Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.0

Dark Summer Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 21, 2015

What would make a teenager blanch more, being confined to his house or being confined to his house without the internet? For most teens, it would be a no-brainer, and the second option would in many teens’ minds no doubt be the stuff of some horror film. And that is exactly the setup of Dark Summer, a fitfully effective lo-fi effort from director Paul Solet (Grace) which posits a teen named Daniel (Kier Gilchrist) who is put under house arrest after having cyberstalked his classmate Mona (Grace Phipps). While ostensibly being monitored by a no nonsense parole office (Peter Stormare), Daniel manages, with the help of his friends Kevin (Maestro Harrell) and Abby (Stella Maeve), to reestablish contact with the internet and indeed with Mona herself. When Mona apparently commits suicide, suddenly Daniel finds himself confronted by all sorts of unexplained phenomena and it seems the stalking tables have turned.

Dark Summer rather smartly circumvents its obvious low (or no) budget ambience by confining the action almost entirely to the interior of Daniel’s house. That also gives the film a suitably claustrophobic feeling, one which Solet increases by frequent use of extreme close-ups. But the film is almost intentionally vague on salient plot points, including (for a while at least) whatever actual cybercrime Daniel was guilty of committing. While some elements are putatively explained in a late “twist,” the film suffers by offering generic characters in a somewhat rote haunted house setting, with or without the blandishments of the internet. Maybe someone should have Googled a better denouement.

For a more positive reaction to Dark Summer, see my colleague Brian Orndorf's review of the theatrical release here.

Dark Summer Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Dark Summer is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Scream Factory, an imprint of Shout! Factory, with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. The IMDb lists this as having been shot digitally with the Arri Alexa EV, and while the image is generally decently sharp, the ubiquity of dim lighting repeatedly subverts attempts to deliver more than a baseline of fine detail quite a bit of the time. Other sequences are either lit unusually or color graded, further diminishing fine detail. The few outdoor shots pop a bit better, with good color and sharpness.

Dark Summer Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Dark Summer's lo-fi ambience means that the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix isn't the most impressively immersive horror soundtrack in recent memory, but there are enough startle effects which, as cliché ridden as they may be, deliver the sonic goods. Dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly. Fidelity is excellent and dynamic range relatively wide (though not as huge as in some horror blockbusters). For the record, there is also a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mix provided as well.

Dark Summer Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Director Paul Solet Featurette (1080p; 2:15)


• A Conversation with Peter Stormare Featurette (1080p; 15:52)


• The Kids - Cast Interviews (1080p; 2:04)


• Atmosphere and Style Featurette (1080p; 1:57)


• The Art of Dark Summer Featurette (1080p; 13:38)


• The Music of Dark Summer Featurette (1080p; 8:37)


• Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 1:58)


• Audio Commentary with Director Paul Solet

Dark Summer Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Dark Summer delivers a few chills along the way, but at least some of them are kind of cheap scares. The film has an impressive mood, but it functions more like a sketch than a fully realized painting. Technical merits are generally very good and the supplemental package quite commendable for those considering a purchase.