I Know What You Did Last Summer

I Know What You Did Last Summer, starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Freddie Prinze Jr., and Ryan Phillippe, is a 1997 slasher film portraying the lives of 4 teens one year after they accidentally hit a man with their car and try to dispose of his body. To compare Carol Clover's overview of gender categories within slasher films to I Know What You Did Last Summer, there are many similarities.

There were two weapons in this film that I found to be repeatedly evident. First, the fish hook. The film is set in a fishing town, called Southport, where many of the men are fishermen. The killer wielded the only weapon he knew how to use. Not only was the fish hook symbolic to an extension of his penis, but I believe it was also an extension of his personal self.  He experienced trauma through the death of his daughter, so he utilized his personal skills to seek revenge. Secondly, Barry’s car was used twice as a weapon. In the beginning of the film as the group is driving down the mountain side, they hit the killer. Barry is initially only worried about the damage to the car and his father’s reaction before turning his attention to the unconscious man on the side of the road. The second time Barry’s car was used as a weapon was against himself. In the locker room of the gym, he finds a picture of his car and a note with the message, “I know”. He runs outside to check on his car only to find a dark figure in the driver’s seat, taunting him. The car is put in reverse and driven backwards down the road, prompting Barry to run after it. As he stands there, out of breath, the car begins to drive forward and Barry is forced to run for his life. Eventually being hit and thrown into a fish market stand, we can hope he has begun to realize the pain of being hit by a car. 

I found numerous places within this film that could be considered a terrible place. First, boats and the boat dock. The boat dock is where the group brings the killer’s body as they are trying to get rid of the evidence. It is a damp, dark place, especially under water. Second, houses were used as an area of misplaced safety. We believe we are safe inside our homes. However, the audience is shown the killer lurking inside Helen’s closet. She eventually wakes up to find her chopped off, her Croaker Queen crown atop her head, and the word “Soon” written in red lipstick on her vanity mirror. Julie is the only character to receive a letter reading, “I know what you did last summer”. After this, she sits in her living room, alone, with the lights off, and hears a noise coming from the window. Also, the scene when Helen and Julie visit David Egan’s sister, Missy, at her home. Inside, they find black boots, a black trench coat, and a black fisherman’s hat. Thirdly, Elsa’s store is the last of the terrible places. Elsa is Helen’s older sister who has recently opened her own clothing store. The night Helen is attacked by the killer, she runs to her store as if symbolically running to the safe embrace of a woman close to her, from the dark energy of male hatred. 

The killer in this film is a male. He is also a father, which is the basis of his psychopathic rage. Through Julie's research, we eventually find that the killer's name is Ben Willis. His daughter, Susie, was killed in a car accident. However, the driver of the car, and her boyfriend, David Egan, survived the crash. This begins Ben Willis’ thirst for revenge. He kills David and is able to stage the murder as a suicide. On his way back from murdering David is when the group hit him with Barry’s car. Yet, as he regains consciousness before they are able to throw his body off the dock, he sees the faces of the four teenagers trying to kill him, making them his next targets. One year later, as he hunts them, we see him wearing all black; Black boots, black trench coat, and a black fisherman’s hat. It is not until the last 15 minutes of the movie that the audience is shown is face. He is virtually indestructible in the ways that he has escaped death. He was hit by a car, thrown into the ocean, and left to drown. Towards the end of the film, his hand that holds the fish hook is cut off and he is thrown off the side of the boat. 

Although there were four teenagers in the car when the man was hit while walking along the road, only three were attacked by the killer: Barry, Helen, and Julie. Barry had the shorted attack scene and death, verifying that horror/slasher films are more interested in the sexuality of female struggle. Out of the three victims, only Helen and Barry died. Helen had the longest attack scene. All the while, she was wearing her beauty pageant dress. She ran with her arms flailing by her sides, there was a slight shine of sweat on her chest, and she made moaning sounds as she was running. Helen's final scene was in an alley, being murdered with a fish hook. Yet as she was being attacked, there was a parade and marching band possibly 20 feet away. Not once did someone turn their head or break formation. This symbolized to me the many instances when a woman is being attacked and bystanders turn their head, not wanting to get involved. 

Julie was the final girl. In the beginning of the film, she was also the good girl. She hadn't been drinking, she researched David Egan's death, and she was the only person to suggest calling the police after the accident. When she arrived home from college, the audience was shown framed achievement certificates hanging on the living room walls. Julie was a good person, a good student, and a good daughter. These are aspects every female can relate to. We all see a little bit of ourselves in Julie, one way or another. At the end, she made the poor decision to trust a man she had never met. Yet, she did not let him overpower her. She was cunning and used her intelligence to hide herself, taking matters into her own hands. Julie's actions turned from feminine to masculine in the way that she differentiated from Helen. Although Julie did not self-rescue entirely, she had protected herself until the very end when Ray came to help.

I Know What You Did Last Summer has all the ingredients for the typical slasher film. It has weapons, a killer, terrible places, a victim, and a final girl. Yet, without first learning these categories, I never would have thought to look for them. Now, they seem all too obvious.