“Scream (2022)”, the fifth installment of the “Scream” series, is a satirical remake of all the prior slasher films.
The movie, while obviously satire, seemed to be a tired and unimaginative remake of the original films. Nevertheless, it still surprisingly touched upon the darker aspects of society, more so than earlier films.
The movie introduced new characters, almost all of which had a connection to the previous movies, overall causing some major pacing issues within the film. While some scenes were unbearably long, others sped by without a thought, making the passage of time and story development awkward for the audience.
In the film, the new main characters are all relatives of previous slasher stars; whether being the illegitimate child of the first Ghostface murderer or being a niece or nephew of a previous victim, this provided a more interesting storyline that gave a nod to the previous films.
Though the addition of new characters with lives intertwined with the old gave the audience feelings of nostalgia, it was not enough to outweigh the film’s bland storyline and bad acting.
The acting, which was overdramatic for the purpose of comedy, broke the fourth wall multiple times, taking away from the general “horror-like feel” of the movie.
Throughout the movie, they made various comments on both elevated horror and the changes of classic vs. modern horror films. Unlike its predecessors, the movie purposefully had elements of new generation horror, changing it from a satirical slasher to satirical, elevated horror.
The original 1996 Scream had proper pacing, was more comedic, and was able to make an 80-minute film feel like an hour. It had a proper storyline, and its legacy characters weren’t rushed into the film. Its director, Wes Craven, was one of the best horror movie directors, creating the Scream franchise along with a new genre of slasher films.
“A Nightmare on Elm Street,” one of his other main film franchises, is an excellent example of the less satirical and more storyline-driven horror films that I would love to see more of.
Overall, I give the movie three and a half stars. It had good comedic relief and a unique and enjoyable ending where the characters joined together, but the film had many issues. Most of the legacy characters came at awkward times, and its terrible pacing overshadowed the movie’s more positive aspects.
RATING: 3.5/5
