Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Scream 4




This was the review that started it all but the 420 characters Facebook allows wasn't quite enough for what I wanted to say.

I am trying to come up with some kind of unique rating system, but for now, I am going with the good ol timeless stars. I give this movie 4 STARS.

I honestly didn't know what to think walking into this one.  I absolutely am a fan of the Scream franchise. The first one in 1996 was a tour-de-force in horror movies and completely turned the slasher genre 360 degrees.  It was 111 minutes of jumps, twitches, laughs, and of course screams.  Drew Barrymore in the beginning sequence was a stroke of genius giving a performance that was compared to the great scream queens Jamie Lee Curtis and the original, her mother Janet Leigh.  Many people do not know Drew was originally supposed to be Sydney Prescott, but because of scheduling conflicts, did not have the time to do the entire movie.  The film as a whole was a treasure chest full of "whodunit" mystery.  Then, in true blockbuster movie fashion, 2 more movies followed and I loved them both.  I mean, don't get me wrong, when you have such a great formula the first time around, its really not that easy to replicate it in the same fashion and still keep people guessing but I think Wes Craven has done it brilliantly.

Now, do not go into Scream 4 expecting a "jump in your seat" scary movie.  They are now "whodunit" slasher flicks. Was this movie any good the fourth time around?  Hell yes!  I found Scream 4 most excellent.  The original three (Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette) are back and their chemistry together is better than ever.  The beginning sequence at first is going to be annoying but when all is said and done, it is pretty brilliant.  As I wrote before, you will not be jumping in your seat but there is plenty of suspense to be enjoyed.  Kevin Williamson does another damn good job writing the script.   Even though by the time the 1st hour was over, I had the killer figured out, I still enjoyed the hell out of this movie.  The original cast has matured nicely and I liked where they took the characters and I liked them setting the movie back in Woodsboro.  The new kids on the block all did a great job.  I wasn't sure when I first saw the trailer but after seeing the movie, I give Hayden Panettiere props. She was my fave of the new class.

I think any fan of the franchise will enjoy it.  If you've seen all three of the movies, you are already invested so you might as well watch the 4th.  Sydney still kicks ass, Gale is still a bitch, and Dewey is, well, he's still Dewey.  And speaking on behalf of all the Scream fans, we wouldn't have it any other way. Wes, you are still the man!

Thank you and see you at the next blog.

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