April 15th, 2011. This day will forever be remembered as the day that the cinema world lost a legend. On this date, the reign of Wes Craven as being a horror movie genius was put to rest. On April 15th, 2011, Scre4m was released.
Like many people my age, I remember being utterly terrified when the original Scream movie was released. It wasn’t filled with cheesy special effects or unbelievable plot lines; it was a genuine horror movie. It was filled with elements that seemed so real, and moments that made you shutter when you realized that it could happen to you. Even if it were subconscious, you would hesitate before answering your phone, afraid that maybe Ghostface was on the other end. The movie turned a simple ice breaker (“What’s your favorite scary movie?”) into an iconic phrase that would send chills up and down the normal person’s spine. To call the original Scream movie a classic would be an understatement.
As with all other great films, we all knew that sequels were soon to follow. Scream 2, while not as impressive, was still an entertaining film. Scream 3 didn’t have anywhere close to the appeal as its predecessors, and everyone felt that it would be a good idea to end it there, before the movies became caricatures of themselves, much like the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise was turned into. But, lo and behold, 11 years after the last film was released, theaters were packed at midnight to view the lastest installment of this once proud franchise.
My expectations were not high for this movie. I have never been a fan of continuing movie franchises, especially when the plots seem to get more and more out of touch with reality. But still, I found myself in the theater at midnight, somewhat anticipating a decent movie. From the opening scene, I knew I was in for a long night.
It seemed as if the entire point of this movie was to poke fun at the horror film genre as a whole. Every stereotype you could think of was included in this film, from the busty blond to the inept police officers. While sitting through the movie, I found myself asking the same question over and over: “Is this SUPPOSED to be a spoof film?” it reminded me a little of the Scary Movie franchise, with the only difference being that Scre4m was trying to be a real horror film.
The core of the original films were all included in this movie, including Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), Dewey Riley (David Arquette) and Gail Weathers (Courtney Cox-Arquette). The story takes place when Sidney returns back to Woodsboro, ten years after the original killings, to promote her book. Gail Weathers, once a promising television journalist, gave up the big city life so that she could marry Dewey, who was now promoted to Sheriff of Woodsboro. Sure enough, as Sidney returns home on the anniversary of the slayings, someone starts killing all over again.
This movie tries to inject some new blood, in the form of Sidney’s neice Jill (Emma Roberts), and her friend Jill (Hayden Panettiere), as well as a plethora of other teenaged characters. It also seems to think that, since we are quickly becoming a social networking/computer based society, that they need to force every type of reference down our throats. Twitter, Facebook, and webcams all make appearances in this movie, and they arent subtle about it.
The teenagers in the film quickly realize that all of the murders that are occurring in their town are following the same “script” as the original Woodsboro massacres, and that the only way to survive is to remember what happened the first time around, and then do something completely opposite. Every character made it seem as if they were INSIDE of a movie, and they learned their survival skills from watching OTHER movies. Confused? So was I.
Many of the characters were completely forgettable, and as you watch Courtney Cox-Arquette try to hold on to whatever sliver of fame she still has left, it’s a sad reminder of what happens to people who were part of an ensemble cast: the individual is nowhere as impressive as the sum all the parts combined. With her ‘witty’ one-liners and faux toughness, it made me question if she owed Wes Craven a favor, and that was the reason she agreed to do this movie. Neve Campbell still looks as if she is staring directly into the sun whenever she is on camera; as for David Arquette…well, he’s David Arquette. Not much else needs to be said about him.
The movie seems to drag on, and I think that, instead of including the alternate endings in the DVD release, the producers opted to incorporate all of them into the movie, making the final scenes seem rushed, disjointed, and utterly stupid. Sidney even makes a snide comment about it, saying to the killer, “Things don’t always go like you planned. Its called an alternate ending.”
In the end, I was amazed at the uselessness of this movie. At no point is it scary, and its so rediculous that you almost can’t justify even laughing. If the Scream franchise was a meal at a restaurant, Scre4m would be the parsley on your plate; you ignore it and quickly try to find a way to get rid of it. The hardest thing for me to stomach during the entire movie was the fact that Wes Craven directed it. In my heart of hearts, I could not figure out how he could be so against the remake of Nightmare on Elm Street in 2010, yet, he was more than willing to direct this sad excuse for a ‘horror’ movie.
For horror movie fans like me, today feels like we have lost a legend. There can only be one Wes Craven; sadly, we can’t say the same thing for the Scream movie franchise. Out of five stars, this one gets one and a half.
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