Summer of Sam (1999)
It’s the late 1970s, it’s a super-hot summer in NYC, and a trigger-happy serial killer who calls himself Son of Sam is on the loose. Two childhood friends from a predominantly Italian-American part of the Bronx are trying to figure out the killer’s real identity. When the city loses power, residents are urged to stay inside and lock their doors.
This movie is an underrated Spike Lee classic, and it’s based on the chaotic summer of 1977 in NYC. It was a dangerous time, and crime was skyrocketing. The Bronx was burning, and one of the longest lasting heat waves in the city’s history at the time lasted forabout nine days. The dangerously high temperatures choked the five boroughs in mid-July, with several days above 100 degrees. A city-wide power outage led to widespread looting, arson, and overall unrest.
