I Know What You Did Last Summer

I Know What You Did Last Summer is a 1997 American slasher film directed by Jim Gillespie, written by Kevin Williamson, and starring Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, and Freddie Prinze Jr.. Loosely based on the 1973 novel of the same name by Lois Duncan, the film centers on four young friends who are stalked by a hook-wielding killer one year after covering up a car accident in which they killed a man. The film also draws inspiration from the urban legend known as the Hook.

After having written Scream (released the year prior), Williamson was approached to adapt Duncan's source novel by producer Erik Feig. Where Williamson's screenplay for Scream contained prominent elements of satire and self-referentiality, his adaptation of I Know What You Did Last Summer reworked the novel's central plot to resemble a straightforward 1980s-era slasher film. Shot on location in California and North Carolina in the spring of 1997, I Know What You Did Last Summer was released theatrically in North America on October 17, 1997. It received mixed reviews from critics but was commercially successful, grossing $125 million worldwide on a budget of $17 million, and remaining number 1 at the U.S. box office for three consecutive weeks. It was also nominated for and won multiple awards.

The film was followed by two sequels, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998) and I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer (2006). I Know What You Did Last Summer has also been parodied and referenced in popular culture, and credited alongside Scream with revitalizing the slasher genre in the late-1990s.

Plot
On the Fourth of July 1996 in Southport, North Carolina, Julie James and her friends Ray Bronson, Helen Shivers, and Barry Cox drive to the beach after attending a party. While driving along a coastal byway, they accidentally hit a pedestrian. Julie's friend Max passes by them on the road. Julie reassures Max that everything is all right, and he leaves. After some arguing, the group decides to dispose of the body, dumping it in the water. They agree to never discuss the incident again.

A year later, Julie returns home from her college in Boston for the summer. Since the incident, the friends have gone their separate ways. Julie receives a letter with no return address, stating, "I know what you did last summer!" Disturbed, Julie tracks down Helen, who has returned to Southport to work at her family's department store after a failed attempt at an acting career in New York City. The girls take the note to Barry, who immediately suspects Max as he was the only person there that night. They confront Max on the docks, and Barry threatens him with a hook, even though Max claims he has no idea what Barry is talking about. Julie meets Ray, who is now working as a fisherman; he unsuccessfully tries to reconcile with her. Later, Max is killed by a figure in a rain slicker wielding the same hook. Barry discovers a note in his gym locker saying, "I know." He is then ambushed by the same assailant driving Barry's car.

Meanwhile, Julie researches newspaper articles which lead her to believe the man they ran over was a local named David Egan. Helen and Julie go to visit with David's sister Missy at her home. Missy explains to them that their family was devastated by David's death; she also mentions that a friend of David's named Billy Blue also visited her to pay his last respects. Later that night, the killer sneaks into Helen's house, cuts off most of her hair while she sleeps, and writes "Soon" in lipstick on her vanity mirror.

The following morning, Julie finds Max's corpse wearing Barry's stolen jacket in the trunk of her car. When she calls the others, the body is missing. Julie, Helen, and Barry confront Ray about the recent events. Ray claims to have received a threatening letter as well. Julie goes back to visit Missy, while Barry and Helen go to participate in the Fourth of July parade. Missy reveals David allegedly committed suicide out of guilt for the death of his girlfriend Susie in a car accident and shows David's suicide note to Julie. As the writing matches that of the note she received, Julie realizes it was not a suicide note, but a death threat.

At the Croaker Beauty Pageant, Helen witnesses Barry being murdered on the balcony. She rushes upstairs with a police officer but finds no sign of the killer or Barry. A police officer escorts Helen home, but the killer lures him into an alley and murders him. Helen flees to her nearby family store, where her sister Elsa is closing for the night. The killer enters the store and murders Elsa. Helen is chased to the third floor of the building and escapes through a window, falling to a long alleyway. She manages to run toward the street, but the killer stops her and slashes her to death, her screams being drowned out by the sound of the oncoming parade.

Julie finds an article mentioning Susie's father, Ben Willis, and realizes that Ben was the man they ran over, moments after he had killed David to avenge his daughter. She then goes to the docks to tell Ray, but he refuses to believe her. Julie notices Ray's boat is called Billy Blue and runs away. Ben appears, knocking Ray unconscious, and invites Julie to hide on his boat. On the boat, she finds photos and articles about her friends and her, and pictures of Susie. Ben's boat leaves the docks, and he begins tormenting Julie, chasing her below deck; there, she uncovers the bodies of Helen and Barry in the boat's ice box. Ray regains consciousness and steals a motorboat to rescue Julie. He ultimately uses the rigging to sever Ben's hand and send him overboard. When Julie and Ray are questioned by the police, they deny knowing why Ben attempted to kill them, but they are relieved not to have actually killed anyone the previous summer, and reconcile.

A year later, Julie is in college in Boston. As she enters the shower, she notices the words "I still know" on the mirror. Moments later, the fisherman crashes through it as Julie screams in horror.

Cast

 * Jennifer Love Hewitt as Julie James
 * Sarah Michelle Gellar as Helen Shivers
 * Ryan Phillippe as Barry Cox
 * Freddie Prinze Jr. as Ray Bronson
 * Bridgette Wilson as Elsa Shivers
 * Anne Heche as Missy Egan
 * Muse Watson as Ben Willis/The Fisherman
 * Johnny Galecki as Max Neurick
 * Stuart Greer as Officer Caporizo