lindsayrock
I never write reviews but this film was so upsetting I had to. It is about three people who are all involved in killing an autistic boy. They are cruel to him and kill him. And that is it. No revenge, nothing. You are told what their sentences are but there is no court case, investigation, nothing. A complete waste of my time. I love horror films and have watched thousands but I literally felt sickened. Even if you have a strong stomach and don't mind torture films, don't bother with this. It is just sad and pointless.
jtindahouse
I'm a little torn over how I feel about 'Cruel Summer'. It's based on a true story, which makes the pretty horrific theme of the film even tougher to stomach. It's certainly a movie that pulls no punches and I always appreciate that in a movie. Showing everything and not holding back is a way of honouring your audience and showing them respect.My problem with the film though is that I'm not sure it earns the right to show what it does. What I mean by that is that a film has to do more than simply be a retelling of events. It also needs to provide commentary and subliminal opinions, otherwise it might as well be a dramatisation featured in a documentary. I felt that 'Cruel Summer' was too simple in its approach. At times it doesn't even feel like a movie you are watching.This film is certainly not for the faint-hearted. There are some pretty horrific images featured here that are definitely not going to be to everyone's liking. It's a watchable movie, that could have been more.
aleistad-1
Like another reviewer said, I suspect the producer's intention was a cash in on gratuitous violence, rather than exploring the story and making a commentary. I do not mind tragic movies, but this was not done right in my opinion. Inasmuch as it's based on a true story, this movie must be very hurtful for the relatives of the protagonist.Distasteful cinema and a missed opportunity. It just left me angered at the filmmakers as much as the evil characters depicted. The latter were too simplistically portrayed. None of the actors were actually bad though.
Geek Legion of Doom
Although not really a Horror film exactly, the movie we a presented with is tragically horrific and harrowing, it is almost a horror movie. A film very similar in plot to the movie Eden Lake. It's essentially, a feature movie of one of those bullying videos that you've seen online, just taken to the extreme. Some minor spoilers a head The Bad - Some small logic issues. It felt like Julia just pulled Danny's name out of thin air. With no real reason why she decided to choose him, it was somewhat jarring. Secondly , we are told that Calvin has just moved to the area and we see him unpacking. So how exactly does he know Nick & Julia? - It has that annoying trope, where it plays a scene from towards the end of the movie at the beginning, then kinda goes back in time and shows you the events leading up. That type of thing is done in too many movies and TV nowadays and undercuts the story as you are waiting for events to lead to this - The acting by the guy who plays Danny's father is not as good as anyone else in the movie.The Good - Amazing acting, The guy who played Danny was great particularly in his line delivery. But the stand out actors for me were the 3 chav characters. Nicholas, a truly despicable human who you really do hate and portrayed realistically too. Credit it to the actor. Julia, a realistic portrayal of a girl who let her self get talked into things but also manipulates others too. Scenes where she has a painted smile to Danny's parents were very chilling. Calvin , the most layered character who you feel with the right push could get out of the mire and have a better life. - Directing, masterful. Ramping up the tension,making the escalating violence seem hard and real .Great camera work and great pacing. - Considering there isn't a lot of plot in this story you feel utterly engaged 8.5/10 We will have a video review on our Youtube channel ' GEEK LEGION OF DOOM ' if you care to watch it
AD
