Summer of 84

When I stumbled upon this 2017 movie titled "Summer of 84", I had never actually heard about it. But the movie's cover and its synopsis seemed interesting. Plus, the fact that it was a horror movie that I hadn't already seen definitely helped convince me to sit down and watch it.

Initially I was lead to believe that this was a horror movie, but it turns out that it was a mystery thriller. But as it played out, writers Matt Leslie and Stephen J. Smith put together a rather enjoyable script and a nicely written mystery thriller. It was a storyline that grabs the audience right from the very beginning and takes the audience along on a genuinely entertaining story.

I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble in "Summer of 84". It should be noted that the cast ensemble in the movie was quite good and talented. The acting performances were good, and the actors and actresses portrayed their characters nicely and brought both the storyline and the characters to life on the screen in a rewarding way. I was especially impressed with actor Rich Sommer's performance of Wayne Mackey. The character gallery and dialogue in the movie was really well-written.

The movie definitely looked and felt like it was set in the mid-1980s, there was a lot of nice touches and attention to detail throughout the course of the movie. And I have to say that this visual presentation of the movie really set the stage quite nicely, and added so much to the movie.

"Summer of 84" turned out to be quite an enjoyable movie, and it was a nice surprise of a movie. I was genuinely and thoroughly entertained throughout the course of the 105 minutes that the movie ran for. And it is a movie that I warmly recommend, especially if you enjoy a compelling mystery thriller with a good story and good characters.

This is a good old fashioned mystery thriller, and is well-worth watching.

My rating of "Summer of 84" lands on a seven out of ten stars.

This movie gives you all the great things from the 80s nostalgia filled summer adventure movies that we all love.... Then, best of all.....they throw your expectations off a 30 story skyscraper.

Summer of 84 goes where few movies of this genre will. They completely subvert your expectations EXPERTLY! The greatness of movies like Stand by Me, The Goonies, and maybe a little bit too obviously, Stranger Things of course, is paired with a 3rd act taken from your most feared a24 horror film.

If you think you know how this ends, you do not. I don't understand how this movie isn't more popular. I had an absolute blast with this film.

First and foremost - this film is not to be compared to Stranger Things and / or It because it was never intended to be compared to those films.

Summer of '84 is a well constructed indie slow-burn film which draws on the neighborhood and suburban vibe which was only realized fully in this country during the 1980's. Harkening back to such classic films as The 'Burbs, Rear Window, When A Stranger Calls Back and other such '80s gems that hone in on the mentality of evil in our midst sight brought about by the Cold War and anti-communist rhetoric of 1950's McCarthyism.

Many of our younger readers will not remember a time when kids actually played outside at night in the neighborhood. Games we all loved such as Kick the Can or War or Flashlight Tag, games that parents secretly worried would expose us to that unknown evil... it is this mindset that Summer of '84 sets itself on.

Not your typical serial killer film, but I enjoyed it thoroughly. I will say I was surprised by the ending as I am cursed with determining the plot too early for most films - this one blindsided me and for that I thank the writers.

Haters of this film either 1) Don't understand that a horror movie doesn't have to be all in-your-face or 2) have no recollection of life during that period so don't see it as realistic. I was that age during the '80s and I vividly remember playing those games, being exposed to nudie mags, doing the neighborhood festivals, hearing about killers and half-wishing something happened in my area so I could play hero.

Well done production crew.

Yes, it resembles the first season of Stranger Things. Yes, it echoes Disturbia. I suppose it even tangentially recalls the remake of It if you've never watched real 70s/ 80s horror. Still, this film has its own take on the eighties and kid-centered horror. I liked it more than Disturbia (which was too slick) and more than the remake of It (which was too CGI action-oriented to be scary). Even though the story of Summer of 84 is not at all supernatural, the film recalls Phantasm (1979) in the way that its mood blends easy going playfulness with eerie suspense and horror. The cast is good, the writing is strong, the cinematography is spot on, the editing is tight, and the score is lush in its own synthesized way. Summerof 84 may be more creepy than horrific, but in that vein, it succeeds!

Suspenseful, with good acting. Highly recommend. Takes a little while to get started but once it does you aren't bored for a second.