Overview of the movie

“Hell of a Summer” is a horror-comedy film that debuted in 2023 and is co-directed by Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk, who also co-wrote, acted and starred in the film. Other cast members include sitcom Fred Hechinger, Abby Quinn, D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, and Pardis Saremi among others. The film was first shown to audiences at the Toronto International Film Festival, shorthand TIFF, on September 10th of 2023, with a slated US release date on April 4th 2025.

Summary of the plot

As part of a pre-camp set up, a group of counselors arrive at Camp Pineway to get things ready before the campers arrive, like 24 year old Jason Hochberg. Upon learning that most of his co-workers were teens, Jason felt like he was too old (disconnected) to be working with them. As a new day started and the camp’s routine continued, mayhem ensued when campers began to get killed off.

Descriptions of the characters

Jason Hochberg (Fred Hechinger): A “young old” 24-year-old counselor who returns to Councelor Camp Pineway, but wishes and is struggling socially to connect.

• Claire (Abby Quinn): A Head counsellor at Camp Pineway.
• Mike (D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai): Another Counsellor at the camp.
• Bobby (Billy Bryk): Another fellow councelor as portraed by co-director Billy Bryk.
• Chris (Finn Wolfhard): Another of the whole counselling team as portrayed by co-director Finn Wolfhard.
• Demi (Pardis Saremi): A camp counselor, sometimes considered the ‘rich snob’ among peers.
• Shannon (Krista Nazaire): The counselor everyone admires.
• Ezra (Matthew Finlan): The resident camp geek.
• Noelle (Julia Lalonde): The goth counselor.
• Ari (Daniel Gravelle): Another camp counselor at Pineway.
• Miley (Julia Doyle): The vegan hippie counselor.

Themes and Style

A YouTube star and a social media influencer make their directorial debut in the film “Hell of a summer.” The film tries to pay homage as well as reinvent the slasher genre by incorporating elements of ‘80s nostalgia horror and modern-day creativity. There is a self-reflexive approach on the film because it does have stereotypical characters which it borrows from the classic slasher films, like a goofy outcast, a goth, a rich snob, a theater nerd, etc. This specific use of stereotypes becomes a satire in the story. Being from an acting background, the comedy-chorus is well put together to give entertaining and funny performances, however, they lack in showing true form to slasher thrills in the wildcard.

Conclusion

The camp movie “Hell of a summer” serves as a fresh addition to the already exhausted summer camp slasher genre. It combines true horror aspects with satirical comedy. While it does not change the genre for good, the movie succeeds in what it tries to achieve which is enjoyable television, especially for summer camp and 80s horror fans.

Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk’s film debut reveals their budding skills as filmmakers, making one wonder what projects they will tackle next.