FILM REVIEW: I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER (15) ESP RATING: 2/5

The recent Scream semi-reboots showed that you can successfully reignite an iconic horror franchise – but this sadly doesn’t know what it’s doing.

Just like with Scream bringing back the pairing of David Arquette/Courtney Cox, this attempts to mimic the sentimentality card by doing the same with Freddie Prinze Jr/Jennifer Love Hewitt. And even a de-aged cameo from Sarah Michelle Gellar. But this nostalgia unfortunately doesn’t save it from cliched mediocrity.

Déjà vu strikes the North Carolina town of Southport – 28 years after the massacre that sees bickering formely-wed survivors Ray Bronson (Prinze Jr) and Julie James (Love Hewitt) reprise their roles – as five young adults pretty much emulate the original, by fooling around at a winding mountain road junction after an engagement party, and diverting a car off the cliff – killing the driver.

One year later, and the fivesome – the likeable Danica (Madelyn Cline), former flame Milo (Jonah Hauer-King), her best friend Ava (Chase Sui Wonders), her on-off partner Teddy (Tyriq Withers), and their recently-out-of-rehab friend Stevie (Sarah Pidgeon) – get the dreaded note signifying ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ and lightning strikes again – as they are stalked by a terrifying killer with the famed fishhook as weapon of choice.

But this frustratingly falls foul of regular horror tropes, and tries to emulate the twist and turns delivered way more effectively in the aforementioned Scream – and ends up offering absolutely nothing new. Very disappointingly so.

And its one major curveball twist regarding an iconic character doesn’t really sit very well either – with the reasoning behind it being a bit ‘of a reach’ to say the least.

That said, it’s just about passable as a basic Friday night popcorn-crunching scarer – with plenty of blood-splattering (if surprisingly uninventive) kills – but this sadly won’t reinvigorate the series. Despite the hope for this clearly delivered in the post-credits scene.

This apathy for the franchise has been reflected in an uninspiring opening weekend, which shows what most cinema-goers won’t be doing this summer – watching this very tired horror formula.

ESP Rating: 2/5

Gavin Miller

Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough & Odeon Luxe Peterborough, Out Now

Cast: Madelyn Cline, Tyriq Withers, Chase Sui Wonders, Jonah Hauer-King, Sarah Pidgeon, Freddie Prinze, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Billy Campbell, Gabbriette Bechtel, Austin Nichols, Joshua Orpin, Sarah Michelle Gellar & Brandy

Running Time: 1 Hr 51 Mins

Director: Jennifer Kaytin Robinson

Film Review Venue: Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough

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