Tedfoldol
everything you have heard about this movie is true.
Kaelan Mccaffrey
Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.
Yvonne Jodi
Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.
preppy-3
Three attractive affluent kids--Sandy (Barbara Hershey), Peter (Richard Thomas) and Dan (Bruce Davison) meet on Fire Island one summer. They all start hanging out with Peter and Dan clearly attracted to Sandy. Then plumb unattractive Rhoda (Catherine Burns) joins the group. Feelings erupt, complication escalate and it all leads to a VERY disturbing ending.It's a coming of age film but a realistic one showing just how vicious teenagers can be. It's well made with superb acting by all four (Burns was nominated for an Academy Award) but I can't say it was a good film. The characters were unpleasant (Sandy is clearly a sociopath) and there are long dull stretches which go nowhere and add nothing to the plot. More than once I wondered where this film was going. However the harrowing final sequence more than made up for it. Be warned--the last part is extreme--the film got an X rating for that alone. So the acting and ultimate message make it worth seeing but it's sometimes pretty slow-going.
hkfilmbuff
I read this haunting tale by Evan Hunter in the late 1960's, and felt numb afterwards. It was a devastating story, but came across honest and true. I wasn't aware that it had been made into a movie until much later, but never felt compelled to "revisit" it, until it turned up on TV (TCM, I think) recently. The movie did capture the essence of the novel, unsupervised (neglected) adolescents from well-off, dysfunctional (hinted), families spiraled out of control when their ambiguous and budding desires fed off each other in a vicious circle, culminating in something akin to evil. The psychological and sociological overtones reflected the zeitgeist of the sixties - sex, drugs, violence, and the mob mentality.The sexually suggestive scenes and the violence was tastefully done, necessary but not exploitative. This film was definitely targeting a more mature audience, but surely will not unduly shock or traumatize the precocious youths of today. Nevertheless, portions of the story are unpleasant enough to discourage repeated viewing. In any case, the message is potent enough to come across loud and clear just going through it once.For the more inquisitive viewers who might wonder whether the worst had happened to Rhoda, I suggest a reading of the excellent book by Evan Hunter. ("The Blackboard Jungle" and "Mr. Buddwing" are among the films based on his books. In fact, he wrote a sequel to "Last Summer", aptly named "Come Winter". He was also well-known in another genre under the name Ed McBain.) In retrospect, I wish I had not read the novel before I saw the movie. I always prefer watching the movie before reading the book (if there is one). In my opinion, the medium lends itself to greater dramatic and emotional impact, and provides a more primal sensory experience, but there are invariably certain elements in a book that no motion picture can convey.I suspect my rating for this film would have been higher had it not been for the unpleasant and unresolved emotions and thoughts it provoked, but did (could) not provide any hope or closure in the ending.
hughman55
There isn't anything very good in this film. The screenplay is flippant and shallow with a 60's style beach blanket bingo veneer containing pointless cruelty and rape. The performances from Hershey and Burns are good. Bruce Davidson gives no hint that he will become excellent though. And Richard Thomas, is Richard Thomas. What you see is what you get: cute, and serviceable as an actor. The killing of the pet seagull, and the gang rape at the end of the film, only make any sense in the plot if they are presented as the early manifestations of three burgeoning sociopathic co-serial killer/rapists practicing on their first victims. These types often begin with animals, the seagull, and then move to human victims, Catherine Burns. But that is not how this story is presented or written. It is just poured into your lap as "kids can be so mean sometimes". Well, there's "mean", and then there's "gang rape". And, if you're the ring leader in a gang rape, Barbara Hershey, this is just the beginning. But instead of the creepy scene, as in Hannibal Lecter at the pay phone foreshadowing the worst yet to come, this creepy little film just ends with all the rapists walking into a beautiful sunset, role credits... It should also be noted that the sound mixing is total crap. The ambient music covered up the dialogue in several places. And considering this screenplay, that may have been the point. If you like young hot bods in tight swimwear and don't mind pointless cruelty, this films for you. Count me out. I'd rather watch a lion take down a Zebra on Wildlife Kingdom. At least the violence I'm grossed out by there has a useful purpose in the food chain.
MartinHafer
WARNING: Before you watch "Last Summer", you really need to be warned that the movie is quite adult and has a very traumatic rape scene. Many will find this too troubling--and perhaps it could bring back your own traumatic past experiences as you watch. I am not saying not to watch it--just be aware.As far as the movie goes, it's well made but quite difficult to watch--not just because of the rape but because the characters are quite often jerks--very unlikable jerks. It is set at a beach community on Long Island. Three young people (Barbara Hershey, Richard Thomas and Bruce Davison) meet and soon become friends. However, it soon becomes apparent that there is a lot of sexual tension in these new friendships and a ménage à trois of sorts is in the making. From a voyeuristic point of view, the film is rather stimulating....but any sexual excitement on the part of the viewer may quickly disappear as you begin to see that these people (when together) become jerks. It's as if alone they are normal but together their inhibitions and sense of morality diminishes. Later, when they meet a nerdy and less attractive fourth member of their little group (Catherine Burns), this becomes all the more apparent and the three original members exploit this very vulnerable new member.The acting is competent and the story is decent because it is unique and explores very dark aspects of supposedly 'typical' teens. And, fortunately, while the film has very explicit content, the director manages to hide most of what occurs through creative filming and it is not necessarily exploitational--just very, very dark. Frankly, I did not particularly enjoy the movie--it was a very tough viewing. But, it was well made and hence my overall score of 5.
