If there’s anything that cinema has taught us, don’t be a camp counselor. Either they have to build morale for a rag-tag group of kids coming from disparate backgrounds in order to help defeat an opposing camp, have to play pretend at *being* a counselor in order to help some kid pull a ruse over on parents, or, worse, survive a serial killer. This last one is what the characters of Hell of a Summer, the brainchild of first-time feature co-directors/co-writers Billy Bryk (Man in a Box) and Finn Wolfhard (Night Shifts), have to face. After a world premiere at TIFF 2023 and a theatrical release in April 2025, Hell of a Summer is now available to own on physical formats with a small collection of bonus features.
L-R: Abby Quinn as Claire, Finn Wolfhard as Chris, Krista Nazaire as Shannon, and Fred Hechinger as Jason in HELL OF A SUMMER. Photo courtesy of NEON.
It’s Counselors’ Weekend at Camp Pineaway, a brief few days for the camp counselors to get settled and bond a bit before the campers arrive. Of them, Jason Hochberg (Hechinger) is the most excited as he was invited back (personally) by camp operators John and Kathy (Adam Pally and Rosebud Baker, respectively). When neither John nor Kathy show as the counselors arrive, Jason takes it upon himself to come up with group activities and ensure that morale stays high, but he has no idea the work ahead of him as a killer starts targeting his friends and co-workers.
The following review is based on a DVD retail copy, courtesy of Alliance Entertainment.
L-R: Billy Bryk as Bobby and Finn Wolfhard as Chris in HELL OF A SUMMER. Photo courtesy of NEON.
In the featurette, “Fireside Chat,” featuring Bryk, Wolfhard, and lead actor Fred Hechinger (Gladiator II; Thelma), it’s mentioned that the first draft of their script for Hell of a Summer started when they met in high school and was something they’d worked on for some time after. This shines through in the final product via aspects both positive and negative. The positive comes through in the way that the narrative offers a twist on how the characters respond, offering a new-generation feel to prior generational tropes. Gone are the serious responses, the stepping up of heroes against a silent, enigmatic killer that surprises vulnerable individuals, traded instead for cowards. This isn’t a slight against them, but a recognition that maybe people wouldn’t step up the way they think they would in this kind of situation. There’s a certain Gen Z apathy that gives way to some fun moments, such as Bryk’s Bobby who can’t win for losing, failing to attract his female co-workers or to get targeted by the killer, creating a sense within him of depressive frustration. The narrative also weaponizes panic and social relationships, creating an environment wherein gut reactions and personal preferences carry more weight than reason. Aspects like these create an atmosphere where the comedy comes naturally, even as the blood spills. The problem with Hell of a Summer is that, in trying to be clever, it actually fails, trashing the cache it had built up until the reveal.
With so many camp-based slashers out there, filmmakers either have to make an exquisite homage or offer a new spin in order for a tale to stand out. In a Violent Nature (2024) transfers the POV from the victims to the killer until the end of the picture, creating something that’s undeniably gory while also strangely meditative on the nature of violence and the selfishness of humanity. Hell of a Summer comes off like a mixture of Friday the 13th (1980) and Scream 4 (2011), delivering neither the scares nor the bite of either. In fact, Hell of a Summer is at its best when laying out what are, effectively, red herrings, in pursuit of a happy ending rather than a satisfying one. Like making a point to call someone out as being (a) a law student and (b) a magician, two elements which would provide knowledge and talent for several of the setups that lead to murder, yet go nowhere with them. The elements within the film are stronger than the whole. When the reveal of the killer comes, it’s less shocking and more of a strange copout. It’s a fine way to provide rationale for an obviously irrational situation, absolutely, but it’s so rote that it comes off as Bryk and Wolfhard either being unsure on how to end the film or lacking the confidence to go where the rest of the film is pointing.
If the charms of Hell of a Summer appeal to you, there are a few bonus features that will likely delight you. In addition to a feature commentary track from Bryk, Wolfhard, and Hechinger, there are three trailer/tv spots, two featurettes, two promos, and one blooper reel. The three-minute “Fireside Chat” is exactly what it sounds like — Bryk, Wolfhard, and Hechinger sitting at a campfire, chatting about the film while roasting marshmallows with their respective faces on them in order to make s’mores. The brief promos “Spoiler Alert featuring Ruben Rabasa” (Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania) and “Rated Rizzler” are cute bits doing exactly what they’re intended for — promoting the film. One surmises that they were posted online or shown in theaters to help boost the profile of the film. The six-minute blooper reel highlights just how much fun the small cast had in the making of the film between gaffs, mistakes, or just an inability to hold their laughter in. The bulk of the bonus features, sans commentary, comes in the form of “Pineway Bus Tour,” an 18-minute featurette that follows Bryk, Wolfhard, and Hechinger on a 14-city/four-day tour in the runup to the release. These three clearly spent a great deal of time together and this seemingly unscripted featurette demonstrates how loopy one gets while on a hectic road tour, as well as how much love and affection these three have for their project. Getting a film made is a minor miracle no matter who’s behind the camera (just ask Martin Scorsese), and it’s clear that neither Bryk nor Wolfhard take this experience for granted.
Finn Wolfhard as Chris in HELL OF A SUMMER. Photo courtesy of NEON.
Because this is a home release, it’s worth noting that the DVD edition doesn’t really do much for cinematographer Kristofer Bonnell’s (1up) work. The daytime scenes are finely represented, as are the well-lit interior nighttime sequences, but anything at night and in the dark becomes difficult to see with a great deal of visible artifacting. On average, a DVD maxes out at 10 Mbps, a quarter of a Blu-ray, which means that its picture and audio, regardless of disc size, is not only dealing with a greater amount of file compression to fit on the disc but can only put out so strong of a picture and audio before it hits the max. Nothing like cutting the tension in a scene meant to have one on the edge of their seat as characters explore a dark space with a visible floating black space in the frame. To that end, if you’re a fan of the film, perhaps consider a higher definition edition, should you have the ability to screen it.
L-R: Billy Bryk as Bobby, Finn Wolfhard as Chris, Abby Quinn as Claire, Julia Lalonde as Noelle, Fred Hechinger as Jason, and Krista Nazaire as Shannon in HELL OF A SUMMER. Photo courtesy of NEON.
As a first-time feature, Hell of a Summer is a good start. The co-directors understand pacing and how to get audiences to care about the characters, as well as providing a specific perspective for a story. These are all things that can be cultivated further and the weaknesses strengthened as more confidence is built. Even if the execution is lacking, there’s enough present to remain curious about what the co-directors do next. For now, though, rejoice that summer’s over.
Hell of a Summer Special Features:
- Feature commentary with Billy Bryk, Finn Wolfhard, and Fred Hechinger
- Pineway Bus Tour (18:33)
- Fireside Chat (2:56)
- Blooper Reel (6:45)
- Spoiler Alert featuring Ruben Rabasa (0:30)
- Rated Rizzler (1:10)
- Retro Trailer
- Redband Trailer
- Camp TV30
Available on digital April 22nd, 2025.
Available on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and DVD July 8th, 2025.
For more information, head to the official NEON Hell of a Summer website.
Final Score 2.5 out of 5.
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Categories: Home Release, Home Video, Recommendation, Reviews, streaming
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