Good, humorous, scary, and horny, “I Know What You Did Final Summer time” is the proper summer season leisure, an escapist thriller that raises critical ethical questions however by no means will get slowed down by them. Each a sequel to the 1997 slasher movie of the identical identify and an origin story for a brand new set of characters who coexist with sequence regulars Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freddie Prinze Jr., “I Know What You Did Final Summer time” pays respect to its predecessor (in addition to 1998’s underrated “I Nonetheless Know What You Did Final Summer time”) with out being paralyzed by its affect — it’s a film as thrilling within the new instructions it takes as it’s satisfying in its recreations of the primary movie’s pleasures.
It’s additionally one of the vital felicitous pairings of auteur and studio task in latest reminiscence, as “Do Revenge” director Jennifer Kaytin Robinson applies her darkly comedian sensibility to preexisting IP in a method that advantages each the filmmaker and the franchise. As in “Do Revenge” (in addition to her criminally underseen MTV sequence “Candy/Vicious”), Robinson wraps weighty themes associated to loss, trauma, remorse, and vengeance in a candy-colored bundle that goes down with the infectious ease of a Sabrina Carpenter pop tune.
“I like telling tales that may be about one thing darkish, however which have this type of popcorn commerciality to them,” Robinson instructed IndieWire on an upcoming episode of the Filmmaker Toolkit podcast. “I believe all of my films have this type of wink to them.” In revisiting the world of “I Know What You Did Final Summer time,” a film about characters coping with the aftermath of a shared secret crime, the director (who co-wrote the script with Sam Lansky and Leah McKendrick) wished to delve into the identical thorny points as the unique film from a brand new perspective.
“I wished it to be one thing that felt like a twin flame to the 1997 unique,” Robinson stated. “That was the place the place I began. What does this appear to be in the present day? What does accountability appear to be in the present day? What does a narrative about morality appear to be in the present day?” In crafting a enjoyable summer season film that wouldn’t insult the viewers’s intelligence, Robinson regarded to the movie that created the concept of the summer season blockbuster 50 years in the past.
“‘Jaws’ was an enormous one,” Robinson stated when ticking off her influences on “I Know What You Did Final Summer time,” noting that, like “Jaws” director Steven Spielberg, she wished to make a film that was each present and timeless. She additionally wished to observe in Spielberg’s footsteps when it got here to presenting the movie’s gore — to maintain it from pushing aside a basic viewers with out sanitizing or trivializing it.
“There are jokes on this film, it’s enjoyable, however I didn’t need the violence to be humorous,” Robinson stated. “Because the film goes deeper and our core characters are dying, I actually wished all of these moments to really feel fairly visceral and upsetting. However I didn’t need there to be a barrier for entry. I wished this to be the form of horror film that’s scary and enjoyable, and also you seize your finest good friend and also you’re screaming within the bounce scares. It’s R-rated, and I didn’t need it to really feel delicate, however I did need it to be a enjoyable night time out on the films.”
“Jaws” had a extra particular affect as properly when it comes to the presentation of the city of Southport. A working-class fishing hamlet within the 1997 movie, Southport right here has been reinvented as a summer season vacationer vacation spot — a change that permits Robinson to riff on the plot and milieu of “Jaws,” with an unstoppable slasher filling in for the shark.
“The gentrification of Southport gave us this means to make one thing that felt like sweet,” Robinson stated of the change, which supplies the brand new “I Know What You Did Final Summer time” a way more vibrant palette than the extra muted unique — although Robinson is effusive in her enthusiasm for the primary movie’s visible type.
“I believe the unique is a extremely fantastically shot film,” Robinson stated. “There are actually placing frames, like one the place the digicam pushes in by way of this scrim on Sarah Michelle Gellar and Ryan Phillippe. I take into consideration that shot on a regular basis.” One other factor Robinson thought of as she launched into “I Know What You Did Final Summer time” was the long-lasting look of the hook-wielding fisherman killing off the characters one after the other. “I believe the unique slicker and the unique hook work very well within the unique films. That stated, I assumed we may ratchet it up.”
Working with costume designer Mari-An Ceo, Robinson up to date the killer’s costume each to suit the id of the brand new assassin and to amplify the wardrobe’s extra threatening qualities. “ I wished the hook to be sharper, so we created a blade on the within of the hook,” Robinson stated. “There are a few sequences the place somebody’s throat is slit with the within of the blade. And I wished the slicker to really feel a bit of extra utilitarian, so we gave it a hood.”
The principle guideline for the costume was realism, in line with Robinson’s need to maintain the film as grounded as attainable amid the heightened humor and horror. “We wished it to really feel like that is one thing that got here out of any person’s closet,” Robinson stated. “One thing that has been there for years and years and years and is now getting used to cloak a assassin. As a result of this isn’t a supernatural villain — it’s simply [a person] who’s murdering. So I wished it to really feel extra actual and extra intense.”
That depth was fine-tuned within the enhancing course of, throughout which Robinson tried to determine when and how one can reveal data in a method that will hold the suspense mounting. “It’s not nearly when it’s revealed, but in addition the quantity of data,” she stated. “How are you telling a narrative in a method that doesn’t give an excessive amount of away however retains the viewers engaged? It’s onerous to maintain individuals’s consideration as a result of we dwell within the age of iPhones and TikTok and scrolling and all of that, so it’s a extremely delicate stability constructing a thriller like this for contemporary audiences.”
That stated, Robinson will not be solely proud of the place she landed however prepared for extra. “I’d be mendacity if I stated I didn’t have an thought for a sequel,” she stated. “I really like these characters. I really like this world. Making this film was so unbelievably enjoyable. So if I’m invited again to do one other one, I’d love to do this.”
“I Know What You Did Final Summer time” opens in theaters on Friday, July 18. To be sure to don’t miss Jennifer Kaytin Robinson’s upcoming episode of Filmmaker Toolkit, subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or your favourite podcast platform.