More so than any other genre, horror movies suffer from the law of diminishing returns. This is doubly true when the franchise exceeds the three film threshold. Wes Craven's Scream has been luckier than most. It's been over a decade since Scream 3
, a merely acceptable "conclusion" to arguably the most groundbreaking and certainly most imitated horror series in decades. But just like the great movie slashers of all-time, no horror is ever truly dead and buried. After more than a decade, Scream is back with promises of re-inventing the genre just as it had years before. Whether or not the film would be fun was never really in question for me. What I wanted to know was what Craven and writer Kevin Williamson could do that was fresh. It's been ten years in the fictional town of Woodsboro, and the residents there have lived peaceful lives, free from the terror of the Ghostface killings. All that calm didn't necessarily make anyone smarter, however. The original Scream-queen, Sidney Prescott(a feisty Neve Campbell), has become a successful writer, using the pain of her experiences to try and help others. She makes a bone-headed movie decision to return home for a book signing on the anniversary of the killings, a plan which should get her smacked across the face with a wet towell. Almost immediately, people start dying, kicked off by a perfectly timed phone call and the question nobody wants to answer: "What's your favorite scary movie"?
The murders is the perfect opportunity for the old guard to slip back into their familiar roles. Dewey(David Arquette) is now the town's bumbling but well meaning sheriff, married to nosey ex-reporter, Gale(Courteney Cox). Gale has used her experience of the past murders to write six books, capitalizing on the trauma endured by her friends. The rest of the cast might as well have bulls-eyes on their pretty little chests. Jill(Emma Roberts) is Sidney's cousin; the oddly named Kirby(Hayden Panettiere) is her sexy but secretly nerdy best friend. Trevor(Nico Tortorella) is Jill's douchey ex-boyfriend. And what would any Scream be without the token horror experts, Charlie(Rory Culkin) and Robbie, who walks around with a webcam strapped to his head like a mind control device.
Anyone who has seen more than one Scream knows how the film will kick off, with random hot chicks stuck at home alone and finding themselves Ghostface's debut victims. This time we get our expectations screwed with in hilarious fashion, using Woodboro's faux-Scream horror franchise, Stab, to make a clear point on the silliness of multiple sequels. From there it isn't long before nostalgia kicks in, and it becomes comfortable to watch Dewey, Sidney, and Gale racing around town like the Scooby Gang while their friends get hacked to bits. Part of the film's fun is reveling in the obvious horror movie cliches comical self-awareness we've all come to know and love, and Craven delights in giving us more than our fill. It may seem sick, but even as the bodies piled up I was smiling the whole time.
The supporting players don't get much of an opportunity to shine, so it's really up to the originals to pick up the slack, and they do for the most part. The problem is that spending so little time with the other characters saps a lot of the film's suspense. Then again for me, and I'm betting a lot of folks, the only thing that really matters is whether or not Sidney, Dewey, or Gale finally meet the business end of Ghostface's blade. You're crazy if you think I'll spoil that.
But there's still that nagging question from the beginning: Are Wes Craven and Kevin Williamson capable of bringing us something fresh and new? The answer is no. As much of a good time as Scream 4 is, I wanted something more. I wanted this to be the start of something bold. Something that would kick all the bad torture porn flicks or warmed over PG-13 thrillers right in the teeth and set horror on a new path. It's clear that was never the intent, and while it's my fault for putting expectations on the film I can't help but be a little bit disappointed. Perhaps some of the hesitation to go all out has to do with the many reported problems with the script, leading to Williamson departing and rewrites done by Ehren Kruger(just as in Scream 3). There are parts of the film that feel wildly out of place, like a strange monologue about the virtues of undeserved celebrity fame. Wha??
Fans of Wes Craven's Scream franchise will find the latest film frequently brilliant, savagely brutal, and hilariously self aware. All the stuff we've come to know and love. Those who were expecting the horror master to create something nearly as groundbreaking may be a little disappointed.
