SCREAM Review: Horror "Requel" Is A Moderately Effective Slasher, But Meta Elements Offset Suspense

SCREAM Review: Horror "Requel" Is A Moderately Effective Slasher, But Meta Elements Offset Suspense

The fifth instalment in the iconic Scream franchise slices its way into theatres this weekend, and while loyal fans are sure to have a blast, it's not the return to form many were hoping for.

Review Opinion
By MarkCassidy - Jan 12, 2022 07:01 PM EST
Filed Under: Scream

This review will contain mild spoilers.

"Do you like scary movies?" If so, you might want to give Scream 2022 a miss.

To be fair, the Scream films were never particularly scary, but Wes Craven's masterful original (and, to a lesser extent, the first sequel) did boast some nail-bitingly tense moments and a few effective jumps. This fifth instalment does significantly increase the gore quota, but is seriously lacking when it comes to genuine suspense.

Scream (the decision to drop the "5" from the title is referenced) begins with a sequence that's become a staple of the franchise, as a lone teenager (Jenna Ortega) is stalked and sliced by the latest incarnation of masked killer, Ghostface. This time, however, young Tara survives (she's only stabbed about 27 times) the attack, which brings her estranged sister Sam (Melissa Barrera) back to Woodsboro along with her supportive boyfriend Richie (Jack Quaid).

As the bodies pile up, our new gang of potential knife-fodder turns to Dewey Riley (David Arquette) to bring them up to speed on the rules of surviving a horror movie in an attempt to determine the killer's identity. Before long, Sydney Prescot (Neve Campbell) and Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) arrive to offer their old friend some backup, and the hunt is on to unmask Ghostface before he/she can enact his/her diabolical plan.

Scream 5 Posters Feature Courteney Cox, David Arquette, and Neve Campbell

It's a familiar set-up, but the script by James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick does introduce a few intriguing new elements which prevent the story from unfolding as a complete retread, and our new protagonists are a mostly tolerable bunch (they're more likeable than the disposable shitheads from 3 and 4, at least). Unfortunately, it's still difficult to care what happens to any of them because Scream is determined to remind us that we're watching a movie at every turn.

This franchise has always been self-aware, of course, but whereas Craven's original cleverly subverted horror conventions while also working very well as an engrossing slasher in its own right, this entry goes self-referential to the point that it takes you out of the movie. One rather excruciating scene involving Jasmin Savoy Brown's Mindy (the Randy Meeks stand-in) explaining the finer points of a "requel" stops just short of having the characters look right into the camera and literally wink at the audience.

This isn't the only issue that dulls so much of the tension, as directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett rely far too heavily on contrived scenarios and fake jump-scares. A character opens a fridge door... will Ghostface be there when he closes it? Well, the score just swelled, so probably not. Hey, maybe he'll appear behind the other door just when we think it's safe! It's all pretty basic stuff, and even when Ghostface is in pursuit, you may find yourself wondering how these capable (in some cases, trained) individuals are unable to handle themselves against a clumsy bastard with a relatively small blade who drops like a WWE referee whenever anyone brushes against him.

It may sound like I'm ripping into the movie a little here, but there is a lot to like. As mentioned, some of the kills are pretty brutal, and the film does not scrimp on the blood. There is a very well-orchestrated sequence involving a certain character in a hospital (don't worry, there are lots of characters in hospitals) that is genuinely shocking, and it sets the stage for a highly enjoyable final act.

The cast also delivers, with Arquette, Ortega and Barrera emerging as standouts. Sydney fans may be disappointed to learn that the "Queen" doesn't get involved until very late in the game, but Campbell certainly makes the most of her screen time.

Hardcore fans are sure to get their money's worth, but for everyone else, Scream 5 only just gets by as a moderately effective slasher. A game cast, vicious kills and a smattering of surprises ensure it's never less than engaging, but the pronounced meta elements only dilute the tension. Not bad, just not quite the return to form many were hoping for.

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MyCoolYoung
MyCoolYoung - 1/12/2022, 7:38 PM
I thought the meta elements were the point of these? I haven’t actually seen one of these in years, Maybe since 2? I’ve been meaning to catch up on all these.

Ror is usually sensible in his reviews so I usually trust his words. Still going to see this. Regularmovieguy and Porgy’s excitement for this actually made me want to watch
MarkCassidy
MarkCassidy - 1/12/2022, 7:59 PM
@MyCoolYoung - They are, to an extent, but this one doesn't so much slyly wink at the audience as it does reach through the screen, grab them by the collar and shout: "YOU'RE WATCHING A MOVIE!"
MyCoolYoung
MyCoolYoung - 1/12/2022, 8:54 PM
@RorMachine - oh wow. Can’t be worse than the matrix meta aspects…. Can it?
Franshu
Franshu - 1/12/2022, 9:27 PM
@RorMachine - Heh, loved that clarification LOL
tripttwe
tripttwe - 1/12/2022, 11:35 PM
@MyCoolYoung - Ror is always on point. PurriT.
CAPTAINPINKEYE
CAPTAINPINKEYE - 1/12/2022, 7:46 PM

i scream, you scream, we all scream for....i don't give a shit.
MUTO123
MUTO123 - 1/12/2022, 7:47 PM
I wanna go see it, but I can't fit my fat face into those N95 masks, so...
Razorface1
Razorface1 - 1/12/2022, 9:24 PM
@MUTO123 - Eh, you can watch it later on. Safety and health first, my dude.
AmazingFILMporg
AmazingFILMporg - 1/12/2022, 7:48 PM
Good enough for me😎💪❤🙋
regularmovieguy
regularmovieguy - 1/12/2022, 8:04 PM
@AmazingFILMporg

AmazingFILMporg
AmazingFILMporg - 1/12/2022, 8:50 PM
@regularmovieguy - 🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪
AnthonyVonGeek
AnthonyVonGeek - 1/12/2022, 8:14 PM
I’ve seen 1-3 so many times. I just rewatched them in October and they still hold up but I’ve only seen 4 one time and wasn’t impressed with it at all so hopefully 5 is Better.🤞
grif
grif - 1/12/2022, 10:22 PM
@AnthonyVonGeek - should probably quit while your ahead
dracula
dracula - 1/12/2022, 8:31 PM
Too bad Craven didnt get to do his second trilogy before he died.

4 was a bit disappointing but way better than 3
DoubleD
DoubleD - 1/12/2022, 8:32 PM
Rotten Tomatoes current score. 79% with 66 Reviews. I will see it Friday.

CRITICS CONSENSUS

The fifth Scream finds the franchise working harder than ever to maintain its meta edge -- and succeeding surprisingly often.
AvisQuinn
AvisQuinn - 1/12/2022, 8:40 PM
Motion pictures, these days, seem to be having something of a realization: if they can't reasonably create a "multiverse" to justify producing sequel after sequel, they'll go the route of the "meta-story." A sequel that contains the same characters (and usually, the same actors) where the story doesn't take itself too seriously, and even occasionally pokes fun of it for an inexpensive chuckle or two.

The Matrix Resurrections did this, to a lesser degree of success. It really didn't work because the entire series is built upon the notion that reality is indistinguishable from perception, and that's why the Matrix worked in its purpose to subjugate a vast majority of human beings. Resurrections tries to turn this notion on its head and put forth a premise of everything coming before it, that is the falsehood. We all now the Matrix isn't real, because it's presented at face value. It doesn't work.

Scream has a much easier job of this. It's not trying to challenge our perception of reality, but rather, our perception of death as a person. How many times can a person put on a mask and carve up innocents? As many times as we keep showing up to see it. No thought really required there. That's generally why older horror franchises survived six or seven films, even though the series only have one or two "good" films.
TheHumanSpider2
TheHumanSpider2 - 1/12/2022, 8:44 PM
Hollywood needs to chill out a bit with the meta stuff...
Dredd97
Dredd97 - 1/12/2022, 8:46 PM
Scream movie is too meta? Have you ever seen any of these? Lol that's their whole point
Razorface1
Razorface1 - 1/12/2022, 9:25 PM
@Dredd97 - Hence the *TOO* in "too meta". You can always go over the top.
Dredd97
Dredd97 - 1/12/2022, 10:01 PM
@Razorface1 - nah
Razorface1
Razorface1 - 1/12/2022, 11:33 PM
@Dredd97 - yeah
Cap1
Cap1 - 1/13/2022, 5:00 AM
@Dredd97 - I got to agree with Razorface, as a wise man once said...
GhostDog
GhostDog - 1/12/2022, 8:55 PM
Love this franchise so I’m there
PapaSpank54
PapaSpank54 - 1/12/2022, 8:59 PM
What if I told you the multiverse trend is a manifestation of a larger trend of meta storytelling?
GirshwinDavies
GirshwinDavies - 1/13/2022, 1:12 AM
@PapaSpank54 - hahaha
Lokiwasright
Lokiwasright - 1/12/2022, 9:23 PM
I didn't know there was anotther Scream movie.
Reeds2Much
Reeds2Much - 1/12/2022, 9:28 PM
she's only stabbed about 27 times
IronGenesis
IronGenesis - 1/12/2022, 9:34 PM
This site doesn’t take too kindly to recent meta films that go meta and and remind them that all these films are simply Nonsense, do they?
bkmeijer2
bkmeijer2 - 1/13/2022, 3:16 AM
@IronGenesis - I guess that if every movie is doing meta it isn't special, and thus it needs to do so in a surprising way to stay relevant. Upping the meta itself isn't that
bcom
bcom - 1/12/2022, 10:32 PM
"Requel" better not be a term that becomes more common place in Hollywood. Reboots and reimagings are already bad enough.

Also, I'm not sure about this trend of making sequels that have the same title as the first movie in the franchise. What happens if you decide to rewatch all the movies? You start at the first movie, Scream, then you finish at the last movie, also called Scream. What happens if they make a sequel to this new Scream? Is it Scream 2? It's the same with Halloween.

When I see stuff like this I feel like Hollywood is losing it's collective mind. They can't be bothered coming up with original ideas so they milk old franchises but can't decide if they're rebooting them or making a direct sequel. They then say it's a fresh start even though they have the original cast and reference the previous movies. It just makes no sense to me.
connorblaze
connorblaze - 1/12/2022, 10:59 PM
Oh thank god, I thought I was going mad, so many positive reviews for this and I thought it was so bad. And the fridge door thing with the swelling music, they did it 3 times! With a fridge door 3 times! Two fake outs and one ‘oh its just you’! Jesus. Not to mention it strained believability at every turn, had a totally boring killer reveal (I was expecting a certain character to be Lillard’s son and for Lillard himself to be a second killer. Clearly giving too much credit to the writers, the killer and motive is extraordinarily dull). And its head is so far up its own ass with meta that isnt intelligent like the first movie (except maybe the couch gag with the Randy standin, that was good) that it doesnt realise that constantly talking about how unoriginal and what a retread your movie is doesnt make it any less so. You dont get points for knowing that youre out of ideas and admitting it, Hollywood, you have to actually do something smart with it. God Matrix did the exact same thing. Talked about what a retread it is then did nothing about it.
MarvelZombie616
MarvelZombie616 - 1/13/2022, 4:36 PM
Just saw it.
NO SPOILERS:
It's awful, sadly.
I liked the meta aspects in Matrix 4, but they don't work here.
At the end, i couldn't take anything serious anymore, especially how much punishment everybody can take and still survive.

Just don't look forward for the flamethrower too much. ;-)
TheUnworthyThor
TheUnworthyThor - 1/13/2022, 11:24 PM
I don’t understand how anyone could complain about the meta aspects of a Scream. That’s like what all the Scream movies are built upon. That’s what they do. That’s what they are.
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