I'm not quite sure what to say about Summer of Sam. Spike Lee's latest movie, featuring many cameos, doesn't focus on the Son of Sam, David Berkowitz, but rather on events surrounding the serial killer. The movie doesn't focus it's attention on the Son of Sam directly, but rather how the community reacted around him and how paranoid people can become. Featuring repeated drug use, sex, foul language, and more, this movie's R rating was the obvious choice, but somehow Spike Lee was able to fit all of these in with a superb story and masterful storytelling. The different camera shots used by Lee were all appropriate to the occasion, each having it's own location and fitting right in. On top of the direction, Spike Lee layers the movie with sound befitting of the era and even when the most horrible acts are happening, the tempo is upbeat.

This is one very strong movie. Summer of Sam goes inside of the minds of many of the people affected by the Son of Sam. But at 2 and a half hours long, it seemed to drag on and on. Just before the great ending of the movie, it seemed as if there was about 1/2 an hour that could have been cut or shot differently to keep the audience's attention more. While the movie was captivating at the start with terrific performances by John Leguizamo, Jennifer Esposito, and Adrien Brody, it seems to fade towards the middle then pick up again leading to a strong, emotional conclusion. Spike Lee has a way of just putting it all in the elements of the movie and then slowly but surely, they come to a slow fruition. It doesn't take long to get to know all the characters with all of their little intricacies and flaws, but as we get to know them, we get to understand them and where they are coming from. Because of this we see how their fears and paranoia aren't unfounded, but rather have a base to grow on.

I enjoyed this movie. It was filled with terrific dialogue and even though it has some gratuitous and unwarranted sexual situations, they fit in with the movie. Even though it could have been shortened by about 30-40 minutes, it still kept my attention throughout and this is THE movie to see this weekend. If you can pass up the star power of Wild Wild West and the foul language of South Park, Summer of Sam is a great choice.

Genres: Drama, Suspense
Rated: R
Runtime: 141 minutes
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