Business Rating: 1 star
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Star cast: Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Courtney Cox, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Mary McDonnell.
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What’s Bad: The story gets repetitive and the murders, predictable.
Verdict: Scream 4 is for fans of the Scream franchise and thriller-murder mystery lovers.
Loo break: Not really.
Watch or Not? If you have nothing better to do.
Dimension Films’ Scream 4 is about the return of a bloodthirsty murderer in a quiet town. Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) is back to Woodsboro after the third round of horrific murders of her friends ten years ago. She has written a book on how she survived the murders thrice, and Woodsboro is the last stop for her tour.
Back in her hometown, she meets her old friend, Dewey Riley (David Arquette), who is a Sheriff now, and Gale Weathers (Courtney Cox), who has married Dewey. She also reconnects with her cousin, Jill Roberts (Emma Roberts), and Jill’s school friends, Kirby Reed (Hayden Panettiere),
Olivia Morris (Marielle Jaffe) and others. But as soon as Sidney arrives, the murders start all over again. The murderer uses the same ploy that he/she used fifteen years ago: he/she stalks the victims, calls them and frequently asks them trivial questions about horror movies.
This time, the slasher-killer, Ghostface, makes references to horror-movie remakes. Gale concludes that the killer is inspired by 21st-century horror movies but is sticking to the original pattern of killings of 15 years ago. Will Sindey find out the killer? How many people will fall victim to the slasher-killer before his/her identity is revealed? But most importantly, will Sidney survive the killings again?
Kevin Williamson’s script is a rehash of the previous Scream movies (Scream, Scream 2 and Scream 3) which he had authored. Though it offers nothing in terms of novelty, it manages to keep you hooked on from the beginning to the end. He gives the necessary twists and turns to keep the audience glued to their seats. Perhaps, it is the familiar faces of Neve, David and Courtney that make the movie more attractive.
Neve Campbell carries off the role of the sole survivor bravely. In the sequences where she comes face-to-face with her killer, her emotions of fear and anger are perfect. David Arquette is good as the confused, small-town sheriff. Courtney Cox excels as the go-getter journalist-turned-writer. Though her role is small, she is very good, as is Hayden Panettiere. Emma Roberts does well.
Director Wes Craven is a pro at slasher films and he gives the film its share of spine-chilling screams, blood and gore. But for those who have been following the Scream series, the film becomes tiring after a point of time. Music, by Marco Beltrami, is functional. Peter Deming’s cinematography is okay. Peter McNulty’s editing is very good.
The Last Word
Scream 4 is strictly for fans of the thriller/murder/whodunit genre. What’s more, it offers nothing new.
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