Sequel: Cruel Summer II (2023) by Scott Tepperman

Director: Scott Tepperman

Year: 2023

Country: USA

Alternate Titles: N/A

Genre: Slasher

Plot:

Having survived the previous encounter, the traumatized survivors try to move on with their lives using a play based on the experience, but the more they try to work through the rehearsal the more they come to believe the surviving killer has returned and must fight him again to get away alive.

Review:

Overall, this was a solid enough continuation of the original with some likable factors. Among the more enjoyable features here is the means of logically setting up the means of carrying over the story from the original about how the survivors of the previous massacre made out and got on with their lives. The setup with the girls working jobs and trying to get to a sense of normalcy afterward despite the series of hints that their lives are still being affected by the killer that leads rather nicely into the ploy to set up the play as a healing process. Despite how seemingly insensitive it feels, the mindset behind it works nicely enough that it can work as a way of bringing back their past trauma and the interaction of the killer once again.

This brings up the kind of enjoyably cheesy setup for the latter stalking scenes where the remaining killer appears out of nowhere and returns to torment the group not just with the usual shock ambushes but more traditional stalking scenes that continue the throwback attitude of the original. The initial attack on the friends at their homes or the flashbacks to showcase the backstory of how the deranged psychos were able to figure out the party was happening at their house not only clears up some minor questions about what they were doing at the house but also has some decent enough kill scenes as well. Other scenes set up around the theater where the play is being performed have a lot more fun to them as he winds through the nameless cast to bring about a decent enough finale. These are enough to make the film a likable genre effort.

There are some issues with this one that bring it down. The biggest issue here is the somewhat cheesy means of bringing about the play to try to deal with the traumatic events of the past which is immensely ridiculous and doesn't serve this one all that well. Figuring this one being a therapeutic exercise but only triggering up the past indiscretions is simply way too goofy an idea to take seriously as a means of serving a person in any kind of positive manner. Also, the idea of the film being centered on this but spending far too much time on the exploits of the group thinking they haven't escaped from the killer causes the pacing to be all over the place with rushes of great elements coming into play quickly only to then abandon these elements for long stretches of the film.

The other issue here stems from this factor in that the finale where it tries to deal with the play itself is so underwhelming and stupid that there’s never a chance it will do anything other than frustrate. Already appearing so late in the film that it’s hard to get up an interest in it with the way the cast and crew treat it which is a rather huge issue, this section also tries to serve up a series of ludicrous twists simply to pad out the running time and keep the chases going where it’s not entirely possible to know if it’s bordering on a parody of the genre or if it’s being genuine in its attempts to think these are going to be worthwhile surprises since this section of the film is so obviously rushed through it’s somewhat hard to care. As well as the low-budget approach taken here, these end up bringing the film down.

Overview: **/5

A massive step-down from the original slasher entry, this one manages to be likable enough for what it is but still has quite a bit of issues that might prove to be a big letdown based on the solid indie slasher original. Those who aren’t turned off by the flaws or are hardcore indie slasher fanatics will like this one the most while most others that aren’t into these factors should heed caution here.