Scream

31 Horror Movies I Own #24: Scream

Outside of A Nightmare on Elm Street, Wes Craven’s 80s track record wasn’t really so great. Deadly Friend, Shocker, The People Under the Stairs—sure, these are all kind of hilarious, but not even a little bit scary. So in 1996 when all the hype surrounding Scream started, I wasn’t really buying it.

BUT. When I was actually in the theater watching I was pleasantly surprised! It was the first horror film in a long time that made me second-guess myself, caused me to jump more than a few times, entertained me, and did an excellent job making it appear that anyone could be the killer.

I still love Scream as much as I did the first time I saw it. The opening sequence with Drew Barrymore as Casey is FLAWLESS, and yeah, even a little bit scary. With the exception of Tatum’s garage door squishing, all the deaths were great, and of course, there’s a TON of blood.

Also, I love (as I think everyone else does) extreme movie nerd Randy (Jamie Kennedy), and the irony of Sydney (Neve Campbell) proclaiming that horror films are stupid because the heroine always does the wrong thing—which is shortly followed by her doing exactly what she was complaining about.

Just in case there’s anyone who hasn’t seen this, I won’t give away the ending, but it’s a good one. If you by chance haven’t watched Scream, I highly recommend.

As for the sequels, they each have their moments. The opening theater scene of Scream 2 with Jada Pinkett Smith is pretty brilliant, with my major complaint being that it’s WAY too easy to figure out who the killer is. Scream 3 isn’t scary at all, but it gets props for making fun of itself (especially with the casting of each character for the Hollywood version of their story). The Scream 4 trailer is kind of lackluster, but I’m not willing to give up on the series yet, so I’ll definitely be heading out to see it.