Hell of a Summer is a 2023 comedy horror slasher film in which the counsellors of a summer camp are terrorised by a masked killer.
Written and directed by Billy Bryk and Finn Wolfhard. Produced by Fred Hechinger and Jay Van Hoy. Executive produced by Jason Bateman, Drew Brennan, Michael Costigan and Kristy Neville.
The American-Canadian 30West-Aggregate Films-Parts & Labor Films co-production stars Finn Wolfhard, D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Fred Hechinger, Abby Quinn, Julia Lalonde, Billy Bryk, Matthew Finlan, Daniel Gravelle, Susan Coyne, Rosebud Baker, Krista Nazaire, Julia Doyle and Pardis Saremi.
TIFF blurb:
“Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk are no strangers to genre throwbacks. Having launched their careers starring in some of the decade’s most visible nostalgia vehicles (Stranger Things, Ghostbusters: Afterlife), their sardonic horror-comedy Hell of a Summer assuredly slides into the requisite rhythms and rituals of a 1980s summer camp slasher, while adding a dash of the self-reflexivity that defined the masked-killer renaissance of the 1990s.
Starring as a pair of horny teenagers looking to score with their fellow counsellors at the rustic Camp Pineway, Wolfhard and Bryk join a veritable murderer’s row of would-be victim archetypes from himbo to mean girl, in a collective fight to survive the night after a slasher begins to wreak havoc the weekend before the campers are due to arrive.
The most prominent character of the bunch is Jason, an older, keener counsellor who refuses to accept that he has possibly outgrown the position. Portrayed by Fred Hechinger (the Fear Street trilogy) with an amusingly manic bombast, Jason’s eccentricity makes him the number one suspect once the bodies start piling up. Could his arrested development have manifested in murder, or is he your vintage red herring? His name is Jason after all….
No matter the twist, first-time directors Wolfhard and Bryk nimbly keep all the slicing and dicing on the lighter side of the genre, pinning a sincere heart on its sleeve, and not merely on the pointy end of a machete.”
Reviews:
“Wolfhard and Bryk evoke multiple movie references and lean into slasher conventions, but the focus is all about giving a voice to a specific demographic. On that front, it succeeds; Hell of a Summer isn’t really a slasher comedy so much as it is a representation of actual teens telling a story about transitioning into adulthood over what was meant to be one final hoorah at summer camp.” ★★½ Bloody Disgusting
“Hell of a Summer is a delightful mix that strikes the right balance of ’80s horror nostalgia and fresh, modern creativity. While it occasionally stumbles in its visual execution, the clever narrative and sharp societal insights ensure it’s a movie worth watching. With a cast that shines and two budding directors showcasing immense promise, this is one flick that’s bound to leave the audience with a smile on their face and a knife in their back.” Deadline
” …Hell of a Summer is more of a comedy than it is a horror film. Most of the kills are off-screen and none of them are scary. But as Baby’s First Slasher Flick, it may just do the trick. Wolfhard and Bryk aren’t saying anything new with Hell of a Summer, especially with similarly themed movies like The Final Girls and You Might Be the Killer already in the canon.” ★★★ Dread Central
“Hell of a Summer is a hell of a fun time best enjoyed with a crowd. Finn Wolfhard & Billy Bryk craft a vicious love letter to 80s slasher films laced with dark satirical humor and some gnarly kills. Filmmaking can be a bit shoddy & shadowy but the cast is likable, with Fred Hechinge & Abby Quinn standing out.” ★★★½ Matt Neglia
“Oh Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk went on their Scream slasher sh*t but made it, dare I say, campier?! So well well-crafted direction and gore gore-wise and thoroughly funny. Let them pen the next Scream movie. Wait, no, let them make an adult Scooby-Doo movie.” ★★★½ Rendy Jones
Release:
Hell of a Summer had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on September 10, 2023.
Trailer:
Currently unavailable.
Technical specs:
1 hour 28 minutes
