GurlyIamBeach Instant Favorite.

Curapedi I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Anoushka Slater While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

Logan By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

hannahp1 I got this as a gift-the blu ray edition-and was excited to see it because I never heard of it. As far as the blu ray transfer it is not the greatest but worth a look.Blair should have two credits one being her hair. It was distracting but in a funny way. The movie itself was unfortunately slow and somewhat boring, I wasn't expecting much being 1978 so it was not as much of a disappointment than it should have been.Camp value is what you come to see this for. The showdown at the end which takes forever to get to was fabulously cheesy. The scene with her mother near the end was funny. But the biggest thing that surprised me was when she lost her boyfriend the family acts like its ok. Creepiest scenes were with the horse. The major twist I should have seen coming but didn't oh well must be getting old.Also Fran Dresher shows up here which was a surprise-that laugh ugh. If you like old 70s tv movies its worth a look just don't expect to find a hidden gem.

Toronto85 It's a 'Summer of Fear' for Rachel and her family when cousin Julia comes to live with them. Following the death of her parents, Julia moves to the countryside to stay with her extended family. Almost immediately after moving in, Rachel's life begins to unravel. Her parents begin to favour Julia over her, her beloved horse dies AND her boyfriend falls for her cousin Julia. Instead of chalking these horrible occurrences up to coincidence, Rachel begins to do some investigating. It's then that she discovers that Julia is in fact a witch, and is not her real cousin! With no one believing her, can Rachel save her family and herself from death at the hands of witchcraft?'Summer of Fear' tells a good story and is enjoyable to watch, but can't get past it's "Made for TV" label. The problem with it is that it drags a bit too much (like a TV movie does), so if you don't have the patience you won't get to the really fun parts (which are at the middle-end frame). I did however think it was a good horror flick. The acting was stellar from Linda Blair as Rachel, and Lee Purcell as the witch Julia. It's frustrating to watch Julia get away with everything and basically take Rachel's place. The movie does a good job of making you root for Rachel, which is good. Sometimes a lead can be annoying, or the villain is so entertaining that you turn on the "good girl". 'Summer of Fear' however really makes you feel bad for Rachel.I'd recommend this one for sure. It moves a little slow at the start and throughout some bits in the middle, but Blair and Purcell put in good performances and the story is a good one. There are some good location shots and creepy moments once "Julia" completely transforms into the witch she is. Check it out!6/10

ElectricWarlock Anyone who is familiar with Wes Craven's films knows that he is a horror legend, making such classics as A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Last House on the Left, The Hills Have Eyes, and Scream. While those are some of his most famous films, I'd say this one is just as good as all of them and doesn't get anywhere near enough recognition. The main thing I think this film does well is create interesting characters. The people in this film are fascinating and seem just like real people, not fictional characters. Linda Blair, Lee Purcell, and Fran Drescher gave the best performances of the film. The story is also very interesting and well written. It is based off of a book by Lois Duncan. Every moment of this film is fascinating and I wasn't bored once. I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next. I wanted Rachel to expose her cousin's witchcraft and defeat her every step of the way. Most of the time when I watch a film, I keep my eye on the clock counting down the minutes until it will end. I didn't do that at all with this film because I didn't want it to end.This is one of the most entertaining horror films I've ever seen and I don't feel as if it gets enough recognition. It is one of Wes Craven's best and completely fun to watch.

lost-in-limbo Rachael Bryant's cousin, Julia comes to live with her family at the country farm, after her parents where killed in a car accident. Though during her stay, strange things begin to happen, like the horse seems to lose it around Julia and men in the Rachael's life seem to fall under her spell. She tries to convince her family and friends that there's something not quite right about Julia, but she gets dismissed as nothing more but jealously.I was quite impressed for what is was and Craven's low-budget TV feature (after such brutally raw efforts as "The Last House on the Left" and "The Hills Have Eyes") is an earnest curio, despite its timid treatment for a wider audience. This version is the international extended cut of American TV movie "Stranger in The House" and was adapted from the novel of Lois Duncan. The seductively adorable Lee Purcell definitely casts a spell over you in her hypnotic performance as the sweetly venomous cousin Julia. In the words of Cliff Richards, "She's just a devil woman. With evil on her mind. Beware the devil woman. She's gonna get you." An engrossingly likable doll face Linda Blair (who has one puffy hairdo!) is the main attraction (five years after her demonic role in "The Exorcist") and is tailor made for the part. While, it starts off slowly and the material sticks to a fundamental pattern. Craven manages to keep it interesting by drawing you in. He rallies up the ominous tension sufficiently and feed us to some black humour, but it does seem to lose that edge created earlier on by falling into predictability and nonsensical actions (plenty of rash decisions) that creep into the latter half. This is when it also finally picks up the pace and adds the (somewhat cheesy) thrills and chills to the mixture. The laughable special effects also kick in too. The way they approach the camera-work is glaringly workable and the overwhelming music score sticks to the same close-circuit cues. And throw in one of those endings. Yeah, one of those! The performances from the rest of the cast are simply okay and an early appearance by Fran Drescher wasn't too annoying. Good lord! Maybe it was because she didn't get enough screen time to provide her irritating twang.A compellingly solid offering without being too daring or surprising, but its Purcell and Blair's performances that makes this general item passable. Just move right in!