I Know What You Did Last Summer Review: return with extreme challenges

I Know What You Did Last Summer has managed to stay current over the years. When it was released in 1997 it resurrected the slasher subgenre, then it had an immediate sequel in 1998, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer and a third part, I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer, released in 2006. To that we must add a television series, I Know What You Did Last Summer, premiered in 2021.

I Know What You Did Last Summer 2025, directed by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, works as a continuation of the 1997 film, which it quotes, flatters and recycles through the reappearances almost three decades later of three characters such as Julie James played by Jennifer Love Hewitt, Ray Bronson, played by Freddie Prinze Jr. and Helen Shivers, played by Sarah Michelle Gellar, who appears in a dreamlike scene.

The new main characters are Ava (Chase Sui Wonders), Danica (Madelyn Cline), Teddy (Tyriq Withers) and Milo (Jonah Hauer-King), four young people of high social level who celebrate the 4th of July with Stevie (Sarah Pidgeon) in the midst of excesses and antics that culminate tragically when Teddy kills a man. Despite the opposition of some, they decide to make a silent agreement to avoid problems. A year later, Danica, who at that time was about to marry Teddy, is now preparing to get engaged to someone who is not much better. At her bachelorette party, while opening the gifts, she finds a note that says: I know what they did last summer.

Based on the study of a young woman who makes a podcast focused on remaking violent cases, this group of friends finds the coincidences between their current problems and the events of 1997. Faced with this situation, they seek the help and guidance of Ray Bronson and Julie James. However, the criminal has returned and the community will soon face the repercussions.

Intensified violence

In an attempt of misinterpreted originality, this new installment decides to change the central idea, playing a little with fears and what we can anticipate. What used to be a narrative about guilt, regret and a youth trapped by failures, now becomes a story with such ridiculous motives that they might seem parodic if they did not try to be serious. The initial accident is replaced by an even more incredible event, as the protagonists act absurdly. And besides, the final solution is not novel, since 'Scream' has used it on more than one occasion.

The script is an example of a lack of coherence in the plot. The characters make illogical decisions, the narrative twists surprise no one and the narrative structure seems to have been created by someone with a very basic knowledge of the slasher genre. The story is summarized in a series of clichés, from the typical group of young people to the murders that can be predicted.

Among the characters who are new and do not have a major role, the ones who are closest to the main group are Tyler and Wyatt. In both cases, they are characters that offered the possibility of contributing an interesting psychological nuance, especially in relation to the protagonist group, whose personal traits are quite flat and unexciting. Therefore, it would have been beneficial if their personalities were explored further and they had a more meaningful participation in the main story. Unfortunately, that doesn't happen, and they disappear too quickly during the first few murders. This shows that they have only been introduced as narrative elements, willing to be eliminated in the early stages, without this affecting the main characters.

Despite the flaws and virtues of the film, I Know What You Did Last Summer is a terrifying, bloody and very entertaining journey, which brings back a legendary serial killer. The film creates an effective, bloody and violent thriller that serves as a bridge between generations.

Fans of the saga will be more than satisfied because they have the elements they want to see, even if there are errors in the narrative.