Scream 4 - New Decade...New Rules

Scream 4

"New Decade..New Rules"

This past weekend, I finally gave in....and watched Scream 4. I, like many others LOVED the original Scream. I felt that it made fun of the genre, it wasn't afraid to poke some fun, wasn't afraid to establish rules AND break them, it also helped launch some great careers for those involved. The unfortunate part, it spawned 2 more sequels that got worse and worser...(I know...not a word, but they were pretty bad)

I had heard mixed reviews on Scream 4, that might have played a part in me dragging my feet to view this one. Getting some of the original cast back together is a plus and Wes Craven and Kevin Williamson back at the helm, certainly makes me have some hope. Staring at the box art, it seemed like I couldn't hold out forever, I finally pushed "add to #1 position", 2 days later and I'm ready. I was so afraid of this just being a last attempt at cashing in on the "Shitty Horror Train".

All aboard....

Without giving a play by play of Scream 4, let me give my thoughts in a spoiler free review. I really liked this movie, regardless of hearing other's opinions. The "cool trend" is to openly bash commercial releases, especially sequels and remakes just don't fit here. This film mixes fresh faces with some familiar faces that have some Hollywood pull. You have cameo's by Kristin Bell, who I fell in love with from Fanboys, plus Anna Panquin, of True Blood fame (which lost me after Season 2..haha). Plus, the regular cast of Neve Campbell who returns to Woodsboro to promote her book. Dewey (David Arquette) and Gale (Courteney Cox) are there...but we see some of Sidney's family pulled into the mix. Kind of a passing of the torch.

They introduce Emma Robert (with some star power family bloodlines in Julia Roberts & Eric Roberts) as Sidney's cousin Jill. Jill, plays the perfect victim..she's small, frail and cute. Hayden Panettiere is her friend, who looks HOT with short hair, but who do we start to suspect amongst the mix? Lot's of murder, twists, mixed in with typical Scream comedy...makes this a winner.

Will everyone like this? Probably not, but I felt this was a great return to where it began. Good writing, simply Ghostface phone calls, that always make me smile, plus everyone plays the roles great. I would recommend this one, especially if you liked the original.

My Recommendation - Definitely a Dvd buy. It has some rewatch value. I would watch part 1 and be satisfied with jumping to part 4. I'm good without the Cotton Weary continuation, without the extra nonsense from part 2 or 3. I really do like the Stab franchise mixture though.

* My recommendation system - I rate movies on a system - A Combo purchase (The Blu Ray, dvd and Digital download) being the best and simply watching it on Tv, or even passing being the bottom of barrel. Instead of rating it by stars, I think judging how much time or money we spend on a film, means much more than just stars.