9. Summer of Sam (1999)
David Berkowitz, also known as The Son of Sam, is an American serial killer convicted of a number of shooting attacks that began in the summer of 1976. The murders continued for a year and left six people dead and seven injured. Berkowitz eluded police capture, became a media sensation and taunted the world with a series of boastful letters. He was eventually captured in August 1977, claiming that he was driven to kill by a demon that had possessed his neighbour's dog. Summer of Sam is not a biography of David Berkowitz, it is a slice of drama set among a community of Italian Americans when the shootings were at their most intense. Spike Lee does a great job of capturing the 1976 zeitgeist - the dress, the disco music, the heat, the paranoia. Unfortunately, the story features not very sympathetic characters with boring problems. Berkowitz is nothing but a shadowy presence, occasionally appearing to shoot necking lovers in their car through the head. These scenes are brutal. There is not much psychological examination of Berkowitz, mind you, this is not a film directly about him, rather the effects he has on New York during his reign of terror. There is a goofy talking dog and mafiosa vigilantes trying to figure out just who the Son of Sam is. But mostly the film focuses on pervy cheating husband Vinny (John Leguizamo) and his beleaguered wife Dionna (Mira Sorvino). It is a very sweary film. I swear myself and I'm not particularly offended by it, but this is swearing ne plus ultra. I would rather have some decent action to watch. The only exciting times are in fact when Berkowitz shoots someone and then you have to be bored for a while until he shoots someone else. Well captured era of summer in NY 1976 but bogged down by irritating characters and scenarios. Berkowitz, in his quiet way is the best thing about the film. Woof!