Summer of 84 (2018)

After suspecting that their police officer neighbor is a serial killer, a group of teenage friends spend their summer spying on him and gathering evidence, but as they get closer to discovering the truth, things get dangerous.

Directors:

François Simard, Anouk Whissell

Writers:

Matt Leslie, Stephen J. Smith

Stars:

Graham Verchere, Judah Lewis, Caleb Emery

4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Graham Verchere	...	Davey Armstrong
Judah Lewis	...	Tommy 'Eats' Eaton
Caleb Emery	...	Dale 'Woody' Woodworth
Cory Gruter-Andrew	...	Curtis Farraday (as Cory Grüter-Andrew)
Tiera Skovbye	...	Nikki Kaszuba
Rich Sommer	...	Wayne Mackey
Jason Gray-Stanford	...	Randall Armstrong
Shauna Johannesen	...	Sheila Armstrong
William MacDonald	...	Sheriff Caldwell
Harrison Houde	...	Bobby Coker
Aren Buchholz	...	Kyle
Susie Castillo	...	Brenda Woodworth
Reilly Jacob	...	Dusty Dewitt
Jaiven Natt	...	Young Kid
J. Alex Brinson	...	Officer Cole

Storyline

After suspecting that their police officer neighbor is a serial killer, a group of teenage friends spend their summer spying on him and gathering evidence, but as they get closer to discovering the truth, things get dangerous.

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Plot Keywords:

retro horror | serial killer | suburbia | group of friends | friendship | 

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 August 2018 (USA)

Also Known As:

Summer of 84

Filming Locations:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Brightlight Pictures, Gunpowder & Sky

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Color:

Color (ACES)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39:1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Anachronisms: There are a number of slang terms and gestures that are out of place in 1984. Some examples are the words "convo" and "ginger," the idiom "take a chill pill," the high five, and the fear of AIDS which wasn't widely known until the following year.

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Goofs

There are several arcade machines at the bowling center scene. One of them is Polybious, which never existed (might explain the Out Of Order sign taped to the screen). Next to it is an Atari Asteroids that had been converted to LCD flat screen and is missing it's cardboard bezel. LCD monitors came up in the early 2000s and the original Asteroids hardware requires a real vector monitor.

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Quotes

Davey Armstrong: Even serial killers live next door to somebody. Tough pill to swallow, I know, but it's true. If I've learned anything, it's that people hardly ever let you know who they really are. Just past the manicured lawns and friendly waves, inside any house, even the one next door, anything could be happening and you'd never know. And that's the thing about this place, it all might seem normal and routine, but the truth is the suburbs are where the craziest shit happens. You never know what might be ...

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Connections

References Don't Go in the House (1979)

User Reviews

Creepy Little Flick

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!