serialized version. Things begin similarly with a group of partying teens covering up an accidental death to avoid the consequences. One year after the fatal car accident, the same group of teenagers bound together by their dark secret is stalked by a brutal killer. The series features a larger and more diverse cast, lots and lots of sex, and a killer that may not be motivated purely by revenge. The first four episodes of the 8 episode season were made available on October 15th. A new episode will be released each Friday.

While the book and first two movies focused on Jennifer Love Hewitt’s Julie James, the series introduces us to Allison and her twin sister Lennon both played by Madison Iseman (Jumanji franchise). For identical twins, the two girls couldn’t be any more different. Allison is quiet, academic, virginal, and still grieving their mother after her suicide years ago. On the other hand, Lennon is aggressive, heartless, and sexually provocative. On the night of their high school graduation, Lennon and her friends promise to take a secret to their graves. Iseman is the clear standout amongst the cast not only for her dual roles and the commitment that takes but because she is the most natural at playing a teenager.

The other performances are not bad, but the other characters don’t feel like real people. They are written with one-note personalities that studio executives seem to believe represents teens. Every one of them feels like they are approaching a midlife crisis and have an attitude of, been there, done that. I mean, these kids were part of a group doing rails of cocaine and having threesomes at the graduation party with their oblivious parents a doorway away. We have established that the personalities aren’t great, and then they are saddled with cringe-worthy dialogue. When they aren’t using phrases like “My stunning queer king” that no one would use, and then it feels like someone googled “today’s most popular teen slang” and tried to use as many as they could. Brianne Tju, as the sex and Instagram-obsessed Margot, gets an unfair share of these “cutting edge lines.” Margot does get a little added depth with her evolving sexual orientation and how that secret has shaped her personality and could affect the group. The rest of the group can be summed up even more quickly. There is Ezekiel Goodman’s pseudo-good guy Dylan. Sebastian Amoruso plays Johnny, who loves two things, football and his football coach. But that’s ok they didn’t hook up until he was 18. Finally, there is Riley, the drug dealer with a troubled home life played by Ashley Moore

Another significant twist from the original story is that the kids’ parents are not only around but also connected to the larger plot. There are frequent references to a cult and maybe some mystical elements to the island they call home. Still, it doesn’t account to much in the first four episodes but should be more involved in the second half of the season. No adults stand out other than an annoying detective who wants to prove he is smart by using at least one SAT buzzword in every sentence and a tasteless housekeeper who throws a rat through her boss’ window. Hopefully, as the story evolves, they will become more critical to the story or add to the body count.

When you are talking about a slasher, you have to talk about the kills. Interestingly enough, for much of the first four episodes, the kills are almost an afterthought with long breaks in between. They are brutal and a mix of classic and inventive kills that should excite gorehounds when they do come. The more significant misstep is that the story focuses more on the teen drama than building up the tension to put the audience on edge. With all the sex and drugs, the series feels like someone had the idea of tossing a serial killer into the world of “Euphoria.”

The series is far from perfect and could use a lot of polishing. Still, it is an easy watch with plenty of drama, and the murders come at just the right moment to make you want to tune into the next episode. This iteration of “I Know What You Did Last Summer” was made to be binged. It will be interesting to see if viewership drops off after the switch to a weekly release. Based on Iseman’s performance, the way writer and executive producer Sara Goodman embraced current technology and its relationship to teens, and some quality kills “I Know What You Did Last Summer” is a 3.5 out of 5.