A blog of horror

Scream (1996)

Tagline: Someone has taken their love of scary movies one step too far.

Directed by:
Wes Craven

Produced by:
Cathy Konrad

Run Time:
113 Minutes

Released:
December 20, 1996

Review:

One the first films to appeal to the teenage of the 90′s, Scream is a pretty good  flick to watch when you have nothing else to do. Scream is more of an homage to classic horror film such as Halloween and Friday The 13th.Thus, it exposes something very unique about the horror genre. The uses every horror clichés possible to create a sort of survival manual for a horror film. In Scream, Wes Craven, concocts an homage to the old school slasher films and outlines the basic rules of survival in a horror film, no sex, no drugs and you never say you’ll be right back, cause you won’t. We’ve seen horror, we know the rules. Craven crafts a terrific slasher film that embodies the spirit of a fun horror film perfectly. Scream sparked something big in the late 90′s, it rejuvenated the interest in Horror films, and brought back the dying genre to the masses. A decent cast of characters accommodates the film, but they seemed underdeveloped and not likeable, when they get hacked to death you feel no remorse, you end up rooting for the killers, which is why after all, we love horror films, right?

Final Rating:
6/10

Scream 2 (1997)

Tagline: Someone has taken their love of sequels one step to far.

Directed by:
Wes Craven

Produced by:
Wes Craven

Run Time:
120 Minutes

Released:
December 12, 1997

Review:

Scream 2 is a more tongue in cheek sequel to the first Scream, which was a fine return of the genre. Without that film, we wouldn’t have the many good horror films we have today. Scream 2 is barely good because I felt that it tried too hard to outdo the original, which was pretty good. This film is interesting, and somewhat entertaining, but compared to the first, I honestly believe it’s trash. Scream 2 is the weakest one in the franchise in my opinion and it doesn’t do anything too thrilling with the material. Even though it may be the worst of the four, Scream 2 isn’t the worst sequel in a horror franchise. Even with that in mind, Scream 2 didn’t entertain me as much as the original, and I felt that Wes Craven tried too hard at delivering something refreshing. Unfortunately, the results are mixed and this sequel didn’t do anything to thrill me. A weak second entry, but sort of entertaining. The third film was far better than this film in my opinion and I felt that it had a better plot than this second offering.

Final Rating:
4/10

Scream 3 (2000)

Tagline: You have laughed.You have screamed. And now…your time has come!

Directed by:
Wes Craven

Produced by:
Wes Craven

Run Time:
117 Minutes

Released:
February 4, 2000

Review:

Scream 3 is more of the same as the first two, more violence, screams more everything. This film is slightly better than the second, and in my opinion its a good way to end a tired series. Anyhow, the film is a bit of an improvement from the second and really you could say that it does inject new blood in the series, however, it’s too little, too late.  Scream 3 is a decent film, nothing too special,  but compared to the second film, it’s far better. The Scream franchise at this point seems tired and dragged out. The film is entertaining, but it lacks the power of the first, which was a total breath of fresh air. Scream 3 does manage to still be a fun film to watch, but I would consider this more of a guilty pleasure than anything else. Still I much preferred this over the second, and it did have some good moments. However, the film is kind of dull in terms of delivering something effective on-screen. As a third film, Scream 3 is pretty good. This one, like I said, is better than the second, and is very entertaining and fun. Despite the fact that it’s not perfect. Luckily the fourth entry fixes all the previous issues and uses this film to elevate

Final Rating:
5/10

Sce4m (2011)

Tagline: New Decade. New Rules

Directed by:
Wes Craven

Produced by:
Kevin Williamson
Wes Craven
Iya Labunka

Run Time:
111 Minutes

Released:
April 15, 2011

Review:

After Wes Craven’s abomination My Soul to Take, I wasn’t sure that Scre4m would cut it for me. However, the film surprised me, and it definitely redeemed Craven’s slip up with My Soul to Take. Scream 4 is the best entry in the franchise since the first film. Many people have said so, and I myself agree. 12 years has past since the release of Scream 3, lots has changed in the horror landscape. Studios are obsessed with remaking timeless horror classics. Luckily, Scre4m manages to be a breath of fresh in terms of a horror film and Slasher film. Using the same rules that have applied to every Scream film before such as the use of horror clichés in a creative manner to elevate a film’s plot are present. Scre4m is a perfect final to an entertaining series. The series itself reestablished horror into public consciousness and made horror fun again. Scre4m is a wonderful fourth film in the series, and it is the best since the first film. The cast do a wonderful job, and it’s great to see some of the original cast here. The kill scenes are effective and intense. One thing that surprised me was how much Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox and David Arquette have changed over the years, however they were able to reprise their roles, as if nothing has changed. Scre4m is a fine installment and is a must see for Scream fans. After 12 years since the third part, it’s great to see that there was still enough creativity left to craft a fourth film in this flawed but enjoyable series. This fourth entry is a solid and impressive film, and it exceeded my expectations. While the second, I felt was the weakest one, and the third was an improvement, this film reinvents the rules, and stays true to the original while using current elements of the genre (remakes) to create a whole new set of rules. A pleasant surprise and my favorite since the first. Welcome back Wes!

Final Rating:
7/10