Brutal Ghostface is back - had made Craven proud
Recreating the effective mix of bloody slasher horror and meta-humor from the 1996 "Scream" is, to say the least, a challenge. But the filmmakers and the ensemble deliver an accurate sequel that recreates my teenage memories of watching my favorite movie for the first time in cinemas.
When I left the cinema as a teenager after the first "Scream", I was lyrical, almost floating on clouds and had undoubtedly found my new favorite movie that would be revisited until the VHS cassette was worn out. When I, as an adult, leave the screening of the latest and fifth film in the series - a little strange but at the same time fitting with the same title - the feeling reappears.
It's time to memorize the names of Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, the director who took over the baton after the late Wes Craven. Rarely has it been so clear that filmmakers have as much love and respect for both the genre and the franchise they have taken on. While there are plenty of links to the previous films in both references and important side intrigues, they still make their own film for a modern audience. Craven had been proud.
The plot contains a series of twists that obviously should not be revealed here, but it is safe to say that Ghostface is back in Woodsboro. A new ghost killer thus threatens the small town and mainly two young sisters (Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega) circle of acquaintances, and the original survivors Sidney (Neve Campbell), Dewey (David Arquette) and Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) are reluctantly involved in the hunt for the guilty one.
4 important points below
While "Scream 2" was an unusually successful sequel, the last two films in the series have not completely managed to recreate the feeling from the masterful original film from 1996. After all films' director Wes Craven passed away in 2015, the future of "Scream 5" was uncertain. When Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett (who had a minor breakthrough with the underrated "Ready or Not") took over, the reaction was skeptical, mixed with expectations. It is with pleasure that I can certify that they fulfilled the latter.
Praise should also be given to the screenwriters James Vanderbilt ("Zodiac", "The Amazing Spider-Man") and Guy Busick ("Ready or Not") who managed to find the playful but scary tone Kevin Williamson created in his predecessor. There is thus plenty of liberating humor, especially in meta form, but already in the sharp introduction (perhaps the best in the film series since Drew Barrymores) it is made clear to us that a nasty and brutal Ghostface is back.
The film plays with expectations and clichés, both comments on film fans' obsession with reboots and remakes, but also manages to weave into that story. The "Staff" movies have a key role and most of the characters have ties to old characters. It hardly hurts that the ensemble is completely on board and it is especially nice to see Arquette and Cox shine. Between the screams and the laughter, there is even a tear or two when we get to see our favorite trio of horror movie heroes again.
If you have to complain about something, it is that the filmmakers sometimes almost tie the knot on themselves when they overfed us with meta-humor and liters of bloody splatter violence. As if trying to make up for what was a bit lacking in parts three and four. But why complain? This is a "Scream" film for the 2020s fans of horror and slasher films - a combination of popular cultural jokes, heated suspense and bloody murders at almost the same accurate level as 25 years ago.
