Summer of 84

The summer of 1984. Fifteen-year-old Davey and his friends decide that their neighbour, police officer Wayne Mackey, is responsible for the teenage boys disappearing around town. They find evidence at his house and tell the authorities. The directing trio known as RKSS made it: François Simard, Anouk Whissell and Yoann-Karl Whissell. Matt Leslie and Stephen J. Smith wrote the screenplay. At first it runs on eighties nostalgia and the kid-detective template, and comparisons went to Stranger Things. The break comes in the last twenty minutes: Mackey abducts Davey and his friend Woody, takes them to an island, and the hunt begins. It ends with Davey alive and damaged, and the killer still officially at large. Rotten Tomatoes sits at 72 percent from 64 reviews. Critics praised the performances and the dark humour, and outlets including BuzzFeed News, LA Weekly and The Ringer put it on their best horror of 2018 lists. The screenplay won Best Screenplay at Cinepocalypse. It was Shudder's second-biggest premiere of 2018, behind only Mandy. Who it is for: viewers who like eighties nostalgia but do not want it tied off sweetly. Who it is not for: anyone looking for what a kids' adventure usually delivers. The last act goes somewhere else entirely.