Movie Review: Scream

Stars: 5 out of 5
Pros: A scary slasher flick with a sense of humor

Cons: Violence and language (but what do you expect from the genre?)

The Bottom Line:

Yes, a slasher flick

Everything you'd expect but

With sense of humor

"No, Please Don't Kill Me Mr. Ghostface.  I Want to Be in the Sequel."

Okay, it's time for some true confessions.  I have a dark side, as exhibited by my life long fascination with slasher films.  Don't get me wrong, I am also normally repulsed by them.  The sex and violence turn me off if nothing else.  Plus there's the fact that I scare very easily.  But with all the hype the Scream films got when they came out, I had to see them.  And I still can't get them out of my system.  The first one in particular is a well made film that continues to entertain me.

The town of Woodsboro is being haunted by a series of brutal murders.  But the focus seems to be Sidney Prescott (Never Campbell).  But this isn't your normal serial killer.  Instead, the killer has been influenced by the horror movies he or she has watched over the years.  Disguised with a Ghostface mask, the killer calls and taunts the victim before arriving to slice and dice.

While most of the high school takes it as a joke, Sidney is taking it seriously.  But who around her might be the killer.  Maybe it's reporter Gail Weathers (Courtney Cox) looking for her next story.  What about film geek Randy (Jamie Kennedy).  Boyfriend Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich) is a suspect, so that makes him innocent, right?  Then again, any of these people might become the next victim.  Will knowing the rules of the horror genre help them make it out alive?

Make no mistake about it, this is a post modern take on the slasher genre.  The movie is constantly winking at the audience as the characters discuss the rules of the genre.  At times it attempts to break those rules.  At other times, it relishes in them.  The entire thing has just a slight sense of humor that makes it all go down better.

Another reason the movie appeals to me is the mystery aspect.  It is set up and played out like a well done mystery.  Okay, so the climax is a little over the top, but it works, too.  The clues and red herrings are everywhere.  I'm not kidding when I say that just about everyone is a suspect at some point.

Instead of the cliches that normally pass as characters in a slasher movie, some attempt is made to actually make these characters real.  There are a couple times when a death makes me very sad.

The acting is actually a notch above your normal slasher film as well.  Instead of hiring "Some big breasted chick who can't act," they went with real actors.  Most made a name for themselves here and have gone on to celebrated careers.

All of this gives the movie a better sense of reality than most of the horror genre.

Of course, there are still some pretty laughable moments.  One of the deaths in particular, while cool, is also so far beyond the realm of possibility that I always roll my eyes a little at it.

This movie definitely earned its R rating.  While we only get implied nudity, we get some very graphic violence and plenty of foul language.  This movie isn't for kids or the faint of heart.  (Remind me again why I love it so much.)

When the film tries to have a serious post modern discussion on the slasher genre, it doesn't quite live up to its promise.  The movie attempts several times to take up the 90's argument about violence in the movies.  Instead of coming out and saying something about the issue, it feels more like "Aren't I cool and hip because I am bringing up the issue?  Now watch as I go kill someone else."

Another part of my fascination with this Scream in particular is because it was filmed in the area while I grew up.  I swear there are a couple shots I recognize including my high school (where they theoretically didn't film the movie at all.)

And as a side note, this movie was originally going to be called Scary Movie - quite different from the movie that eventually was made with that title that spoofs this film.  As I recall the events unfolding in newspaper headlines at the time, the title got changed after the school board gave and then deny access to a school for filming.  The producers tried to sell Scream as a different film.  Say what you want about the school board bowing to parental pressure and reneging on access, they weren't stupid enough to fall for the change in titles.  But no one seems to remember that take on it but me, so maybe I have the story and timeline on this wrong.

Even now that all the jumps and horror are gone from Scream, I still do enjoy pulling it out and watching how the movie was put together.  Even knowing the outcome, it holds up well to repeated viewings.  It's a good movie when you are looking for a scare.