Scream (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
One year after the rape & death of Sidney Prescott's (Neve Campbell) mother, 2 fellow classmates are found dead & gutted. When a psychopathic serial killer emerges, Sidney begins to suspect whether or not her mom's death & the 2 recent deaths are related. No one in their small California town is safe, as the killer begins to target certain individuals one by one. Everyone is a suspect in 'Scream', a wild, scary, & tongue-in-cheek horror flick directed by the great Wes Craven (Nightmare on Elm Street). I love this movie. And its 12 minute prologue is one that still gives me goose bumps upon reflection.
This prologue introduces us to Casey (Drew Barrymore), a cute blonde teen who's innocently popping popcorn on her stove; preparing to watch a scary movie on video. Just then, the phone rings, & there's an eerie, mysterious voice on the other end. He asks her what her favorite scary movie is, & she tells him Halloween. He then tells her that they're gonna play a little game. At this point, she starts to freak out, & hangs up. He calls again. Trembling, she asks what he wants. His answer: "To see her insides" (it's at this point where I buried my face in my chest; horrified to see what would happen next). What happens next is a cat-&-mouse game where Casey & her boyfriend (who stops by in the middle of it all) are stalked, hunted, caught on her property, & brutally murdered.
This is the aforementioned double murder that I spoke of in the 1st paragraph. Of course, these deaths are what remind Sidney of her troubled past. It didn't help matters that her mom's death was a highly publicized/high profile case. Just when she thought her life could return to normal, she, herself, is attacked by someone wearing a Grim Reaper mask, & her boyfriend, Billy (Skeet Ulrich), is arrested. Bereft, Sidney doesn't know where to turn. Her dad is away. She doesn't know who to trust (adults & peers, alike). The stalking/deaths continue. And an annoyingly aggressive tabloid reporter (Courtney Cox) won't stop harassing Sidney for a story. Can Sidney survive long enough to unmask the crazed killer?
Let me tell you, the reason (for me) that this film is as successful as it is, it because of the opening 12 minute prologue. It SET the tone for the rest of the movie (which never quite got as unnervingly scary again), so that whenever something remotely dangerous was happening/about to happen, I was ... terrified. Stomach-churning terrified. Overall, though, the movie really is quite good; poking fun at itself, & spoofing all the great horror films of decades past. i.e., certain self-aware characters make disparaging remarks about horror movie cliches; making in-jokes; sometimes, right before or during their own deaths, haha. At one point, Sidney says of horror flicks, "they're all the same, some big-breasted blond who can't act". At other times, a character will do the very thing(s) they know they shouldn't do (get drunk, run up the staircase, or say, "I'll be right back", etc.).
The movie balances scares, suspense, gore & uneasy laughs. It's a film tailor-made for horror film fans. And in fact, there's quite a lot of wit & sophistication which goes into both the scares & the humor. Not only does the humor save the film from being 'just another cliched horror flick', but it also brings a weird, unsettling atmosphere to the incredibly dangerous situation on hand for all of these characters. The performances are very good (within the horror film genre). Neve Campbell is effective as the scared, but tough-as-nails damsel in distress. Now, the movie isn't perfect. The editing could have been tighter. The big climax goes on a little long, & goes a bit overboard with an unusual twist, gratuitous gore, & bone-rattling intensity. And some of the self-parody aspects are not as well handled as the genuine thrills/scares. Still, I'll never forget this movie experience. I've never been more scared while watching one.
This prologue introduces us to Casey (Drew Barrymore), a cute blonde teen who's innocently popping popcorn on her stove; preparing to watch a scary movie on video. Just then, the phone rings, & there's an eerie, mysterious voice on the other end. He asks her what her favorite scary movie is, & she tells him Halloween. He then tells her that they're gonna play a little game. At this point, she starts to freak out, & hangs up. He calls again. Trembling, she asks what he wants. His answer: "To see her insides" (it's at this point where I buried my face in my chest; horrified to see what would happen next). What happens next is a cat-&-mouse game where Casey & her boyfriend (who stops by in the middle of it all) are stalked, hunted, caught on her property, & brutally murdered.
This is the aforementioned double murder that I spoke of in the 1st paragraph. Of course, these deaths are what remind Sidney of her troubled past. It didn't help matters that her mom's death was a highly publicized/high profile case. Just when she thought her life could return to normal, she, herself, is attacked by someone wearing a Grim Reaper mask, & her boyfriend, Billy (Skeet Ulrich), is arrested. Bereft, Sidney doesn't know where to turn. Her dad is away. She doesn't know who to trust (adults & peers, alike). The stalking/deaths continue. And an annoyingly aggressive tabloid reporter (Courtney Cox) won't stop harassing Sidney for a story. Can Sidney survive long enough to unmask the crazed killer?
Let me tell you, the reason (for me) that this film is as successful as it is, it because of the opening 12 minute prologue. It SET the tone for the rest of the movie (which never quite got as unnervingly scary again), so that whenever something remotely dangerous was happening/about to happen, I was ... terrified. Stomach-churning terrified. Overall, though, the movie really is quite good; poking fun at itself, & spoofing all the great horror films of decades past. i.e., certain self-aware characters make disparaging remarks about horror movie cliches; making in-jokes; sometimes, right before or during their own deaths, haha. At one point, Sidney says of horror flicks, "they're all the same, some big-breasted blond who can't act". At other times, a character will do the very thing(s) they know they shouldn't do (get drunk, run up the staircase, or say, "I'll be right back", etc.).
The movie balances scares, suspense, gore & uneasy laughs. It's a film tailor-made for horror film fans. And in fact, there's quite a lot of wit & sophistication which goes into both the scares & the humor. Not only does the humor save the film from being 'just another cliched horror flick', but it also brings a weird, unsettling atmosphere to the incredibly dangerous situation on hand for all of these characters. The performances are very good (within the horror film genre). Neve Campbell is effective as the scared, but tough-as-nails damsel in distress. Now, the movie isn't perfect. The editing could have been tighter. The big climax goes on a little long, & goes a bit overboard with an unusual twist, gratuitous gore, & bone-rattling intensity. And some of the self-parody aspects are not as well handled as the genuine thrills/scares. Still, I'll never forget this movie experience. I've never been more scared while watching one.