FILM REVIEW: ​CRUEL SUMMER

The all-too-real horror of lies.

I’m a firm believer when it comes to horror movies that nothing is taboo or sacred, not even when it is something which hits home a little harder than average. Cruel summer is loosely based on the true story of a man with an autistic spectrum disorder who is brutally murdered by three teenagers. As I have Asperger’s syndrome I’m extremely aware of how vicious people can be toward those with physical and mental disabilities and disorders and I am particularly interested in the on-screen portrayals of them. A major misconception regarding autistic people is that we are mentally subnormal idiots, either that or we are ‘Rain Man’ types of savants, whereas the truth is more often somewhere between the two. Many of us are merely people trying to make our way in the world just like anyone else, yet with a whole different set of perspectives and difficulties to overcome in the pursuit of something resembling a normal life.

Danny Evans (Richard Pawulski) just wants to buy a new sleeping bag for a solo camping expedition for his Duke of Edinburgh award and head off into the woods for the night. Nothing wrong there at all, but as the very beginning of Cruel Summer indicates with a ‘flash-forward’ it’s not going to end well for him. There’s an angry young man called Nicholas (Danny Miller) who is told by Julia (Natalie Martins) that his ex-girlfriend cheated on him with Danny Evans. Nicholas and Julia then chat with their friend Calvin (Reece Douglas), making up a load of bullshit about what Danny is supposed to have done, such as being a paedophile and about a little girl going missing, none of which is true as what begins with Julia winding Nicholas up rapidly turns into a plot to find Danny and mete out the revenge he ‘deserves’.

The trio go out to Danny’s house, he’s obviously out, but his mom tells them where they can find him, either camping or in an amusement arcade. They don’t set out immediately, deciding to shoplift alcohol and have a little drink, so far all quite normal(ish), and then they head off to the local arcade to see if Danny is there, but he isn’t. There’s no real sense of anticipation here as we saw at the very beginning a taste of what’s in store for Danny, so the build-up is largely Nicholas, Julia and Calvin going through the motions of being disgruntled youths. Nicholas steals two scythes from a gardener’s van and they head off into the forest. Calvin isn’t particularly interested in the whole revenge thing but goes along anyway, and Julia thinks it’s all a laugh until she realises that Nicholas has more in mind than just scaring Danny.

When they find Danny, Nicholas interrogates him about allegedly fucking Lisa (who recently dumped Nicholas, thus sparking off Nicholas’ whole revenge thing). The bullying is extremely natural with what starts off as mild intimidation becoming nastier and physical, which Julia and Calvin disagree with and argue about, but Nick carries on regardless. Calvin isn’t happy with the situation, realising he’s been lied to and doesn’t want any part of Nick’s plan, so he heads off. Julia, scared of recriminations, stays behind, becoming horrified by the beating Nick gives Danny before herself being coerced into very vicious act. The brutality is highly realistic and not remotely glorified, it’s almost delicately staged.

This isn’t so much a horror film is a drama, one which I found to be particularly upsetting as I can very much identify with Danny and actually cried when I saw what Nicholas did to him. Obviously I found this to be a very powerful and unnerving film, more so in light of it being based on a real crime.

The film itself is a no-frills experience, there’s nothing glossy about it, nothing ‘Hollywood’ in any aspect. It’s not often that I can say that any film is flawless; this is one example in which everything is about as good as it gets. None of the technical aspects stand out, which is superb as with a film like this they are not supposed to, and the script, especially the dialogue, is wholly natural. I know that even in recounting a true story there are obviously going to be a few liberties taken as none of the real-life people involved were recording themselves, but as someone with an autistic spectrum disorder I found the bullying very much reminiscent of my own experiences. The cast for this film is limited, with the majority of the focus being on Nicholas, rightly so as his is arguably the pivotal role around which the incident revolves. I was intrigued with Richard Pawulski’s portrayal of Danny Evans as it left me wondering if Mr Pawulski is an autistic actor, but having discovered that he isn’t I am suitably impressed, as in fact I am with all of the main characters. It’s often the case that young stereotypes come across more as caricatures than as real people, it is to their credit that all of the performances held a much greater depth than I was expecting, with not a single bad performance throughout. Even the supporting cast was spot-on.

As far as recommending it is concerned, I think it’s suffice to say that Cruel Summer isn’t going to appeal to fans of slasher flicks, or indeed torture porn as I believe the true value in this is the horror of realisation that nobody is truly safe as these things really happen.

Cruel Summer is available right now on VOD