Un verano infernal

It now makes more sense to me why it took until 2025 to release this 2023 movie. It's just not good. Below average in every category. End of review.

Fine, I'll say more. I normally enjoy the horror-comedy tone they were going for, but the comedic attempts at their best only made me smirk. The cast is extremely weak. The dialogue and story is as basic as it gets.

There is a decent opening scene with a cool kill. But then the kills are offscreen. Why? This is a slasher. I ended up quitting the movie after 45 minutes (about halfway through). But apparently most of the kills are offscreen. Just a baffling decision.

(1 viewing, 4/22/2025)

Hell of a Summer is a playful entry into the "camp slasher" genre, written and directed by Billy Bryk and Finn Wolfhard. Rather than leaning into the darker, grittier aspects of traditional slashers, this film feels more like a tongue-in-cheek homage-a lighthearted parody that embraces the tropes with full self-awareness. While some moments initially felt like weaknesses, they ultimately came across as intentional nods to genre clichés. It's not a horror film that takes itself too seriously, and that's part of its charm. Despite some of the criticism it's received, I had fun with it-and sometimes, that's all you need. Video review available on my YouTube channel.

This a Gen Z film and cast try to retry the Camno Horror genre with flat results. Finnland as a director set to create an original retake, was just another imitation.

It features a young cast, but most of characters didn't deliver the humor, that film critics claimed that the film had. Gore effects are minimal with most of killing off screen.

As an independent film, it feels very weak, could have really challenge the genre's tropes. Some critics has compared it's story to Scream and Sleep away Camp franchises.

Other claimed that the characterization hasa modern twist on 80s era antics, I didn't see them.

Hell of a Summer wants to be Scream meets Sleepaway Camp, but ends up feeling like the pilot of a slasher show too scared to kill off its cast. The characters are cartoonishly dumb, the kills are mostly offscreen, and the gore is weirdly tasteful for something clearly inspired by '80s splatter.

There are a few fun editing choices-some clever transitions, a grill-sizzle jump scare-but the film leans too hard on its actors' charm and not enough on actual suspense or style. The killer reveal is predictable, the comedy's uneven, and the whole thing feels too safe to be a parody and too shallow to be satire.

Compared to recent slashers like In a Violent Nature or Heart Eyes, this one's just stuck in neutral. Not terrible, just a bit of a shrug.

As one of my most anticipated films of the year, it's genuinely disappointing to be let down by Hell of a Summer. While the movie does a solid job of paying homage to iconic camp slashers like Friday the 13th, Sleepaway Camp, and The Burning, it ultimately doesn't offer much beyond the nostalgia factor. The humor feels relatively mild, and while that could be forgivable if the film leaned more heavily into its horror elements, it doesn't quite succeed in that regard either. Despite a few moments of tension, there's a striking lack of satisfying kills. In fact, out of the entire film, I counted only one on-screen death, which was a missed opportunity for a more engaging horror experience.

That said, Hell of a Summer still has its bright spots. Finn Wolfhard stands out as the film's highlight-marking the first time I can say he's truly been my favorite part of a movie. Though his comedic timing isn't always perfect, his style of humor, which resembles comedian Daniel Avidan (aka Danny Sexbang of Ninja Sex Party and Game Grumps), works well. Wolfhard's dynamic both on and off-screen with Avidan is noticeable and adds an interesting layer to his performance.

In the end, Hell of a Summer is a letdown, but it's not without its redeeming qualities. I've certainly seen worse movies, and I'm willing to give the two first-time directors a second chance, hoping they'll take what they've learned from this project to improve their future work.