Two Summers (2022– ) User Reviews

Binge worthy

[anndhansen-95392 · 8/10 · 7 June 2022]

If it were a book, it would be a page turner. The series has fine actors, good plot, nice location. But there are some sloppyness.

I had to watch quite a few episodes to figure out who is who. When there are so many actors involved, the director should see to that we know who is who.

The woman around whome the series revolve is long, tall, darkhaired, eerie white and has brown eyes. Her 30 year older self is blond, blueeyed, small, freckled and has a broader face. That is a major faux pas.

So too is the pilot character. He is much older than the others.

The island??? There are no such island near the French Riviera. But ok, fiction is allowed.

Solid psychological thriller from Belgium

[paul-allaer · 7/10 · 8 June 2022]

As Episode 1 of "Two Summers" (2022 release from Belgium; 6 episodes of about 45 min each) opens, we are in "Silicon Valley, USA", where Peter and his wife Romee live in a palatial estate. Just as they head out the door, Peter receives a message on his phone, containing a highly explosive video of an incident that happened 30 years ago. We then go to "Antwerp, Belgium", where a group of 6 friends get ready to fly out to a private island in the south of France, to celebrate Romee's 50th birthday. At this point we are 10 min into Episode 1.

Couple of comments: let me state upfront that I hail from Antwerp, Belgium (but have now lived in the US for many years) and when this was suggested to me by Netflix based on my viewing habits, I almost fell onto the floor when I realized that this is an authentic Flemish/Belgian TV mini-series. The "two summers" referred to in the title are the current summer and the summer of 1992, when the protagonists all are about 20 years old. Now reaching 50, it turns out that there are some very dark secrets hanging over their heads. So what starts as a happy-go-lucky reunion among this group of longtime friends, quickly unravels, and I'll leave it at that. The only performer I recognized is Ruth Becquart, one of Belgium's top actors (she was recently in the new season of that other great Flemish series "Undercover", also available on Netflix).

"Two Summers" premiered on Belgian (Flemish) TV in February (with stellar TV ratings), and it recently premiered on Netflix, where all 6 episodes are streaming now. If you are in the mood for a psychological thriller with a twist (or two) and a European setting, I'd readily suggest you check this out and draw your own conclusion. Note to Netflix: THANK YOU for bringing this to US audiences. Please stream more such foreign mini-series!

Did No One Notice How to Identify the Characters?

[kestoni · 8/10 · 10 June 2022]

Seems everyone was confused trying to keep track of which characters were which in the present and past (flashbacks).

Here's a little help for those who couldn't keep track: Each character can be identified by the color, or style, of the clothing they wear.

Here is a guide to a few of the characters, I'll leave it up to you to decipher the rest.

Saskia was always in a bikini.

Peter wore a green shirt.

Romee was always in blue.

Didier wore pink and blue.

Lia was draped in colorful garments.

Luk was bald in youth and had a full head of hair and a beard in the present.

So, now you have the Playlist - try and enjoy the plot.

The end...

[tannegie · 7/10 · 20 June 2022]

As a Dutchie myself I had no issue with the language though Flemish has some words of its own. The story tells of indeed two summers, one in 1992 and one in 2022. In the first summer a group of friends goes wild at drinking and pills. What happens with one girl is filmed.

Thirty years later a man who was in that film recieves that film on his phone and a message that he has to pay or it goes viral. The group of friends reunite on a isolated island at the French Azure coast. There slowly unfolds the story of finding the culprit who blackmails. There are more secrets unravelled.

But the end of the story is utterly disapppointing. Who will be prosecuted? And will there be even a prosecution?

Furthermore is it initially hard to distinguishe who is who as the older versions hardly look as the younger ones. Especially Sofie, who is brunette and dark eyed in 1992 but blond and blue eyed in 2022 and Didier who aged like 50 years instead of 30.

You've Got to be Patient

[albertval-69560 · 7/10 · 9 June 2022]

This is a rather thoughtful film about friends then and now. It's told using flashbacks to give the viewer a complete picture of what happened years back to understand what's happening now in the island while they're on vacation. In the early episodes, the viewer is reminded of a Hercule Poirot movie as the friends try to uncover the culprit.

The actors are good, the scenery is great. The piano and violin score is haunting and evokes the rather tragic mood of the story. The viewer is immersed in what's happening to the friends many years later.

It might be difficult for the viewer to understand the ending for the first time. S/he might have to repeat the last episode to get it right.

Overall, it's watchable and worthy of your time. Sidebar: 2 of the actors, namely, Ruth Becquert and Sanne Sanina Hanssen were together in the popular Belgian-Dutch co-production Undercover.

Almost perfect!

[olvedi_richard · 9/10 · 7 June 2022]

Great actors, great story, almost perfect.

I really enjoyed it. I do not understand the bad reviews which I've just red here...I really don't.

The only negative thing to which I do agree is, that in the first 2 episodes it's SUPER hard to tell who is who.

And... It's a drama people. You should accept, that dramas are slow, and the atmosphere gives you anxiety.

Polarising series !

[lucienm-60321 · 7/10 · 16 June 2022]

This is a good series !

However, like most viewers will agree, it's difficult to tell who's who when looking at the characters 30 years apart.

Location is magnificent, idyllic and so inviting ! Watching them swimming made me envious !

The storyline will definitely polarise male and female viewers !

Well-acted and believable Belgian drama

[walterico · 8/10 · 3 June 2022]

This is the kind of series that stands or falls on the strength of the acting, rather than the plot twists, suspense and action. The drama - the "secret" events of 30 years previously - is what haunts the characters now and the series handles all this pretty well, with the lies, deceit and self-delusions thick on the ground.

I found two or three of the characters a little weakly-drawn but the interactions were well acted and believable.

Belgium cinema/tv is building an excellent reputation for high quality drama, and this series is proof of that.

Don't watch this if you need action sequences, smart plot-twists and intrigue. But if you want a series that deals with serious issues in a serious, interesting and adult way, Two Summers is for you.

Good, not great

[jeffpsy · 7/10 · 8 July 2022]

Two Summers is a well-produced, well-acted series that maintains its tension well and keeps the viewer guessing. Plus, it has a few twists and turns along the way. Two things kept it from getting higher marks: First, there was the challenge of trying keep track of which character was which 30 years later. I managed to solve that problem. The bigger issue was the absence of likability of any of the characters. The characters were so flawed and cynical, it was hard to feel good about anybody in the drama. That said, it did hold one's interest.

They were trying different things, and they were smoking funny things, all summer long!

[Coventry · 5/10 · 2 April 2022]

As you can maybe guess from the review's subject title, this Flemish TV-show (or at least the flashback moments of it) heavily reminded me of the lyrics to Kid Rock's song "All Summer Long". The story revolves around 7 childhood friends reuniting at a luxurious and geographically isolated island resort in present times, when they are all around 50 years of age. In parallel, however, there's also footage of the last summer they spend together, in 1992, and that one didn't end too well. They were experimenting with lots of alcohol and medication, someone died in a house fire, and the men all participated in an intoxicated gang-rape of one of the girls who passed out.

Just before their reunion, one of the men receives a video recording of the rape and an anonymous message to pay a huge sum of bitcoins to prevent the footage from going viral. The two male "pack leaders" immediately suspect the blackmailer to be someone from within the group, and hope to settle things at the resort, since they are prominent business and political figures nowadays who cannot afford reputational damage.

"Two Summers" is far from great, and not nearly ranking among the better drama/thriller television series that have been produced here over the past 1-2 decades, but at least it's already a massive improvement over writer/creator Tom Lenaerts' previous series; - the abysmal "Over Water". "Two Summers" is clearly heavily influenced by the #MeToo movements and the numerous media tycoon sex scandals that came to the surface during the past years. Belgium has had its share of those as well, and one of them even involved Tom Lenaerts' life-long friend and TV-associate Bart De Pauw, so likely he found some inspiration here. The handling of the matter remains very clichéd and predictable, however. Rather than showing any remorse for the vile acts they committed 28 years ago, the men involved only seek for ways to keep their dirty little secret covered up, and even when face-to-face confronted with it, they minimalize what the did, seek for circumstantial excuses and victimize themselves rather than the girl. Fundamentally, nothing will ever change I'm afraid.

Purely speaking in terms of television-entertainment, "Two Summers" is a bit short on action, suspense, and surprise elements. The finale is quite predictable and disappointing, especially since I'm sure that better alternatives were possible. Also, it took me nearly four full episodes (and there are only six in total) before I was properly able to link the characters in their early fifties to the same characters in their twenties, as the physical resemblance nearly isn't there. None of the acting performances are particularly stellar, but the young cast outshine the older cast member - some of which are supposed to be Flanders' finest (Koen De Bouw, Kevin Janssens, ...). Positive elements include the breathtaking island location and an effective recreation of the 1992 atmosphere during the flashbacks.

Clever twists

[magda-strong · 9/10 · 12 June 2022]

Loved this series and in particular the story line and how it unfolds. It goes back and forth in time and the way it has been done, slowly brings it all together.

I love it when a story line continues to surprise me as most psychological thrillers tend to be quite predictable. This one isnt and its done really tastefully and realistically.

The acting and directing is great, but the editing of this series is what i found most admirable.

Loved it and hope there is a sequel.

Not bad so far.

[kenbo-87360 · 7/10 · 4 June 2022]

I've watched three episodes and it's holding my attention.

The two things I'm struggling with is the age difference of the cast, and being able to tell who is who from 1992-2022. There's got to be twenty years age difference between the actors, yet they are playing friends of the same age. One of the actors looks old enough to be his 'mates' dad!

I'd suggest new viewers have IMDB open on the cast when they watch. It easily allows you to connect the two different actors to the same role thirty years apart. It will certainly help you know who is who.

Hopefully it has a satisfying ending.

Disappointing

[tlarraya · 2/10 · 18 July 2022]

I watched the whole season waiting for the ending to make it worth it but it didn´t. Yes, there are some twists but nothing really engaging enough. I felt like I wasted my time.

Entertaining Drama

[chriscupo · 7/10 · 10 June 2022]

Thought show was good and six episodes was appropriate. The story was confusing in parts and one criticism it was hard to match the younger version of the actor to the older version. All in all an entertaining drama that kept you guessing.

emotional psychological drama thriller

[cool_andhot · 7/10 · 29 November 2022]

It was a binge for me. I am still trying to conclude if they did in the first summer and in the second summer is right or wrong. It is all gray for me. I don't know who is right or wrong.

The series is very well directed , scripted and acted. It keeps the secret throughout. The build up and revelations were brilliant. You will keep getting new secrets which they kept all these years.

There was little confusion who is who ( young and old version) in the beginning because none of them look same as they were younger. So just some help for new viewers. There are 8 people in old summer and new summer Peter - the guy who plays guitar married to Rome' - who is little chubby, Luke - Cancer kid , now in relationship with Lea who was not in the old summer, Luke was married to Sasika but divorced. Didier - bald now but cute younger married to Sofie who was a victim. Old summer there was Mark too. He is not in the second summer.

Entertaining for sure

[katcm99 · 8/10 · 12 June 2022]

I am getting really good at enjoying foreign series using subtitles. Honestly, I watched the first 2 episodes, then had to go back and watch the first one again just to understand who grew up to be who. Once I got that, I enjoyed it all. It didn't seem to move too slowly for me. Are there so few actors in Belgium that they couldn't get someone to play the previously preppie Didier as the mature Didier? My apology to the elder actor. He was totally mis-cast. Breathtaking scenery.

Sun, sea, sex and an unforgettable reunion!

[frank-liesenborgs · 7/10 · 7 February 2022]

"Two Summers" is a story that begins thirty years ago. A group of high-spirited youngsters in their early twenties want to party for one last vacation before serious life really begins. But then tragedy strikes. Thirty summers later, Romée (An Miller) and Peter (Tom Vermeir), the most successful couple of the group, invite the same group of friends from back then to celebrate Romée's birthday during a long weekend on an island off the French Azure coast. The champagne is cold, the pool is refreshing and the reunion is unforgettable. The series are based on the 'Kavanaugh" case' from 2018, the American judge who was to be appointed to the Supreme Court, but who was indicted for allegedly groping a girl in a drunken inertness when he was a student. This is a fantastic story and what a plot twist! The central themes here are peer pressure, guilt "gradation" and "selective" memory. By talking about the past, you might destroy more than by not talking about it. Both the young cast (Tijmen Govaerts, Louise Bergez etc.) and the experienced cast (Ruth Becquart, Inge Paulussen, Kevin Janssens, Koen De Bouw and Herwig Ilegems) act at a high level and the theme fits seamlessly into the #MeToo era. Moreover, the paradisiacal setting in which the friends reside is one of the most delightful settings you will ever come across. You can watch all the 6 episodes now on VRTNU and in the near future on Netflix.

I liked it?

[laterthenyouexpect · 8/10 · 11 June 2022]

But what happened at the end? I don't understand when someone doesn't explicitly say what the ending is! Are they going to jail? Not going to jail? Hate that! Also it was infuriating to not be able to recognize the older people against their younger selfs. All of that said it was good enough for me to watch ALL of it. Mind you, my tv is littered with shows half watched turned off within 10 minutes never to be seen again. I eagerly awaited the watching of this show. It was entertaining, well acted, written and filmed. But please someone tell me what happened at the end!

It could have been a great movie, but not enough for a looong series.

[CarlosMendesPereira · 6/10 · 30 September 2022]

Great story, no doubt, but a boring television product.

On capable hands, this could have been an excellent movie, a psychological drama and a great thriller, but it became a tedious tv series. I guess they got more money, selling more minutes, but more than half of those are just to fill.

It's not the first time I see examples like this, but Netflix, with it's long experience, should pay more attention when they evaluate the projects producers present.

I watched until the end because I was curious, but I was reading a book in the unnecessary parts. Anyway, it was well made and I rated 6 stars.

Don't tell

[marleen-10149 · 2/10 · 7 February 2022]

The moral of the story: when a woman gets raped by a bunch of men, it's better not to expose the truth because it will make everybody miserable. You might even have the death of someone on your conscience and be a 'killer' and the worst of the bunch because you chose to expose the truth. By the way, rapists are innocent, it was the pills, and the woman (completely wasted) was horny and said an hour before that she wanted to make love to you, so why not rape her with four men in the room and film it all. By the way, if you hold her down and bang against her but do not penetrate, you have not done anything wrong.

Some men just don't get it... it makes me ashamed and angry at the same time that the director tries to justify things that are just not justifiable. Is this really still possible?

A very interesting drama

[peripatitis · 9/10 · 9 July 2022]

Clearly this is a very difficult bunch of people, i'd dare say they are very difficult to sympathize with, as the story progresses with. Somewhere in the end Peter says, "we know each other from scouts, we always played games, this time it went to far" and it is kind of the gist of the story. No one in this series feels sorry about anything, not really. Anyway, i also found the casting to be superb, the young with the older selves were very well selected, and even having to "work" a bit for a couple of characters is part of the positives for me. Btw in each episode title scene they were pretty much highlighting one of the characters.

Beyond everything else though, i feel i should comment on the music. It stands out, creating an beautiful earie atmosphere, exceptionally crafted. It really is above the usual uninspired music found in even the most popular series. I don't think i'd like the series as much without it.

Good enough but flawed

[laduqesa · 6/10 · 16 July 2022]

The biggest flaw is the purported ages of the characters in the second summer. They were all meant to be fifty years old with Luc supposedly a couple of years younger than his brother Peter who was played by Keir Starmer lookalike Tom Vermeir. However Luc looked at least ten or more years younger than Peter. Didier looked more like sixty than fifty. The women didn't look fifty at all and seemed far younger in the case of one of them. The only woman who seemed her correct age was Lia as she was not part of the original group of friends.

The transitions from the first to the second summer were a little hard at first inasmuch as trying to work out who was who.

I have to say that the plot seemed inspired by Agatha Christie - a combination of "Ten Little indians" and "Murder on the Orient Express". I'd worked out who was doing the blackmailing by episode four- all was to be revealed anyway in the next episode.

The ending was equivocal. Did the plotters get their just desserts? We are not told. Sofie's tears could have been of relief or of terror. The ending is up to us.

A last remark. What was a Belgian judge doing investigating a crime committed on a French island off the Cote d'Azur?

Disappointing and No Character Development

[stepofhan · 3/10 · 14 June 2022]

What a waste of time! I tried with this show up until the last episode and almost flipped at the dull and infuriating ending. I won't spoil but man did this series do the exact opposite of what it was supposed to do. What could have been a touching and empowering story became hard-to-watch victim blaming at its finest.

Masively overrated

[iemand-anders1 · 11 February 2022]

The good: well directed, well acted, specially the younger versions, very stylish!

The bad: the story eventually is utter garbage and very disappointing, this series tries to be many different things at once.but mainly a whodunit ,winch i figure out pretty much in episode 2.

Then a lot of nonsensical drama added for the sake of plot.also these characters pretty much every single one of them are despicable, weak, total dishonest lying cheating,backstabbing scumbags its hard to believe they established a friendship for over that long.

The attempts to be intellectual also falls very flat on its stomach.the plot is just plain simple and stupid.

Big waste of time.

Good start, disappointing end

[wim-demeester · 7/10 · 7 February 2022]

The first 3 episodes the tension is building up but in the last two episodes the tension drops. I have the feeling that the psychological profiles of the characters weren't really on the right spot to get the right atmosphere at the end. Anyway a good series in a nice scenary but the beginning was so good i expected more.