Teen horror "slasher" flicks have a certain recipe that's usually followed. First, find a group of attractive actors and actresses, making sure the young ladies are buxom, flat-bellied and have long flowing hair (all the better to attract the hormone-raged male teenage audience). Oh, and the ability to scream really loud for long periods of time is also preferred. The gents need to be "studly," tough guys, with the occasional tender side (for the young females present). Throw in a deranged stalker who can only kill on anniversaries of tragic events, give him some sort of signature weapon (think of Freddy Krueger and his steel-clawed hand), and throw in copious amounts of stupidity -- enough at least to kill a small town. Mix it all together and hope that by adding a line stating "From the creator of..." in the ads you'll attract the teenagers in droves to the flick.
The result: "I Know What You Did Last Summer," the latest film that's hoping to ride the coattails of last year's big hit, "Scream," to box office success. Written by the same fella, Kevin Williamson, this picture follows the above recipe to a "t," and for a while it's rather effective and interesting. The setup is perfect for this type of film, as it creates the scenario of many possible suspects, and the disintegration of the foursome's tight friendship. Not knowing who, or what the killer is, has always been a fun way to start such films, and keeps the audience guessing along with the characters in the movie. Unfortunately, this film falls flat after that promising beginning. Sure there are a few suspenseful sequences and many effective moments that will make you jump from your seat. Yet, the film makers kill off a good prime suspect too early, and eventually unmask the killer -- a big no-no in this genre. Once we see that the killer's one of us -- well, that would be true if we were all deranged killers, but you know what I mean -- the spooky "who/what is it" element is gone.
Of course, they were really grasping through thin air when they came up with this guy's appearance. I mean, c'mon, he is the Gorton's Fisherman (You know, the guy from the seafood commercials. Everybody, sing along..."Trust the Gorton's Fisherman"). Dressed in a monotone slicker and wearing a fisherman's large hat, this guy's as frightening as -- are you ready? -- the mailman. Actually, I guess those guys are scarier, especially when they go postal. Ha-ha. Anyway, yes, they put the fisherman in the shadows to make him look ominous, and he has that deep, raspy breathing that sounds really cool in the closet where he's hiding. But let's face it, he's just not going to go down in the annals as a great horror film villain. While I was surprised that they revealed his identity -- thinking "there goes the sequel possibilities" -- the film makers do make provisions for the inevitable, and probably worse, follow-up to this picture. Since the villain loses a hand in this film, we now know where his weapon -- a fisherman's hook -- will go in the next.
The film and the characters get really stupid toward the end which is something we despise in this genre. If you found yourself on a boat just thirty feet from the dock with the killer chasing you, would you a) Jump from the boat and swim to safety or b) Scream like an idiot and run around the boat to make sure the killer will chase you for several more minutes? Guess what happens here. Beyond that, there's a minor, but extremely ludicrous part of the film that involves its locale. We're told the film is set in a North Carolina fishing town, but gee, I'd swear those rocky beaches that lead up to the curvy roads on the mountains are in California (or somewhere on the Pacific coast, and to top it off, we also see a huge underwater kelp forest -- something not found along the Carolinas). So much for geographical accuracy.
The performances are decent enough to keep the film moving along, but most everyone is there just to meet a grisly demise at some moment when they're least expecting it. If you liked "Scream" you'll probably like this one as well. Just like that film, however, this one takes an interesting premise and then dummies it down way too much until it becomes just a stereotypical horror flick. Certainly not as clever as "Scream," this film is certain to scare up big audiences, however, just like that one. Which is a shame, because younger audiences are being shown inferior horror films that use simple "jump scene" elements for their big scares. We want films that get under your skin and creep you out so much that you don't want to turn off the lights at night. All this film will do is make you take notice when you're eating some Gorton's fish sticks. You'll see the drawing of the fisherman on the container and say, "Wasn't he in "I Know What You Did Last Summer?" We give this film a 3 out of 10.