Scream

Ten Second Review: A little laboured but certainly fun. Whether it pokes too much fun at itself may be a matter of taste.

Scream is a series that’s really hard to review without annoying someone. It’s literally a slasher film about slasher films that makes constant reference to the tropes of the genre. If you criticise it, fans will say you didn’t get it. If you are too lenient, it’s critics will say you’re giving it too much credit. This particular entry in the series will suffer this bind more than most. So here I am, happily (if a little awkwardly) sitting on the fence.

After her sister is attacked, Samantha rushes back to her hometown to find out what happened. When she finds out the town’s ghost-face killer is back, she knows she’ll need help from people who’ve escaped before.

I really do think there are some good updates to the Scream tropes. The gang of teens sitting around to hear someone go off on a rant about “re-quels” and fan outrage on Reddit forums is very funny and a great move for the franchise. It’s not to say it never gets tiresome, but overall I think updates to format went really well. It’s also fun to see how mobile phones help to make a few changes to how the killer interacts and adds tension in a new way. There was always going to be some gen z jabs that feel like they are written by someone trying to score points with an older generation watching it. At this point I’m used to it and while it certainly isn’t a positive, I’d give it a pass here.

The film does feel a little bloated at times. Maybe it’s just a line here or there, but there is definitely too much spoken exposition. I know it’s classic for the franchise but I could do without quite so much. When the right character is doing it it feels fun and snappy, but in the wrong hands it really weighs down a scene. 

I would actually say it’s most evident with Melissa Barrera in the role of Samantha. I felt similarly about her role in In The Heights and I think here she stands out as just a little less charismatic than her co-stars. It feels like almost everyone got the message that this is a campy horror film but those who missed that message are bound to pop out for the wrong reason.

I do want to shout out the practical effects. There were moments that my jaw just dropped as a knife just kept going and the shot didn’t break. It’s a real credit to the team and really went some way to selling this film in a really engrossing and shocking manner.

I also genuinely enjoyed the story’s direction. I had early guesses about the killer, then second guesses, then I was sure I was wrong and switched and then again! I know it’s a classic, but a good twisty-turny whodunnit can be so much fun when you’re in the mood.

I think that’s what a lot of this film comes down to; are you in the mood for it? I certainly was so I’m willing to forgive it some of its misgivings. Shave off a little runtime and I’d definitely throw it in the mix for horror films next Halloween with friends. If you’re a fan of the series you’ll either love it or hate it, but I think the writers might have beaten you to your opinion.