Over here, I faced an uphill battle with frozen pipes and such. Joys of being a houseowner. Yesterday I finally made headway and was able to thaw things out. Thankfully nothing bad happened and it was just a matter of time before the water came fully back. I took that as my sign to go see Scream. Now, everyone that's been following this blog has an idea of what this franchise means to me. I have said it before multiple times that there were those that grew up on Elm Street, Halloween, and Friday. I had the pleasure of growing up with those, but Scream was the one that I was able to go to the theater (minus the original) and see on the big screen. I'm pretty sure that I had the Scream Trilogy DVD boxset before I had the Elm Street Collection. And I had the old McFarlane movie figure and the 12" doll they released with the 'voice changer' built in. So safe to say, Scream is my franchise.
When I first left the theater, I refilled my pop and popcorn. I asked the people working what was going to happen to the movie poster when it ended its run. Safe to say, my name is on the list for claiming that poster. I can definitely say if that happens, that'll be absolutely fantastic. I got to my truck and sat there for a minute. I was numb in a sense. I had just seen Scream (2022), literally my most anticipated movie this year. And I was just flabbergasted. I wasn't sure how to feel about it. So I let it sit overnight to just settle.
I love the first Scream. It is a fantastic horror film that reinvigorated the genre. It's a testament to the writing for it. The films that followed it were good. But honestly all of them felt a bit like they were trying to play things a little safe. Well maybe not Scream 4. By that point, it seems like Wes was all guns forward on doing something different and not a rehash. So instead he gave a film that was ahead of its time and came to predict how social media and everything would be today in the shell of a film that twisted the knife on remakes. That's why there's that terrible lighting in the film - it's all part of the plan.
Scream (2022) is a bold film. It's a film that is not afraid of playing it safe. It's a film that honestly broke new ground, in my opinion. It's a film that feels so much like it has Wes's fingerprints all over it. Radio Silence (Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin) delivered a fantastic tribute to Wes. I honestly think he would have been very proud of the film.
Is the film perfect? No, it's not perfect. It was never going to be perfect. And there is no way it could be perfect. That's setting up a level of high expectations that it doesn't deserve. This is a film that is best going in blind. I know there were a few trailers and a lot of publicity for it. I watched one trailer and then that was it. Part of me would have bene happy if I hadn't watch the trailer. Scream is a film that is one that doesn't need any of that. It's a film that can be sold on its own. Well, I mean there are those amazing posters from CreepyDuckArt. That's definitely someone I'm sure that we will be seeing more of. But they were able to bring back the feel of those old VHS covers and that's awesome.
The opening of this film, for me, was just as strong as the original was. It didn't rush into things. It allowed there to be some breathing room as Jenna Ortega's Tara receives a phone call on the landline. It's a familiar set up and a nice homage to the original. Roger L. Jackson delivers such an amazing performance in this opening. I may even say that I would rank it above the original. The way he just talks in such a normal tone is so interesting and then the turn into the dark 'voice' that we know so well. It's all handled with such great care. The way the scene plays out has a very different feel than what we normally know. It's more bold and brutal. This is especially evident in the way that Ghost Face handles his approach towards Tara. At one point, there are police lights shining through the windows into the house and Ghost Face is in the middle of it. It was fantastic.
After that, we are introduced to Jack Quaid's Richie and Melissa Barrera's Sam. They work at a local bowling alley in Modesto. Who says people can't get away from Woodsboro? Quickly, they are brought back as they receive a call from Dylan Minnette's Wes Hicks. It's a bit of a decent way of bringing Richie and Sam into Woodsboro. From there, we are introduced to our new generation: Mikey Madison, Mason Gooding, Jasmin Savoy Brown, and Sonia Ben Ammar. All of this cast deliver pretty solid performances. I know there are a lot of people that will give them a bit of grief. But I mean it's Scream, the casting always has an uphill battle when it comes to things. You have to have a likeable cast, but have to make it believable for the reveal in the third act. The returning cast of David Arquette as Dewey, Neve Campbell as Sidney, Courtney Cox as Gale, and Marley Shelton as Sheriff Judy. The appearances from the OG cast is really well done here as well. I would probably say that their usage in this film is a little better than in Scream 4.
The way the story plays out is pretty well done. It does a really good job of in a way that parallels the original movie. Now, I enjoyed Halloween '18 and the way that film was. I would say that Scream honestly does the requel approach better than Halloween. For the most part once the characters are quickly set up, the story starts going in directions I wasn't expecting. One of the biggest revelations was not the reveal of Ghost Face in the third act. That typically would be the big revelation of the film. No, Scream (2022) manages to deliver its biggest revelation a bit early on - Skeet Ulrich as Billy Loomis. The way that they were able to tie the new cast with the character of Sam being Billy's daughter. That's something I never expected in a million years. It was introduced and I thought it was something that would be shaken fairly early on. No, it's not. We have moments where we get to see Sam's perspective of being haunted by what she imagines her father to be. The best moment is when she's driving in the car and looking in the rear view mirror to see Billy. It's such a bold new addition that definitely has lots of story opportunities later on in a sequel possibly. It's also interesting seeing the return of Martha, Randy's sister, and establishing her as Mark and Mindy's parents. It definitely helps establish more of this present day Woodsboro.
The best part is seeing all of the references to the old and establishing more ties to the legacy characters. We get to hear references to Stu as well with Vince being Stu's nephew. And then there's the small/minor mention of Kirby surviving Scream 4 and a YouTube video questioning if Stu survived. It establishes that this is a living breathing world. And watching this alongside Scream 4 makes for an interesting experience.
The way this film handles Ghost Face is pretty fantastic. Typically, we expect him to be utilized during night and sticking to the shadows. No, this film has a very good balance of having Ghost Face in the day time as well as the night time. Ghost Face was terrifying. The way they appear in the opening, it's just so epic. It's quick and unexpected. The first few appearances were all in moments that I wasn't expecting. It is very much like how Wes would handle things. You would think they'd strike one moment, but then it'd go on for a few more seconds. And then you'd sit back in your seat and wham! This Ghost Face felt more closer to how they were in the original film than in Scream 2, 3, or even 4.
The kills in this film are all pretty solid. There are six in total, which parallels the number of kills in the original. I would say that I do have a top three kills for this film. The film does not hold back whatsoever when it comes to the kills. For the most part, Dewey was one that was not expected. It did serve a solid point in the film. It showed that the legacy characters weren't safe. It completely unhinged the film in such an interesting way for me. Besides the fact that Dewey is one of my favorite characters, I sat there shocked at what happened and then seeing the moment with Gale. Yeah, there's not much of a moment for Gale to fully mourn. But there's a small moment. I was right there with her and will admit that it brought a few tears. Then there was the Vince sequence, it happened pretty early. It was something that was hinted at in the trailer, but the way it is in the film is even better than I could have expected. I would have liked a little more with Kyle Gallner's Vince. But the way that it uses Red Right Hand is so beautiful. And then there was the moment with Sam in the final act, it just made me smile as I was unsure of where things would go next.
I honestly could go on longer about Scream. This was only a tip of the iceberg in a way. There's so much more that I could go into. The way the film introduces new aspects into the franchise it allows so many possibilities for where it could go. Personally, I have a strong thought on where it could go if there was a sequel. It would brilliantly tie into this film and add a strong layer to some moments.
Overall, Scream (2022) is a bit of a powerhouse of a film. It left me unsure of at first. But the more time I spend thinking on it, the more I'm seeing of the different layers in the film. I haven't thought this much about a Scream film since the original. Yeah, there could have been a bit more depth to the newer characters. But overall, it did a solid job with what was going on. If you liked the first Scream, go check this one out.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
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