‘Hell of a Summer’ Review: A Slasher With No Slashing

Hell of a Summer is the feature-length directorial debut of Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk. Finn Wolfhard is the big name of the two, making a name for himself by appearing in Stranger Things and It. Hell of a Summer has a very simple plot reminiscent of 80s slasher films in the vein of Friday the 13th and Sleepaway Camp. The film follows a group of camp counselors as they are slowly picked off by a mysterious killer who is possibly someone they know. Hell of a Summer is a fun ride but it never reaches the heights of other camp slasher movies. Read our full review for Hell of a Summer below. 

This review may contain spoilers for Hell of a Summer.

The most important aspect of a summer camp film for me is the kills. All of these films tend to have simple premises and archetypal characters, meaning if you want to stand out, you either have to have a great twist or gnarly kills. Hell of a Summer has neither of these things. Most of the kills, other than one stand out are all done off-screen. I found this incredibly perplexing because the film was given an R rating, but that must have been for language. The only good kill of the entire film was actually in the trailer. It is done via axe, and we do get a nice gory after shot of the kill, but it does not make us forget how uninspired the rest of them are. I have to say I was bored for most of the film because it has no horror. I would classify this as more of a whodunit/comedy. So if you are going for fun kills, do not expect to see a thing.

Hell of a Summer is an ensemble film made up of a bunch of quirky characters with a single personality trait so you can tell them apart quickly. There are characters like a vegan girl, a film bro with a peanut allergy, and a fame-hungry influencer. The main standout is Fred Hechinger. I would say Hechinger is the lead of the film. His character is a 24-year-old college student who can not outgrow his childhood summer camp. Hechinger is perfectly awkward and incredibly earnest as the vaguely creepy, but all around lovable, pathetic grown man. This goes into my favorite part of the film, the screenplay by Wolfhard and Bryk. It is genuinely funny at times, feeding into Gen Z humor in an authentic way that does not feel forced. It gives the characters a lot of witty one-liners and memorable lines. There were only a few misses when it came to the jokes. 

I am excited to see where Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk go from here. They are great comedic writers and a full-blown comedy would be a great next step for them. Hell of a Summer is definitely not a perfect movie and will not become a classic within the horror genre, but it was a refreshing time in the theater. With better kills, I actually think this movie could have been amazing, but at no point was I excited by anything horror-related happening on screen. If you are a big fan of Wolfhard or have an affinity for summer camp horror, then this might be perfect for you. 

Hell of a Summer is the feature-length directorial debut of Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk and also stars the two. The other standouts of the cast are Fred Hechinger, Pardis Saermi, Abby Quinn, and Matthew Finlan. The film first premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in 2023. The film was released in the United States on April 4.

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