SCREAM

The directors ignore the biggest asset original helmer Wes Craven brought to Scream: a heart-felt connection to the characters, but at least the finale is fun.

In defence of the new Scream movie, it must be pretty hard for the fifth entry in a horror series to come up with something exciting and new, especially in a franchise that from the start built its reputation on its post-modern take on the genre.

Having said that, there is no excuse for the stale and perfunctory appearances for 'legacy characters' Sidney Prescott, Gale Weathers and Dewey Riley, nor for the utter lack of personality in any of the new faces who are preyed upon by Ghostface.

New directors Matt Bellini-Olpin and Tyler Gillet thereby ignore the biggest asset original helmer Wes Craven brought to Scream: a heart-felt connection to the cast. They are not helped by a script that never gets a grip on the motives of the characters and plot-wise rethreads too many familiar beats from other entries in the series.

While this makes the first 90 minutes of Scream a bit of a slog, it actually benefits the film's final act, which pays fitting tribute to the fun, blood and humour of the first entryin ways the rest of the picture fails to, ensuring Scream goes out on a much higher note that it has any right to, earning itself an unlikely second star.

release: 2022

director: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett

starring: Melissa Barrera, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette