Film Review: Scream ('22, Dir: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett)

 

(Note: very mild spoilers. If you want to know *nothing* about the film, don't read this until after you've seen it. )

Scream (2022)

Written by James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick; Based on characters created by Kevin Williamson

Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett (aka Radio Silence) 

It can be hard to fully state the impact the Scream franchise has had on my life, a notion that in some ways is challenged by the way this new entry in the series unfolds. Without going too deep into personal detail, the original two films in particular were hugely influential in not only developing my love of horror cinema but also in helping me deal with a lot of fear-based issues I had in my life as a child. Scream and Scream 2 helped me mature and grow and were hugely influential in changing me from a repressed scaredy-cat into a lover of all things scary. In fact, the original film currently proudly rests in my top 10 favorite films of all time. Thus, any time a new entry in the series releases it has big shoes to fill. In fact, I have always argued that there has never been a bad film in the Scream franchise. It brings me great pleasure to say that that this new Scream continues that trend. It is an instant meta horror classic. 

11 years have passed since Scream 4 released, a film that tackled social media fame and Hollywood reboot culture that I would argue was ahead of its time. The reviews and box office take were mixed, but I was immediately taken by its commentary and approach to the franchise, and of note it is sadly the last film Wes Craven directed before he passed away in 2015. Perhaps even more so than Nightmare on Elm Street, the Scream series has become what Wes Craven is most known for - an enduring legacy of slasher horror that had its tongue firmly in its cheek and wasn't afraid to break open, skewer, and challenge the conventions of the genre and Hollywood tropes at large. Scream changed the game when it was released in 1996, and in many ways horror cinema has been trying to keep up ever since. How do we justify a new entry now, in 2022? With Wes Craven gone and a meta approach to media being far more common than it was in the 90s (just last month The Matrix Resurrections took a highly meta approach to the new entry in its franchise which I found delightful and others hated), what is the hook that could make this worthwhile, and who are the filmmakers bold enough to attempt it? Enter the idea of the legacy sequel (or "requel") and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett, aka Radio Silence, whose film Ready or Not is one of the best horror films in recent times. 

The idea of the legacy sequel is not new, necessarily, but it has seen an uptick over the last decade, with long-running franchises such as Jurassic Park, Terminator, Star Wars, Tron, Halloween, Ghostbusters, and more crafting new entires that marry new lead characters and new narratives with legacy characters returning from the original films so that Hollywood can have its cake and eat it too. Although financially and qualitatively these films vary in success, it is a trend that has only grown in output and shows no sign of stopping. The characters in Scream have always been self-aware, as if they know they are in a movie and are lightly winking at the audience so that everyone is in on the joke. These are characters that have a strong cinema knowledge, and use that information to help navigate the horror - and solve the whodunit - that is present throughout the film. In those regards, and in the way the film unfolds and the killers/motives are revealed, I would argue that this is the smartest and most biting script since the original. 

Written by James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick (with original series writer Kevin Williamson serving as Executive Producer) it is clear that they not only understand the hows and the whys of the success of the Scream franchise, but they genuinely love it. By using the movie within a movie series "Stab," Vanderbilt and Busick have a bevy of self-referential material to draw from. The characters might as well be talking about the Scream movies; the lines are increasingly thin, and that makes for wonderful sequences that are as meta as anything Scream has ever seen. The baggage and history of the entire franchise is at play. New characters have fascinating relations to old ones, as small town soap drama plays out underneath the context of the horror. They also aren't afraid to hold Hollywood and the way fans engage with Hollywood to task. Without going too deep into spoilers, the film skewers the entitlement and toxicity that has befallen much of movie fandom. It is a sharp and clever approach that I found absolutely delicious, particularly when one considers how certain people are responding to this film - which only serves to prove its point. 

Much like the writers clearly love this franchise, so too does Radio Silence. Assembling together a likable and charismatic new cast (Jenna Ortega and Melissa Barrera are emotionally compelling as sisters, Jack Quaid and Jasmin Savoy Brown are particularly charming) and bringing in the legacy characters (Sidney, Gale, and Dewey are all back and Campbell, Cox, and Arquette haven't missed a beat) the film traverses the annals of Scream lore and constructs some of the most thrilling and beautifully shot horror and stabbings in the series' history. This is by far the most brutal and violent film in the series, and although I am not easily squeamish there are moments here that had me going. Radio Silence and their cinematographer Brett Jutkiewicz (who also shot Ready or Not) craft a series of scenes that escalate in tension and are riveting (and fun!) to watch. A scene set in a private floor of a hospital, in particular, is incredibly intense. The camera movement and use of light and shadow is excellent, with certain visuals paying loving homage to the Scream franchise that had me positively giddy in my seat. Brian Tyler's score is the perfect accompaniment, weaving in themes from the previous entries. 

The film even goes so far as to explain why its called Scream even though there's already another movie called Scream and not, say, 5cream or Scream 5.  No beat is missed, no stone unturned. This is about as unsubtle as filmmaking gets, but that's always been the joy of Scream. And what a joy it is. This is a thrilling, clever, brutal, funny, and altogether hugely enjoyable new entry in this series. The love and respect for the lore of the series is a joy to watch, and Radio Silence and the new screenwriters carry on what Wes Craven and Kevin Williamson started 26 years ago with aplomb. Scream may poke fun at legacy sequels, but in its own way it is one of the absolute best ones we have seen.