Scream Movie Review:


Sidney Prescott and her friends become targets for a masked killer. Panic overcomes their town as everyone tries to figure out the identity of the killer, while trying to stay alive by referring to the "rules" of horror movies

When this came out in 1996, nobody could have anticipated the success and impact it would have on the movie industry. The horror genre was dead in the water. The only time anyone would ever see the words Wes Craven was when he produced second and third rate movies, Hollywood's "hot, new" writer, Kevin Williamson had not been heard of and a cast of young TV stars and independent movie favourites were about to re-invent the horror genre.

Self-referential humour, scares and great performances set this apart from anything that was available at the time. Often imitated but in my view not bettered, Scream started out with a prologue that grabbed the attention and when Craven and Williamson have you, they don't let you go until the final act.

Wes Craven proves he is one of the masters of modern horror with set pieces that entertain and keep you on the edge of your seat. The performances by the leads are refreshing and David Arquette and Jamie Kennedy steal the show but the cast each hold their own.

This is by no means a perfect movie. The script can get tedious, trying to be clever all the time but the dialogue is so well written that you really don't mind little things like Wes Craven's cameo in the Freddy sweater and it is definitely refreshing to see the stalker killer taking his share of hits.

I personally thought the fun in this movie came from trying to guess who the killer was and it was funny to see a scene where Jamie Kennedy's Randy ran through the list of suspects, which mirrored the viewer's own thinking.

Speaking for me as a horror fan, a movie fanatic and someone who likes to see something done in an original way, I loved it. If you haven't seen this, go get it. Right now. Why are you still reading? Go on!!

David McCulloch

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