Forget The Rules: Scream 3 (2000)

    Hello everyone, today I'm continuing with the third installment of our Scream retrospective (Part 1 and Part 2). Scream built the foundation of the modern slasher with its rules. It wasn't afraid to take the mirror and reflect it upon itself. It definitely was something that the horror genre needed at that time. Scream 2 took those rules and built an even better foundation. Two films in and the public was in love with this franchise. It had managed in two films to take a new approach to horror films and then their sequels. By that point, everything was pretty true. However as things are in life, there is no simple black and white. The world can be grey. And that is something that was even more present in the late 90s/early 00s. The world had changed a lot in just the four years from the release of the first Scream. And honestly, it was shaken a lot by the Columbine Shooting. That event was something that changed Hollywood as they began to look deeper at what they were presenting to the public. 

    With Scream 3, this was the entry that took that solid foundation and for a time - broke it. It's an entry that does not necessarily feel a part of the franchise. It's the weird middle child nowadays. I'm not going to tear apart the film. That is not my intention. However, I am not going to be exactly praising it either. 

    After the success of Scream 2, the studios were looking for another entry. The public at that point were probably clamoring for more as well. I mean if something's successful - why not keep making more of it. Honestly, that's a sentiment that may work. But after enough time, if you keep making more, you can create franchise fatigue. It's something that has honestly happened with other horror franchises - Elm Street, Friday the 13th, Halloween, the Saw films, and even the Paranormal Activity films are all good examples. The studios kept pushing what they were seeing as successes till the public was done with them. 

    With this huge success under his belt, Kevin Williamson was even more of a name. He wanted to delve out of the horror genre and tell other stories. He managed to find success over at The WB! (today it's better known as the CW) with Dawson's Creek. It was this commitment to that series that would prove to be a problem for the third entry of his successful series. Williamson did provide a 30 page treatment of what the film could be. 

    But after Columbine, it was very apparent to the studio that Williamson's original idea would not be feasible. Without an idea, script, or even the original writer, Wes Craven was honestly up against the wall. Yeah, we would have original three stars Neve Campbell, David Arquette, and Courtney Cox returning. But that's only a small fraction of what makes the films work. The studio was super keen on having a third entry and so enlisted Ehren Krueger to write the film. But with the way the production went, they were filming as they were writing. Not necessarily a sure fire way to ensure a successful entry. 

    With this third installment, Scream 3 brought things to Hollywood. It had decided to finally take the mirror from horror films and their sequels to the film-making machine. Honestly, it's a bit of a bold move. In a way, it further develops the tropes that had been established. It also continued the themes present in the series. It also left us seeing Sidney's mother, Maureen, in a new perspective. That's honestly one aspect that I feel works really well. It allows Sidney to see Maureen as just a regular person. She made mistakes and wasn't perfect. Yeah, it's something we had known from the original film. But rounding out the third entry with this, it allows Sidney to take a look at herself as well and figure out who she is. 

    When you look at Scream 3, it feels a little off. That was the first thing I noticed when I went to see it at the theater with my Dad and Grandma. Yeah, it was the characters that we love and the world that Williamson had made. But something wasn't right. As time has gone on, it's clear that there was a lot of studio pressure. It's something that definitely hindered the film. They were trying to just push out a product and hoping for the same success. 

    The story for the film is interesting. Ghost Face has returned and is now going after the cast of the new Stab film. It allows things to be a bit different as we see Sid, Dewey, and Gale interacting with their 'Stab' film counterparts. I mean Parker Posey working alongside Courtney Cox is pretty great. Actually Parker Posey is definitely one of the new comers that works super well. It allowed the real to blend with the fiction in a pretty unique way. 

    The opening film was something that at first I wasn't fond of. Here we have Cotton Weary returning, but he becomes the Drew Barrymore of this film. That's honestly a pretty bold way to begin the film. And it's the best way the film could have opened. Especially after the production had to scramble as an early draft of the script had been leaked. This was definitely something that wasn't exactly uncommon for this franchise already. 

    For the most part, the kills in this film work. Well outside of Patrick Warburton, that's something that's not his fault. The image of Ghost Face scrambling with a big guy like Warburton is a bit laughable. But everything on this end follows what fans were expecting from a Scream movie. 

    The revelation of the killer. That's definitely something that felt off. It doesn't help that it wasn't till halfway through production that they had decided who would be behind the Ghost Face mask. So for the beginning portion, Scott Foley feels a bit more light-hearted than in the second half. If they had known from the beginning that he was going to be the one, well it may have helped strengthen the film. For me, I like that he's Sid's half brother. Foley does shine in the second half of the film. When he turns, it's fantastic. The one thing that did feel off is that there was only one killer. That's something that typically felt off compared to the previous films. By this point, we were expecting two killers. And if we would have, it would have been Angelina. It honestly still makes the most sense. Secretly, I am still wondering if maybe she had helped out without revealing it. The reveal that Roman was behind Billy and Stu in the first film. That's where it took a dip in quality. Did we honestly need that little bit of knowledge? All that did was make it seem like Roman was the overarching villain in the shadows of the films up to that point. It was a tad too much. 

Overall, Scream 3 may not work as well as the previous films. But it's not terrible. It honestly was the best that Craven and everyone could have done with what they were given. It's just more of a studio product than anything as the studio's fingerprints are all over it. 

Rating: 3.75 out of 5. 

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Someone Has Taken Their Love For Sequels One Step Too Far: Scream 2 (1997)

 

    After I saw Scream, I was wondering if there would be a sequel. I mean at this point in horror, sequels were something of a scarcity. Mostly because again people were kind of afraid to take chances. And if there was a sequel, would it be able to be as good as the first one? Or would it take the route that most sequels seemed to and trying to cash in on the lightning in a bottle? One of the big things that I remember bout this time was the fact that the internet wasn’t as huge as it is today. So movie news was something that was a bit hard to come by. When it was announced that there would be a Scream 2, well it was a big deal. Everywhere seemed to be talking about it.

    It was a big sign that Scream had become something of a massive entry in Pop Culture. I remember there being lots of press junkets. There was lots of MTV News bits that talked about the film. Lots of guest appearances on Total Request Live on MTV or VH1. It was a bit crazy that there was this amount of hype for the sequel. Looking back on things, it actually shows how special it was. Williamson had tapped into something that everyone was looking for and had helped revive the genre that he loved.

    Now that it was more in the public eye, everybody was scrambling for info about the sequel. One of the big things that happened was that the script had leaked. No one knew who it was or how it happened. But quickly, everyone was scrambling to change the ending – thus creating at least three different endings to the film. One of the alternate endings involved a conspiracy that had Hallie, Derek, Debbie, and Mickey all working together to try and bring Sidney down. Another faux ending had Dewey being the one responsible for the all the murders. After hearing about these, I am absolutely surprised at hearing these. These endings would have been crazy.

    Scream 2 managed to become even more of a bigger deal than the original. Everyone that had survived was returning on-screen and behind the scenes. It was attempting to capture the lightning in a bottle twice. And honestly, that was pretty cool. The many times of re-watching the original only fueled my hype for the sequel.

    During its opening weekend, my parents had decided to surprise my sister and I with a trip to the movies. They had thought that I was ready to see my first horror film in the theater. This was a bit of a massive deal for me. I mean at this time I was 9 years old. It was definitely a completely different time to live in. Back then, you only needed to have parents along with you to attend the movie. These days, it feels like that’d be a lot harder to do potentially.

    I sat there in the third row of the theater. The screen lit up and began playing the previews. Quickly the previews flashed by and the film started, I sat there engulfed in the film. The film was awesome. It was everything I had hoped it could be and more. It not only managed to stand toe-to-toe with the original film. 9 year old me would have ranked Scream 2 higher than it. It left me floored. I was thrilled and at times I was wondering where things were going to go next. Then the moment happened, it was one that hit me so hard. Randy, Dewey, and Gale searching through the campus trying to figure out where the killer could be. It’s a moment that made me believe that no one was safe. When Ghost Face opens the van door and snatches the unsuspecting Randy, I was not ready. This here was my favorite character in the film. He was the movie lover. I gravitated towards him because of his humor and love for the genre. So losing him, it shattered me. I was left sitting there in the theater – in shock. I was quietly thinking to myself that if another of the main cast died – well, I was done.

    Then again, Wes set the scene as Gale witnesses Ghost Face attacking Dewey in the sound booth. We had already lost Randy. What the hell was going to happen if we lost Dewey? If that happened, was there a chance we could lose Sidney too? What was going to happen next?

    And brilliantly we entered the final moments as the killer was revealed, it was Mickey the freaky Tarentino movie lover. Of course, it was. Looking back at the film now, it makes so much sense. Especially with how Ghost Face operates in that opening sequence, it was Mickey creating his movie. He was so sure of himself and loving every minute of it. That opening alone showcases just how off the wall and insane he was. Yeah, Debbie Salt had to help here and there. But for the most part, I definitely feel like Mickey was the one responsible for a lot of the murders. Well except for Randy. Mickey works so well as a character because he is the anti-Randy. He’s one of us. He knows the rules and gladly throws them out the window. His only goal is to create as much havoc as possible to craft something of a ‘film’ in his mind. And then Williamson managed to callback to Friday the 13^th with the reveal of Billy’s mother. That was pretty interesting. I mean it definitely sets itself apart from taking what you think you know and twisting it. The safe bet would have been to have Derek involved or just Mickey by himself. It would be something that the audience would expect. But not Billy’s mother, so I applaud Williamson and Craven on that.

    After the movie ended, my parents asked me what I thought about the movie. I told them that it sucked that Randy died. The movie was great but that was my biggest gripe with it. I didn’t wanna see Randy go. There was still a lot of places that he could have went. But his story was cut short – because of his actions. If he hadn’t been badmouthing Billy and was so sure of himself, there may have been a chance he would have survived. But again, he thought he knew the rules.

    In the years since that first view, I had watched Scream 2 a lot. It still manages to hold my attention. There is some aspects of it that kinda don’t click with me. But for the most part, it is a solid next chapter. I definitely have broken down the film a few times. Does it capture the spirit of the original? Yeah, I would say that it does. Is it as good as the original? Honestly, I don’t think so. So in my ranking of the films, I would rank this below the original. But on another note, Grandma loved it as much as the first one.

Rating: 4.25 out of 5.

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What's Your Favorite Scary Movie?: Scream (1996)

 

    Hello everyone, I have a very serious question for you all. What’s your favorite scary movie? This was the question that had defined an era in the horror genre when it was asked. But back in 1996, who would have imagined that would have been the case? Certainly not many in Hollywood. When it was first beginning production, Scary Movie was something that not many could have foreseen going the distance and breaking all the odds. It just felt like another horror film. However, Kevin Williamson did something that not many could do back then. He turned the mirror of the horror genre back onto itself.

   Wes Craven originally even went as far as passing on the project. At that point, he was literally ready to be done with the horror genre. I mean honestly who could blame him at that point. He was a legend at that point with the films he had made. Last House on the Left. Hills Have Eyes. Those two films alone launched Craven’s career. But it was his work with Nightmare On Elm Street that catapulted him even further. Now it’s been well known that there was a kid at a convention that Craven attended had helped push him back to the genre that he was very fond of. “You need to get back to making something kick-ass.”. Well, I hope that that kid was very proud of how much of an impact those words would have on Craven.

    Before you knew it, we had Craven on board directing the film from Williamson’s script. It was something totally different than what a lot of us were used to at that point. We were used to typical horror films that were gore for gore sake but lacked a punch. Or they were a bit of a mindless fluff with no story to them. Honestly, the early 90s weren’t very kind for us horror lovers. I mean the genre was on a bit of a decline at that point. So people weren’t taking many risks with it – thus direct-to-videos were a huge thing. It was a bit of a rut. Thankfully, Craven and Williamson were able to work together to craft something special.

    For me, Scream is a very interesting film. At the time, I was 8. I had seen a lot of horror films at that point. Earlier I had mentioned times where my sister’s friend would come over with huge plastic bags full of horror VHS tapes. And my parents’ were cool with it. They knew that as long as I knew the movies were just movies, I’d be okay. So I had seen countless films. I was well versed in the Elm Street series – The Dream Master and Wes Craven’s New Nightmare being two of my favorites in that series. Friday the 13ths were ones that I hadn’t necessarily dove into just yet, outside of the showings on the Sci-Fi channel. Happy Birthday To Me, April Fool’s Day, and The Shining were a few of the examples that I would get to watch during those snowed in days. Sadly though, I wasn’t fond of The Shining. At 8 years old, who could honestly say that I fully understood what was going on with its story? Not me.

    I remember asking my Dad one day, “Why is Sam going with Mom? Why can’t I go?”. He just shrugged and responded with that it was for last minute Christmas shopping. At that point, I probably just went and played Super Mario All-Stars on Super Nintendo or Gargoyles on the SEGA Genesis. But later that night, they had returned from ‘shopping’. I overheard my Mom telling my Dad that the movie they had gone to see was so scary. I was very upset because I wasn’t able to go to the movies. At that point, I loved movies. I loved going to the theater and just watching the stories unfold. It was like a major event to me. To hear that there was a movie that I couldn’t go to see, well it sucked.

    A few months passed, I didn’t pay much attention to it. I had gotten over the fact that I had gotten left behind. We were looking through the movies on pay-per-view and my sister came across Scream. Immediately, she got up and ran out of the room to talk to my parents. I was left just a bit confused as to what was going on. Okay, cool – she wants to watch a movie. Yeah, I get that it was a bit of a big deal back then to rent a movie on pay-per-view. The three of them return to the room and they buy the movie. It was an all-day movie rental and the next showing was in an hour and a half. My parents had decided that we would all sit and watch it on the next showing. I think I had just rolled my eyes like it didn’t matter. It hadn’t hit me yet that this was the same movie that they had watched just months previously.

    Well the next hour and a half waiting, it felt like forever. I think at that point – my sister and I played some Mario to help pass the time. That was something I fondly remember us doing quite a bit. It was usually Super Mario 3. That was kind of our jam. It was just one of those things that we managed to bond over. Looking back on it - horror movies, watching Buffy, and Mario 3 were kind of the only things we did together. You see, there’s a 7 year age difference between my sister and I. I am the youngest. Unfortunately with the way things unfolded for our family, we drifted apart.

    Then we sat together in our living room as the opening title flashed on screen. The next hour and forty minutes seemed to fly by. I wasn’t sure what the reaction my family was waiting for from me bout the movie. I guess they were expecting the movie to completely terrify me like it managed to do with my Mom and sister. However, that was far from what I thought about the movie.

    Scream was a hit with me. It was something different. I may have been 8 years old, but could tell this was new. It took everything that I had loved about horror movies and brought it back in such a unique way. It wasn’t afraid to poke fun at itself. Yeah, the movie may seem scary. But honestly, I feel like all of the horror movies I had watched up to that point had made me ready for it. It was very clear that Scream was a love letter to the genre that Williamson had loved so much. And it had hit at a time when the public and myself were ready for something new.

    In the months after watching Scream, I had managed to talk my Grandma into watching it with me. I have mentioned her before. This is the same Grandma that loved Halloween. She wasn’t sure if I was ready to watch Scream. I reminded her that I had seen it quite a few times already. Quickly, Scream hit with her as well. She loves it so much. Over the years, we even managed to watch it countless times together.

    Recently, I revisited it. I wanted to see if it held up. It had been quite a few years since watching it last. I think the last time I watched it was when Scream 4 was getting ready to be released. A month or so ago, I picked up the Blu ray set of the first three movies. Yeah, this is the same set that has the two spectacular documentaries about the films – Still Screaming and Scream: The Inside Story. If you have a chance of picking it up, I highly recommend it.

    Scream still holds up so well. I still find myself enraptured with the story and the characters. To this day, I have tried to figure out who was where when X happened. And to this day, I still haven’t figured it out. It delivers on everything I love about the genre. The characters are all so memorable as well. The casting on the film was absolutely perfect. And still I love the opening with Drew Barrymore. It’s the biggest love letter to the franchise as it managed to encapsulate everything Hitchcock had masterfully done with Janet Leigh and the opening in Psycho.

    Many films over the years have tried to capture the lightning in a bottle that Scream had. And honestly, a lot of them have failed. There is absolutely no way to to recapture that. Scream is the film of a generation and masterfully defined horror for what came next. There is a reason it works so well and stood the test of time. It is a beautiful masterpiece of a film that is essential and is one of Craven’s finest works.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

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