I’ve been using anniversaries as an excuse to celebrate the audio description behind certain films. Spike Lee’s Summer Of Sam actually has audio description on Paramount Plus, and I missed it upon release, and actually have never seen it. It boasts a promising cast, led by John Leguizamo, Adrien Brody, Mira Sorvino, and Jennifer Esposito. Spike Lee loves to tell stories about New York City, so a time capsule back to the time when the Son OF Sam killer had a neighborhood.
Lee uses his vast ensemble, which is much more than the four I already listed, to show this community and have them in so many different situations. there’s also the killer running around who could actually kill someone during the film, and that level of paranoia that supposedly controls the film. I haven’t seen Lee’s entire filmography, but this is not his best or worst. I wanted there to be this palpable tension, much like what David Fincher gets out of Zodiac, but Lee is much more interested in exploring the time period more than the actual killings, or making us feel like people were afraid to leave their homes. Supposedly, people were actually changing their hair color because they thought the Son of Sam killer had a type. This film should have such a suspenseful pace, but Spike Lee just doesn’t match that.
The performances are fine, it just isn’t directed the way Lee seems to want it to be directed. It’s like watching a scary movie that isn’t scary, or a comedy that is’t funny. There was one scene where I felt a prominent character might be in danger, and then they weren’t.
There’s also LGBT representation I’m not totally a fan of, a little like Dog Day Afternoon. there’s a gay character, who is the butt of a lot of jokes, but also the homophobia isn’t so strong that any one character ever victimizes him. Late 70’s in NYC, you likely would have known someone, or seen someone. This is after the Stonewall riots, so I’m not saying there isn’t historical accuracy here, I’m just not sure this is the best representation we could have gotten.
The cast does good work, but no one person is a standout. Spike lee directs this less like a serial killer film, and more like a time capsule, and there’s at least concerting LGBT representation. The audio description is by William Michael Redman, who feels like he was chosen for what people thought this film was, a thriller. Since its not, he feels like the wrong choice, because this is closer to a run of the mill ensemble drama, and with such specific casting in terms of diversity, and a strong Italian presence, it does feel like there could have been a lesser known narrator who might have more accurately represented what this film is.
However, Redman doesn’t read or seem to get attached to bad scripts for audio description, so the actual track is solid. but, having someone who is so great at horror and action films on a film that has very little action, and no horror seemed like a waste. I have heard films this year that I’ve been disappointed that he didn’t narrate, and he’s only got just so much time. I’d swap his narration here, for something like Immaculate, which has a totally inappropriate narrator choice.
Since this came out in 1999, and was about the Summer of 1976, we’re actually further from the release of this film than this film was from its subject matter. Take that time capsule.
Final Grade: B-
