Summer of 84 (2018)

Summer of 84: Directed by François Simard, Anouk Whissell, Yoann-Karl Whissell. With Graham Verchere, Judah Lewis, Caleb Emery, Cory Gruter-Andrew. After suspecting that their police officer neighbor is a serial killer, a group of teenage friends spend their summer spying on him and gathering evidence, but as they get closer to discovering the truth, things get dangerous.

“First and foremost – this film is not to be compared to Stranger Things and / or It because it was never intended to be compared to those films.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSummer of u0026#39;84 is a well constructed indie slow-burn film which draws on the neighborhood and suburban vibe which was only realized fully in this country during the 1980u0026#39;s. Harkening back to such classic films as The u0026#39;Burbs, Rear Window, When A Stranger Calls Back and other such u0026#39;80s gems that hone in on the mentality of evil in our midst sight brought about by the Cold War and anti-communist rhetoric of 1950u0026#39;s McCarthyism.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eMany of our younger readers will not remember a time when kids actually played outside at night in the neighborhood. Games we all loved such as Kick the Can or War or Flashlight Tag, games that parents secretly worried would expose us to that unknown evil… it is this mindset that Summer of u0026#39;84 sets itself on.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNot your typical serial killer film, but I enjoyed it thoroughly. I will say I was surprised by the ending as I am cursed with determining the plot too early for most films – this one blindsided me and for that I thank the writers.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHaters of this film either 1) Donu0026#39;t understand that a horror movie doesnu0026#39;t have to be all in-your-face or 2) have no recollection of life during that period so donu0026#39;t see it as realistic. I was that age during the u0026#39;80s and I vividly remember playing those games, being exposed to nudie mags, doing the neighborhood festivals, hearing about killers and half-wishing something happened in my area so I could play hero.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWell done production crew.”