Summer of Sam
Short description
Summer of Sam is set in an Italian-American neighbourhood of the Bronx during the summer of 1977, when New York was gripped by a heat wave and by fear of a serial killer the press had named Son of Sam. The residents grow suspicious of one another as the killings continue, and the tensions of the neighbourhood are played out against the era's competing musical scenes and the blackout that darkened the city. Among those caught up in the atmosphere are Vinny and his wife Dionna, and Vinny's friend Ritchie, whose punk appearance and attitude set him apart from those around him.
Spike Lee directed the film and wrote the screenplay with Victor Colicchio and Michael Imperioli; Jon Kilik and Lee produced it for Touchstone Pictures and 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks. It was released in 1999 and runs 142 minutes. John Leguizamo plays Vinny, Adrien Brody plays Ritchie, Mira Sorvino plays Dionna, and Jennifer Esposito, Michael Rispoli and Saverio Guerra are among the large credited cast. Coming between He Got Game and Bamboozled, it is the eleventh of the twenty-six films Lee has directed.
Made for about 22 million dollars, the film took roughly 19 million worldwide. It holds a 6.7 rating on IMDb from around 44,000 votes and a 6.5 on TMDB from about 550 votes. The critics' rating of 6.4 from 104 reviews places it close to the audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- During filming, disgruntled Americans left racist slogans and inscriptions on the equipment or on the set, directly targeting Spike Lee.
- Director Spike Lee faced strongly negative reactions to the film from some relatives of the victims, who feared that the focus would be on the killer. Because of this, the script had to be rewritten to emphasize the public's reaction rather than the murderer himself.
- The scene of the argument between John Leguizamo and Mira Sorvino in the cemetery was improvised. Spike Lee instructed the actor to suddenly and without warning spit in his partner's face.
- Two minutes of screen time were cut from the film, primarily reducing a club orgy, in order to secure an R rating (under 17 requires accompanying parent or guardian) rather than an NC-17 rating (no one 17 or under admitted).
- Leonardo DiCaprio and Benicio del Toro were initially considered for the lead role.
- During a staged beating, actor Adrien Brody accidentally had his nose broken.
- The letters read in the film are a verbatim copy of actual letters written by David Berkowitz (also known as the Son of Sam, a serial killer) to journalist Jimmy Breslin (1928-2017).
- According to the script, Richie was the main character, and Vinny was secondary, but Spike Lee was so impressed with John Leguizamo's improvisations that he gave his character additional screen time; for example, the scene where Vinny spills coffee on Gloria was one such improvisation.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
