Movie Review - Scream 4

Scream 4 (2011)

Starring Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Courtney Cox, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Kieran Culkin, Alison Brie, Mary McDonnell, and Marley Shelton

Directed by Wes Craven

I don't know if I'm just tired of the series or if it's the fact that the new Ghostface's motives in Scream 4 seem even more ludicrous than those of Scream 3's killer, but this latest installment in Wes Craven's self-referential franchise is a letdown (and even moreso since we had to wait over a decade to get this to the screen).  Was the world asking for another Scream flick?  Probably not, but I do feel a slight connection to this series simply because it was the first horror franchise that I latched onto in my youth.  Teens in the 80s had the Elm Streets and Jason and Michael Myers to think fondly of, but as a 90s teen, this felt like my series...and plus, for this burgeoning film buff, Scream began as a series that paid homage to its horror flick predecessors which was something I greatly appreciated.  Unfortunately, the allure has faded and the disappointment of Scream 3 is further continued with the fourth flick in the series.

Ten years have passed since the conclusion of the Hollywood-based last installment and Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) has written her autobiography and is returning to Woodsboro, the scene of the crimes in the original Scream, on her book tour.  Dewey (David Arquette) has become the local sheriff and he and "retired journalist" Gale Withers (Courtney Cox) are happily married.  As soon as Sidney arrives, young high schoolers begin to bite the dust at the hands of a new Ghostface Killer and Sidney, Dewey, and Gale must do what they can in order to save the community and track down the slasher.

Unfortunately, nothing new is brought to the table here.  Scream 2 followed Syd to college and Scream 3 (although not nearly as good as the first two flicks in the series) changed the scene to Hollywood, but returning to Woodsboro and essentially copying the exact same storyline of the first film just makes Scream 4 flounder aimlessly with nothing really driving the plot along.  The new characters introduced including Emma Roberts as Syd's cousin Jill, Hayden Panettiere as Jill's sassy friend, and Kieran Culkin as a high school film geek just seemed liked doppelgangers of characters in the first film.  All were certainly adequate (and the acting in all the Scream flicks is always much better than most horror flicks), but their characters were bland and I never was able to connect with any of them or any of the other new folks introduced.

As mentioned above, once the Ghostface killer is revealed, it was met by me with an eye roll.  The motive (while perhaps fitting in this day and age) isn't solid enough to base a whole movie around and it ends up being a disappointment.  That said, I did think that the final scenes after the reveal were quite tense and helped the film end on a somewhat better note than I expected.  Still, I can't help but think that Scream 4 is just a pale imitation of the original flick and, although this goes against popular opinion since many think the third flick is the worst in the series, this fourth installment is the lowest on the totem pole for me.  I'm sure that if a Scream 5 were made I'd give it a go, but the expectations would certainly be mighty low.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Movie Review - Scream 3

Scream 3 (2000)

Starring Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, David Arquette, Patrick Dempsey, Scott Foley, Jenny McCarthy, Emily Mortimer, and Liev Schreiber

Directed by Wes Craven
***This film is currently streaming on Netflix***

The least loved of the original Scream trilogy, the third and final installment of the series (until the fourth film was released over a decade later) earns that "Worst Film in the Series" honor.  However, Scream 3 wasn't nearly as bad as I remembered it being, finding myself being rather impressed with the overarching connection to the previous two films, but disappointed in the fact that the film is really nothing more than a typical slasher film with better acting.

In this third flick we move from Woodsboro (the setting of the first two films) to Hollywood where a third film -- Stab 3 -- is being produced mirroring the life of Sidney Prescott.  Of course, there's a copycat killer on the loose again and this lunatic is wreaking havoc on the movie set and those involved in the production.  What ensues is simply a progression of people getting stabbed in the back again and again and again and again.  And unfortunately, that's where Scream 3 doesn't work.  The kills are uninventive, repetitive, and we have so little connection to these obnoxious Hollywood types biting the dust that we don't really give a damn that they're being offed.  

What does work, however, is the continuation of Sidney's storyline, delving into the reasons her mother was looked upon as such a tramp in the first film and building the Scream mythology in a decent manner.  It also helps that Courtney Cox and David Arquette take a more prominent role than Neve Campbell's consistently bland Sidney.  Their Gale Weathers and Dewey Riley provide comic relief while, at the same time, giving the viewer characters to root for in the midst of the fairly disappointing characters that are thrown into the mix in this third flick.

Despite all the qualms about this one, I was still entertained and, at times, on the edge of my seat.  Sometimes you can't ask for more than that.  Now I'll just have to sit back another month or two until the fourth installment makes its way to dvd (even though I'm fairly upset that I've had a significant portion of the flick spoiled for me thanks to a television interview I stumbled upon two months after that film had been released).  

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - Scream 2

Scream 2 (1997)

Starring Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, David Arquette, Liev Schreiber, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jerry O'Connell, Elise Neal, Timothy Olyphant, Laurie Metcalf, Omar Epps, and Jada Pinkett Smith

Directed by Wes Craven

***This film is currently streaming on Netflix***

I always thought that Scream was a solid horror film and, watching it years later, that fortunately still held true upon a recent revisit.  In that review, I mentioned that I didn't remember the next two films in the series with any fondness and I wondered if there was a reason for that.

Well, I'm pleasantly surprised to say that Scream 2 is also a pretty decent horror flick.  Yes, it's essentially the first film rehashed (but that's the point of the story in that a copycat killer is still enacting hell on Sidney Prescott's [Neve Campbell] life after she moved on to college), but it's a solid thriller.  Granted, there aren't as many nifty death scenes, but what keeps the flick afloat is the very game cast.  The return of Courtney Cox's Gale Weathers, David Arquette's Dewey Riley, and Jamie Kennedy's Randy all jump right back into things, expanding upon their characters and actually proving to be more enjoyable in some cases than in the first film.  The addition of Elise Neal as Sidney's best friend, Jerry O'Connell as Sid's boyfriend, and Laurie Metcalf as a podunk local newspaper reporter fascinated by the well-known Gale Weathers are all nice new faces.

Granted, the big reveal at the end is silly and the series loses some of its charm since it somewhat abandons the "poking fun at other horror films" premise, but it was still an enjoyable two hours, so I'll take that.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Movie Review - Scream (1996)

Scream
Starring Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, David Arquette, Rose McGowan, Jamie Kennedy, Skeet Ulrich, Matthew Lillard, and Drew Barrymore
Directed by Wes Craven

It had been a long time since I had seen Scream and it was one of those movies that I really enjoyed as a teenager but felt that there was absolutely no way it would hold up today. Fortunately, I was wrong. It's just as funny, clever, and tense as I remember it, and it moves along at such a brisk pace that its nearly two hour running time feels much less than that.

Sidney Prescott's (Campbell) mother was brutally raped and murdered a year ago and testimony from Sidney put the supposed killer in jail. However, a brutal slaying of two teens makes some believe that Sidney may have convicted the wrong man and the killer is back again.

This has been said many times before, but the thing that makes this movie work is the simple fact that it knows it's a horror movie. It doesn't try to push the clichés aside, but instead it milks them for all they're worth. It pokes fun at the genre, while at the same time, treating it with utmost respect. The twelve-minute opening sequence with Drew Barrymore is a perfect example. That's a genius bit of filmmaking there. It's so tense and so taut that even though I knew what was going to happen this time around, I was still on the edge of my seat. It's really a brilliant horror movie scene.

Similarly, the film's climactic set piece of the aftermath of a house party (which I would say goes on for a surprisingly long time) doesn't wear out its welcome. The twists keep coming and they're supported by both clever writing and some surprisingly good acting. I never would've thought I could write that Matthew Lillard and Jamie Kennedy were any good in anything, but they really show that given the right lines, they can really deliver. Neve Campbell and Skeet Ulrich are fine, but a little too mopey for my tastes. Fortunately, they're balanced out by the quirky David Arquette as a small-town sheriff's deputy and Courtney Cox (not yet an Arquette) as hard-ass reporter Gale Weathers.

If memory serves me right, Screams 2 and 3 don't work nearly as well, but perhaps I'll give them another shot in the near future. If you haven't seen this one in a while, it's worth a glance again.

Side Note: Finally...a movie streaming on Netflix that was actually recommendable!

The RyMickey Rating: B+