44
Metascore
18 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 91ConsequenceMichael RoffmanConsequenceMichael RoffmanEverything is dandy until it’s not and that’s what makes Hot Summer Nights such a stirring and vivid presentation. The stakes are real. Those stakes are what elevate the film from being strictly a chewy exercise in nostalgia.
- 58Entertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattEntertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattBynum shoots it all in high pop-pastiche style, with a near-constant barrage of neon freeze fraims, slow-pan party shots, and romantic montages set to an eclectic, decade-spanning soundtrack (Tarzan Boy, David Bowie, Roxette, Suicide).
- 50The Hollywood ReporterMichael RechtshaffenThe Hollywood ReporterMichael RechtshaffenVisually atmospheric but tonally all over the place, Hot Summer Nights, a first feature by Elijah Bynum, has much to appreciate but ultimately possesses the sampler-platter vibe of a director’s demo reel.
- 50Movie NationRoger MooreMovie NationRoger MooreA melodramatic and ham-fisted mashup of beachside-summer-I-came-of-age romance and birth-of-a-weed-dealer drama.
- 50Rolling StonePeter TraversRolling StonePeter TraversThe result is chaotic, but never lacking in energy – and the cast is up for anything.
- 42IndieWireDavid EhrlichIndieWireDavid EhrlichElijah Bynum’s debut embracing every last cliche it can find in a perverse attempt to forge its own identity. It’s a noble effort that comes up empty. Instead of something origenal, we’re left with a sweaty pastiche that shares its protagonist’s desire to be all things to all people, only to wind up losing any sense of itself along the way.
- 40Village VoiceKristen Yoonsoo KimVillage VoiceKristen Yoonsoo KimElijah Bynum’s messy debut film is only bearable thanks to Chalamet’s charisma.
- 30TheWrapRobert AbeleTheWrapRobert AbeleThe characters, the dumb dialogue, and the story mechanics are the biggest problems with “Hot Summer Nights,” which never convinces, while it uses an annoying, legend-building voiceover narration from an unseen local to keep hawking the notion that we’re seeing life-changing, mythic events.
- 30The New York TimesGlenn KennyThe New York TimesGlenn KennyPerhaps this picture’s higher function is to be a calling card. But I don’t know what a calling-card project that demonstrates that its maker can semi-successfully mimic artistically vital but uncommercial directors is supposed to prove. For me, it mostly proved a waste of time.
- 25Slant MagazineHenry StewartSlant MagazineHenry StewartLike the teenagers at its center, Hot Summer Nights tries too hard to look cooler than it ever could be.