On Dec. 20, 1996, a film was released that impacted the slasher genre forever.
In the height of 90’s parodies, a horror classic quickly emerged. Scream, a film directed by Wes Craven, stands as one of the best slashers in cinema history. Scream is a staple in the horror genre and effectively serves as my favorite horror film. As a disclaimer, I am not a horror movie buff.
Scream follows the narrative of Sidney Prescott, a teenage girl who lives in Woodbury, a town with a murderer on the loose. Almost a year after her mother’s murder, the killings begin again.
First of all, this film has one of the most iconic opening scenes in any movie. Casey, played by Drew Barrymore, and her boyfriend Steve being tormented and murdered in the most gripping, suspenseful fashion perfectly sets the stage for the rest of the movie. When she couldn’t scream for help, I was on the edge of my seat.
The character and casting choices are fantastic.
Every character feels fully realized and fits nicely in the world of Scream. Sidney, the absolute badass who could beat the killer, and Tatum, the loyal best friend. Billy is the creepy, pushy, and manipulative boyfriend. Dewey is the sweetest deputy who wants to be taken seriously. Every character is distinct and fleshed out.
To fill each character’s shoes, the casting was perfect. Matthew Lillard as Stew played the goofy, and psychotic teenage boy naturally. Courteney Cox was annoyingly persistent and direct, which was enjoyable to watch. Everyone fit their roles and gave convincing performances.
The plot and mystery are well-developed. For being a relatively shorter movie, the plot is efficient in pushing the story along. The writing balanced gore with story progression, which I appreciated as someone who dabbles in horror. I was genuinely shocked watching this the first time; I had no idea who the killer was.
Seeing it for the second time, the movie had many sneaky clues. The dialogue is written to give enough, but not too many, clues to the killer’s identity. Every event felt in line with each character’s motivation and created an entertaining film.
Lastly, I’d like to mention Scream’s service as a homage to several classic horror films.
The writing plays on horror movie stereotypes and directly references them multiple times. The writers even mentioned the scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis, who established the first badass female lead in the horror film Halloween. The self-awareness is tasteful; characters discuss tropes as they happen, which adds a layer of comedy and parody to the horror.
Overall, I highly recommend watching Scream, and I rate it a 10/10 for a horror movie. It is hilariously self-aware of horror tropes while adding another classic to the genre. The expressive dialogue, performances, and attention to detail create a fantastic film.
