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[Scream 4]
Plot:Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), now the author of a self-help book, returns home to Woodsboro on the last stop of her book tour. There she reconnects with Sheriff Dewey (David Arquette) and Gale (Courteney Cox), who are now married, as well as her cousin Jill (Emma Roberts) and her Aunt Kate (Mary McDonnell). Unfortunately Sidney's appearance also brings about the return of Ghostface, putting Sidney, Gale, and Dewey, along with Jill, her friends, and the whole town of Woodsboro in danger.
Cast:Courteney Cox,
David Arquette,
Neve Campbell,
Emma Roberts,
Hayden Panettiere,
Rory Culkin,
Nico Tortorella,
Erik Knudsen,
Marley Shelton,
Anthony Anderson,
Marielle Jaffe,
Adam Brody,
Alison Brie,
Mary McDonnell,
Anna Paquin,
Kristen Bell,
Shenae Grimes,
Lucy Hale,
Britt Robertson,
Aimee Teegarden.
My Thoughts:Can a slasher sequel over-parody it's own franchise?
Review:"Scream 4" is a ten-years-in-the-making return to Woodsboro, and the A-typical slasher sequel. As well as the return of Ghostface. The slasher film villain who despite looking the same on the outside, has had many different faces on the inside over the franchises history. "Scream 4" returns the usual set pieces of the series. Dewey, Gale, Sidney, and of course Ghostface. After a pretty bizarre (and kind of flat opening scene)...where the obligatory pre-title-sequence victim bites the dust, we get a look at the new Woodsboro.
This time around, Dewey is a sheriff, Gale has given up tabloid journalism, and is now penning a book. And Sidney has just whisked back into town for a book signing. She's accompanied by a mousy agent, who "knows the biz". There's also a new generation of kids now, who in my honest opinion. Don't hold a candle to the earlier Randy, Billy, Tatum, and Stu. But...the film needs victims so, eh, whatever. The only of the new generation so-to-speak I liked...was Kirby. Played by Hayden Panettiere. She's the only interesting one of the group.
Sidney's cousin Jill, played by Emma Roberts...is the quiet one. Which pretty much means you hardly notice she's even on screen unless Ghostface makes a play for her, or her and Sidney have one of those awkward ''family" moments. The new boys, Robbie, Charlie, and Trevor are all super annoying. Trevor is a wannabe Billy. Brooding, dark, and mysterious. So you know right off the bat, that when the first calling card is left by Ghostface at Sid's book signing...which then throws the entire town of Woodsboro into a spiral of panic...it's not him.
Robbie and Charlie are techno/film geeks. Could be them...but their characters are portrayed as such pansies that you figure both to be more flesh-fodder for Ghostface more than anything else. And of course, you know Jill just by looking at her...is probably gonna end up getting offed unless Sid is there to have her back. "Scream 4" does one thing really well though. It sets up a huge bag of red herrings. Those famous "faux killers" we've all come to know and love through this franchise. For example...Marley Shelton appears in the film as Dewey's partner Hicks. She's got a weird look in her eye at times.
Is obsessed with Dewey it seems, much to Gale's dismay. And even went to school with Sidney way back when. There's also a trippy scene involving Hicks and Sidney where Hicks stands shrouded in darkness at the top of the staircase. As she tries to jog Sid's memory about their old school days. Perhaps a forshadowing of things to come? Either way...it's a good scene. "Scream 4" manages to blend some good past ticks also. With some new ones. For example, this new Ghostface is slightly more clever than his predecessors. He threatens, but then kills the unexpected victim.
And also leaves clues to his location. But in reality, he's somewhere totally different. That's the new rule it seems. The old ticks though involve Neve as Sidney. She has Ghostface figured out. Whether it be her past encounters or not. She knows how to escape so well now from the masked maniac that it almost seems too easy for her. And as if she has it all down to a science. As you watch Sid duck, dodge, and evade the killer every time he strikes...you almost feel as if the new teens should be huddled around her taking notes on slasher-killer escapes 101.
That's how easy she makes evading Ghostface look in this movie. "Scream 4" fails however with the kills. And I say that with sadness and disappointment. These are some standard kills by "Scream" franchise standards. When you look back on the first 3 movies...the new Ghostface is kind of a wuss. It's usually one stab and the person's dead, or multiple stabbings in the same place. Or in one characters case, once she's been stabbed, Ghostface for some odd reason, throws her through a window and lets her hang there for awhile.
This new Ghostface also seems to like throwing his victims around as he stabs them. Whereas previous Ghostfaces are all business so they could escape quicker before the cops arrived. But back to the vintage moments. There are a lot of them here. Ghostface makes many amazing escapes...just as the police arrive, almost arrive, or are on the way. Although one escape in particular...which takes place at Jill's friends house...pushes the boundaries of believability a tad bit too far. And as usual...he's always one step ahead of the cops.
If you're looking for motive here. Well, the killer this time is patterning his murders after the first "Stab". And oddly enough, there is a connection here to "Scream 2" involving Ghostface's first kill-attempt on Jill, and then the films eventual conclusion. The big reveal of who the killer or ers are though, falls slightly flat. Especially because "Scream 4" makes the same mistake "Scream 3" did. Harkening back to the Roman-in-the-coffin scene.
Just like I knew he was the killer after Gale finds him in the basement with the knife in his chest, there's a moment here at the end where a character steps outside to retrieve another character who's been captured by ghostface. At that moment, you can pretty much peg the alleged "hostage"...as the killer. But the film does manage to throw in a slight curveball with an even more startling revelation later on. "Scream 4" I must say in closing, DOES...DOES INDEED...have the funniest, craziest, and most out-there ending of ALL the films so far.
The way this movie wraps up is just a parody of the genre and it's new wings of fame, what people will do for it, and so on and so forth. It taps into the current psyche of American media and societal attitudes about success, death, and the like. But the ending is just NUTS. I am not sure if you'll laugh, hang your head in disappointment, or roll your eyes.
But the ending is definitely entertaining. It's just so crazy that it must be seen to be believed. All in all, "Scream 4" follows it's own rules without breaking them, Creates a few new ones, and ultimately doesn't take itself too seriously. I found it strange that early word said "4" would be dark. It's not dark. Fun at times, and shocking at others...but far from dark. 1-3 were dark. "4" is more almost light-hearted in a way. But in the end, worth the price of admission to see these characters run like hell from and try to apprehend Ghostface a decade later.
Positives:Neve aces her performance as an older (but still quite young looking) Sidney Prescott. Who is forced to do battle with the cloak and masked Ghostface once more. Emma Roberts as Jill isn't too shabby either. Hayden rocks as Kirby, and Arquette and Cox as Dewey and Gale have still got that chemistry that makes them a fun couple to watch on screen in the best and worst of times. Marley Shelton as Hicks was good too. Heavy nostalgia factor as well, seeing Dewey, Sid, and Gale all battling Ghostface again. In the town where it all started.
Negatives:The rest of the kids Robbie (Knudsen), Trevor (Tortorella), and Charlie (Culkin) were annoying and bad. Many of the death scenes lacked impact. Too many of the Ghostface escape scenes weren't as cool and mysterious as they used to be. Instead...they were kind of corny. There were also some close call moments that you can tell were written purposely to be close call moments. And weren't tweaked well enough to be moments where the audience holds their breath as someone is on the verge of dying
Overall:Three stars out of four.
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