Directors: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillet
Release Date: Jan. 14, 2022
MPAA Rating: B-
Starring: Jenna Ortega (Tara Carpenter), Neve Campbell (Sidney Prescott), Dylan Minnette (Wes Hicks), Courtney Cox (Gale Weathers), David Arquette (Dewey Riley), Melissa Barrera (Sam Carpenter), Mikey Madison (Amber Freeman), and Jack Quaid (Richie Kirsch).

Once again, a sequel of an iconic slasher film has been released and yet again, we have an honest attempt of living up to a classic. The new “Scream” movie sets the tone with new characters and new kills, while maintaining some of the golden aspects of the original. The new “Scream” is a series of twists and turns that both captivate the audience and leave them disappointed.

The film includes original cast members like Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette with many easter eggs relating to the original. Easy to follow yet unpredictable, this new “Scream” ties things back to the original that fans know and love. As always, Ghostface terrorizes a group of friends with killings all over town. Tensions rise as they try to unmask the killer leading up to the final reveal.

“I thought the new movie was cool, I’m a big fan of the original so I was really excited. I was underwhelmed at parts but the ending made up for it,” sophomore Anabelle Gonzalez said.

Often throughout the movie they try to return to their roots by making “self-aware” commentary on slasher films and mocking stereotypical tropes in these kinds of movies but unlike the original they fail to make it creative. They do what most new movie reboots do nowadays and try to be overly cognizant of its newer audience and drag out the joke to the point it is overbearing and in your face making it so that it loses its original charm.

“When it comes to reboots I always prefer the original. This new Scream movie wasn’t bad but I still prefer the original,” junior Alexis Gonzalez said.

As for the actual scares, Ghostface never disappoints. The kills in this movie are memorable and continuously left the audience shocked with how brutal and unexpected they were. The soundtrack kept the story interesting and added a nice touch to the film, including tracks like “Fall Out Of Love” by Salem and “I Don’t Want to Talk” by Wallows.

Cinematically, Scream was a cookie-cutter horror movie. None of the shots were particularly groundbreaking but this didn’t keep it from being thrilling and humorous. Cast members Jenna Ortega and Melissa Barrera delivered an amazing performance; they had great chemistry as sisters and their dialogue felt realistic and refreshing. Returning star Neve Campbell notably had the best one-liners and humorous commentary.

Fans’ opinions of this new installment have been everywhere considering typical sequels and reboots are always looked down upon by fans of the original. Ever since the passing of Wes Craven, the original director of “Scream” in 2015, people have been skeptical of how they would bring back the series. All things considered, though sometimes corny and cookie-cutter, the movie did a good job of staying on-brand with its original whilst still maintaining a new and interesting plot.