What’s your favourite scary movie? By the time the 1990’s rolled around the horror genre, slashers in particular, was considered dead thanks to over-saturation of the genre and almost everything that was being released being low quality and generally unworthy of peoples time. Even the big franchises like Halloween, Firday the 13th, and Nightmare on Elm Street had long run out of steam but kept alive because of brand recognition alone.
Creator of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, Wes Craven, had already tried to revitalise the horror genre in 1994 with New Nightmare, a meta spin on the franchise he had created. But to truly prove that the horror genre wasn’t truly dead Craven needed to make something entirely new that learned from the last decade of slasher movie failures. That film went on to become the iconic Scream.
One year after her mother’s murder, Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) finds herself and the residents of her town being hunted by a masked murderer who toys with their victims by calling them on the phone and quizzing them about horror movies.
With the only clear way to find the killer being to analyse the tropes of a horror movie, Sidney and her friends Stu (Matthew Lillard), Tatum (Rose McGowan), Billy (Skeet Ulrich), and Randy (Jamie Kennedy) all begin to suspect each other.
There’s not I can say about Scream that hasn’t been said already, what with it being one of the most important and influential horror films ever made. But I’m going to talk anyway because not to shower this film with praise would simply be heresy.
Whilst the plot of Scream is exceedingly simple, harkening back to the pioneers of the genre in John Carpenters Halloween, what makes it truly special is its meta commentary on the genre as a whole. Everything about the film is entirely predictable…or so you think; because Scream plays by the rules so much, it’s only once the rules are literally spelled out by the characters that diversions from the formula begin to happen in thrilling and unexpected ways. It rebuilds the genre by tearing it down, highlighting all the clichés and conveniences common in horror films and then using them against you.
Creator of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, Wes Craven, had already tried to revitalise the horror genre in 1994 with New Nightmare, a meta spin on the franchise he had created. But to truly prove that the horror genre wasn’t truly dead Craven needed to make something entirely new that learned from the last decade of slasher movie failures. That film went on to become the iconic Scream.
One year after her mother’s murder, Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) finds herself and the residents of her town being hunted by a masked murderer who toys with their victims by calling them on the phone and quizzing them about horror movies.
With the only clear way to find the killer being to analyse the tropes of a horror movie, Sidney and her friends Stu (Matthew Lillard), Tatum (Rose McGowan), Billy (Skeet Ulrich), and Randy (Jamie Kennedy) all begin to suspect each other.
There’s not I can say about Scream that hasn’t been said already, what with it being one of the most important and influential horror films ever made. But I’m going to talk anyway because not to shower this film with praise would simply be heresy.
Whilst the plot of Scream is exceedingly simple, harkening back to the pioneers of the genre in John Carpenters Halloween, what makes it truly special is its meta commentary on the genre as a whole. Everything about the film is entirely predictable…or so you think; because Scream plays by the rules so much, it’s only once the rules are literally spelled out by the characters that diversions from the formula begin to happen in thrilling and unexpected ways. It rebuilds the genre by tearing it down, highlighting all the clichés and conveniences common in horror films and then using them against you.
Films like Scream have seemingly become their own sub-genre these days with the likes of Happy Death Day, Cabin in the Woods, and Freaky in recent years taking the basic premise of self-aware horror popularised by Scream and taking it to its extremes in various ways.
Now whilst it is ultimately the way Scream subverts expectations that made it such a success, it’s the perfect casting choices that cemented Scream as a classic right out of the gate. Campbell is the perfect cliché leading lady yet is often one step ahead of the killer. She makes Sidney so relatable, yet undeniably powerful that it’s difficult not to view her as one of your own schoolfriends and someone you know you can rely on in an otherwise unreliable line-up of characters. McGowan as Tatum is arguably the weakest character amongst the main cast, but she delivers such a fun and bouncy performance that it’s impossible not to enjoy any scene she is in.
I find Randy can come off a little annoying in a know-it-all kind of way, but he proves his worth and then some in the final act as the film nerd who helps save the day. Whilst Billy & Stu are the most ridiculous killers. It’s definitely a surprise when Billy turns out to be the killer they’ve all been looking for, but it does seem like a safe bet for Scream considering he is perhaps the only dark and brooding character in the entire film. But his pairing with Stu then throws that unexpected spanner in the works and you can’t help but be blindsided by it.
Once you throw in Deputy Dewey (David Arquette) and local news reporter Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) who are fantastic comic relief (who knew comic relief in a film that’s already not taking itself seriously would be such an excellent idea) then you get such a well-rounded cast of characters, and everyone delivers a performance worth talking about.
The kills themselves are grisly and bloody without falling into the overly cheesy and unbelievable territory that many slasher films fell victim to. In fact, the kills are one of the few moments in Scream where reality truly sets with how brutal yet simple they are. Slashing someone’s stomach open, repeated stab wounds, and slit throats are what you’ll be treated to and they're all great kills. The opening sequence in particular starring Drew Barrymore as Casey has become one of horror cinema’s most iconic scenes, with a killer taunting the victim over the phone before dealing out two grisly murders in quick succession.
Wes Craven knows how to direct horror and from the moment this opening scene sets the tone, Scream continues to ratchet up the tension for its grand finale.
Scream is a film that not only will appeal to horror fanatics with plenty of references, inside jokes, and its post-modern take on the genre; but it’s also a great place for people who are new to the genre to start. There aren’t any negatives that spring to mind when I think of this film, and its success went on to spawn four sequels that tried to emulate the originals success to varying degrees. Anyone who considers themselves a film fan should watch this film, and if you’re just after a decent horror flick to unwind to then you can’t do much better than Scream.
Now whilst it is ultimately the way Scream subverts expectations that made it such a success, it’s the perfect casting choices that cemented Scream as a classic right out of the gate. Campbell is the perfect cliché leading lady yet is often one step ahead of the killer. She makes Sidney so relatable, yet undeniably powerful that it’s difficult not to view her as one of your own schoolfriends and someone you know you can rely on in an otherwise unreliable line-up of characters. McGowan as Tatum is arguably the weakest character amongst the main cast, but she delivers such a fun and bouncy performance that it’s impossible not to enjoy any scene she is in.
I find Randy can come off a little annoying in a know-it-all kind of way, but he proves his worth and then some in the final act as the film nerd who helps save the day. Whilst Billy & Stu are the most ridiculous killers. It’s definitely a surprise when Billy turns out to be the killer they’ve all been looking for, but it does seem like a safe bet for Scream considering he is perhaps the only dark and brooding character in the entire film. But his pairing with Stu then throws that unexpected spanner in the works and you can’t help but be blindsided by it.
Once you throw in Deputy Dewey (David Arquette) and local news reporter Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) who are fantastic comic relief (who knew comic relief in a film that’s already not taking itself seriously would be such an excellent idea) then you get such a well-rounded cast of characters, and everyone delivers a performance worth talking about.
The kills themselves are grisly and bloody without falling into the overly cheesy and unbelievable territory that many slasher films fell victim to. In fact, the kills are one of the few moments in Scream where reality truly sets with how brutal yet simple they are. Slashing someone’s stomach open, repeated stab wounds, and slit throats are what you’ll be treated to and they're all great kills. The opening sequence in particular starring Drew Barrymore as Casey has become one of horror cinema’s most iconic scenes, with a killer taunting the victim over the phone before dealing out two grisly murders in quick succession.
Wes Craven knows how to direct horror and from the moment this opening scene sets the tone, Scream continues to ratchet up the tension for its grand finale.
Scream is a film that not only will appeal to horror fanatics with plenty of references, inside jokes, and its post-modern take on the genre; but it’s also a great place for people who are new to the genre to start. There aren’t any negatives that spring to mind when I think of this film, and its success went on to spawn four sequels that tried to emulate the originals success to varying degrees. Anyone who considers themselves a film fan should watch this film, and if you’re just after a decent horror flick to unwind to then you can’t do much better than Scream.