I’m glad for Canadian films like “Summer of 84” (2018) because I can pretend to be an aficionado of under-the-radar foreign horror without having to learn a new language. Among the 21st century horror films to capture the 1980s, this effort from directing trio François Simard, Anouk Whissell and Yoann-Karl Whissell ranks alongside “The House of the Devil” (2009) as one of the best.
Naturally Eighties
The sharp screenplay by Matt Leslie and Stephen J. Smith is loaded with Eighties touchstones, but they aren’t applied with a trowel. Every reference flows naturally, and it often ties in with crude but on-point banter from the teen quartet. For example, tree-fort discussions about “Gremlins” and the hot babysitter next door combine into: “I’d bet you’d like her to get your Mogwai wet.”
The teens include Everykid protagonist Davey (Graham Verchere) — he with the crush on former babysitter Nikki (Tiera Skovbye) — chubby Woody (Caleb Emery), nerdy Farraday (Cory Gruter-Andrew) and toughie Eats (Judah Lewis). In the nice slow-build opening, they play Manhunt, the older-kid version of hide-and-seek that was known as Ditch in my neighborhood.
“Summer of 84” (2018)
Directors: François Simard, Anouk Whissell, Yoann-Karl Whissell
Writers: Matt Leslie, Stephen J. Smith
Stars: Graham Verchere, Rich Sommer, Judah Lewis
They gradually suspect police officer Mackey (Rich Sommer) is the Cape May Killer, who has been kidnapping and slaughtering young teen boys. The mood is enhanced by a score filled with that fuzzy bass sound that makes it seem like your speakers are shaking even at low volume, along with plenty of synthesizer.
The Eighties aesthetic further comes from the wardrobe and the tech (or lack thereof), like when Davey calls the operator to get the last number dialed from a landline. I love how the kids are intelligent as they go about their investigation, planning things out and using walkie-talkies to warn each other if Mackey is approaching.
One girl allowed
Although a boys’ POV film, “Summer of 84” has a good handle on Nikki, giving her subtle characterization. Rather than being grossed out by the boys, who she discovers spying on her with binoculars, she knows they – particularly Davey – are good at heart.
She talks to Davey about her parents’ divorce, having no one else who will listen. And she kind of likes him romantically, which is mildly pervy. But it’s cool that the film doesn’t put Nikki on a pedestal the way the kid crushing on her does.
I was lukewarm on “Stranger Things” Season 1 and “It: Chapter One.” My excuses for liking “Summer of 84” more are that the writing is less blunt (but is it really?) and the mystery is natural rather than supernatural (but why should that matter? – I like other supernatural stories).
Whatever the reason, “Summer of 84” clicked with me so much that I might try those popular titles again. I do think its grounded nature helps, as does the slow build. Mackey is mysterious, but we’re not sure he’s the killer. But he must be, because there are no other suspects. Are there?
Corrupt cop? (Spoilers)
I’ll put a SPOILER WARNING here in order to discuss what makes “Summer of 84” such a good horror film. As it turns out — despite the teens playing at being “Hardy Boys” (Davey has the whole blue-spined collection in his room’s background) — it’s not really a whodunit. Mackey is indeed the Cape May Killer, making this one of the best single-suspect horror flicks since 1983’s “Sleepaway Camp.”
But once the evidence becomes overwhelming, the story doesn’t stop being compelling. Rather, it kicks into another gear as the kids return to Mackey’s creepy basement, which we saw early in the film. I can’t recall another movie where sleuths pull back a shower curtain as creepy music builds, and it’s not a false scare. For once, there is something behind the curtain.
That moment exemplifies why “Summer of 84″ is great. Nothing about it is shallow nostalgia bait; every element is there for a reason – from naturalistic banter to final-act shocks. The investigation is rich because of the Eighties tech; the kids are real because of their budding interest in vaginas (which they decide are “awesome”) and “Gremlins.”
“Summer of 84” might have been greenlit because of the popularity of “Stranger Things.” But it comes from adults who remember the Eighties as a great – but not rose-colored – time to grow up.