The Scream Bum

Depending on what you were looking for when you bought a ticket to see Scream 4 (based on the opening weekend numbers not many of you did) you either loved it or only liked it. It’s not a horrible movie, so I know you didn’t hate it, but it doesn’t even hold a candle to the original.

It’s been 15 years since the original, and 10 years since the last. I didn’t expect the franchise to try to be something it wasn’t and overplay its hand by falling into the gore porn business. However, I did expect something a little different due to the amount of time the producers and Kevin Williamson had to put this together. Scream 4 turned out to fall into the same exact formula the other three had. I’m going to remind you of that right now because I hate when writers give up spoilers, even if they put a big frickin’ spoiler alert right in front of it. You know you wind up reading it even if you don’t want to, and that’s just annoying.

What people need to remember is that the original Scream put scary movies back on the map. It was one of the most original fun movies of it’s time. So I say since there was nothing to lose. There should have been some sort of an effort to do what the first one did, break new ground There were some rumors that screenwriter Kevin Williamson was annoyed with Harvey and Bob Weinstein when they brought in the screenwriter from Scream 3 to “punch up” the script, but we may never know what Williamson’s original concept was. Maybe it had that new imaginative view I was yearning for.

All in all, the movie was fun. Courtney Arquette plays an awesome bitch with a heart, David Arquette is a great doofus with a badge, and it’s nice to see Neve Campbell with a decent job again. The rest of the cast and cameos were obviously there for a good time, and it all translates on screen.

Don’t go thinking you are going to watching a scary movie, that’s not what Scream is. “It’s a spoof, always has been”, as expressed on facebook by my friend, and screenwriter, Jason Dolan. I think most reviewers are getting too used to the talents of today’s directors that instill fear, they forgot about the icon that started it all, Wes Craven.

Scream tries to hit your funny bone throughout, maybe it hits the mark for some more then others, but it is getting panned from many outlets. I still say that certain laughter can be as invigorating and scary as any horrible act, and I bet Wes Craven will be the first to tell you that if you listen quietly you can still hear Freddy Krueger laughing all the way to the bank.