Scream (1996)

The first day of October is here and with it comes my first watch of the classic Scream film from 1996. Now I should preface that while I have never watched a scream movie I have watched the first two season of scream the TV show which aired in 2015-16. Because of that I was going into this with at least a baseline of what scream would be framed like, as well as just general horror movie cliches. That being said a large part of this movie was 'ruined' for me as I did go into it knowing who the killers were going to be which means the usual suspense and mystery of who the culprits are was immediately ripped away before it started. Which in theory could be argued was the whole reason not to watch however I was still unaware of their motive which is what I believe is the more important factor in a horror film. Because anyone can become a murderer but 9 times out of 10 horror films will make the motive of the killer a very integral part of their character and I was curious... That and I have seen one too many Matthew Lillard and Skeet Ulrich fan edits that I simply HAD to see what all the hype was about.

Now how could I start this and not talk about the famous telephone scene with Drew Barrymore. I will say, having the iconic phone call right at the begining surprised me because I was expecting it to be part way through after the first kill had already happened. In my head the call took place as the second or third kill to create suspense, in the way that the first couple are framed to be possible accidents or unrelated events before the third happens (aka Drew) that finally makes it clear to the police this is more than an accident and they have a potential serial killer on the loose. The concept of a series killer however is something that isn't even mentioned in this so perhaps that's me being too ambitious, field by my TV show expectations. That being said the scene still had some clearly critical moments. Never did I think I would be begging for a murder once the six minute mark hit however or wishing for a more gruesome death which honestly made me think about myself a little.

I did enjoy the concept of basing the kills around a sort of game so the person at the end of the phone doing a little quiz on scary movies (fear not I muted for a couple seconds so I didn't have Halloween spoiled for me when I watch that later in the week) in an attempt to save Steve was something I enjoyed. I would have also liked to see it a little more especially since the other kills seemed to have no real 'cat and mouse' element to them aside from running for their lives which isn't the route I was expecting. Then again it is a film so they don't have all the time in the world to create an elaborate game, that is giving more saw. I was also excited when Casey grabbed a weapon because from my limited scary movie knowledge so many times the heroine just runs with no real plan when the least I would do is get some kind of weapon for attacking if the escape route fails. Yet the first time she held the knife it was pointing towards herself and then she immediately looses it after ghost face lunges at her through the window. I was hoping for some kind of self defense stab not a little tug of war and run.

Not that running is a bad idea at all, in fact I think in a lot of scenarios they simply do not run enough. But they need to run correctly and what I mean by that is pick a space in the far distance and DON'T FUCKING STOP! The amount of time's characters in this damn movie jogged for two seconds and then looked around to see if they were safe or for a place to hide is infuriating. Like girl get out of there! Pick a spot and don't stop until you get there. I'm 90% sure a lot of these characters wouldn't have died if they had simply kept moving and that's coming from me which as a unfit fat person is saying something.

In terms of the first death I would say it started very slow and anticlimactic but I suppose it lifted towards the end. For Casey at least, Steve got gutted like a fish which would have been peak death of the film if I had just got to see his character a little more but we don't so having such a gruesome death for someone who's basically a stranger seems beyond pointless. It almost makes me think him and Casey should have swapped deaths. Now I know this makes me sound like a hater, I'm not trying to be I am simply thinking in terms of the plot. Steve is a character who we know nothing besides his name and the fact he wears the same letterman jacket as Archie from Riverdale. Whereas Casey's character we see talk on the phone; we get a slight glimpse at her personality. We watch her fight to get away from ghostface and above all she is Drew fucking Barrymore so the idea of her getting a more intense death seems somewhat fitting.

That being said I do also love the idea of the parents returning home and being able to hear the death happening on the phone at the other end. I may not understand the mechanics of it considering she both hit ghost face with it only once and then took of his mask rather than hitting him again but the darkness of hearing their daughter be killed is something I thought was so interesting. Therefore I will put aside any further questions and give them applause where it is due. Moving onto a scene that didn't happen within the first ten minutes: meeting Sidney and Billy.

Now I will admit my first thought was 'is that aria Montgomery's mom dating jughead's dad and of course he's climbing through the window like his son'. It turns out Sidney is not the actress I thought she is but she was played by Neve Campbell and then Billy- do I even need to explain? I know all you simps are well aware who Skeet Ulrich is. Their relationship is one I was quite curious about, I mean adding the knowledge that their relationship was on the rocks I thought that maybe the reason he was doing all this was some elaborate plan to get Sidney to sleep with him. I am aware that is a somewhat insane theory to have but I knew that Billy was one of the people behind ghost face so he must have some kind of reason to go after his own girlfriend (which he did) but I was also confused how the two got around so easily especially the time Billy got arrested. I mean ghost face popped out so soon after being on the phone and after he disappeared Billy appeared so quickly that I was like okay clearly he was the one calling and Stu was under the mask but then at the station his phone was investigated and it truly wasn't him. Which meant stu must have been incredibly quick to both call and run after Sidney not to mention quiet for her not to hear him in the actual house which is something that doesn't quite fit. And then there is the mix up between which person did what kill.

At this point I am fairly certain the two would switch between who would call and who would do the actual killing, especially after the big reveal how they passed the voice changer between one another as if they both used it. Which already beats expectations because I thought Stu was purely murderer and Billy purely caller. But thinking on it that does make more sense and I do like that element more than sticking to their assigned rules plus this cancels out the possibility of using the excuse 'all I did was call them'. So if they did take turns with the killing who did which. Clearly Stu called Casey when she was at Tatum's because Billy was arrested which also got him out but after that who killed the principle and why. I mean I am not going to defend him because after the way he caressed Sidney's face when she was interrogated by the police I had him labeled a creep. I thought he was her dad for crying out loud until it was revealed her dad is MIA. So I'm glad he was killed though I don't understand why. Really the same goes for Casey and Tatum.

After all it was revealed that the motive Billy had was that Sidney's mum ruined his life after she was cheating and slept with his dad, making his mum walk out and abandon him. That's also why Billy took it upon himself to kill her and it makes me think the principle could have been killed because it was someone else that Sidney's mum slept with. I don't understand why exactly he would have been killed for sleeping with her when the anger was pointed more towards Sidney's mum but at least it would be in the same vein where it is all tied to Sidney's mum. However Steve, Casey and Tatum have nothing (to my knowledge) to do with that cheating situation so their deaths remain a mystery to me. But I will say the one that makes sense is that it is quite literally two murderers so while Billy is going through the 'this woman ruined my life' route the others would be a motive from Stu. What that is exactly I have no idea.

I know that near the end he says he will just tell the police when he's caught that he was peer pressured into it and he is sensitive which- side note- I have to say is some of the best acting I've seen from Matthew Lillard this films. That is an over arching statement and it isn't to be equated with his acting in this being bad it was just a little too expressive for my taste. At first I could understand it as him being the quirky side character that people think about in passing but eventually deem 'too stupid' to commit such acts which is why it is so much more of a surprise at the reveal. Particularly when it is revealed there are two of them which I can only imagine did numbers on the day of release. But after he is revealed as one of the culprits I did expect him to dile it down only slightly to give him a bit more of seriousness that shows he was always putting on an act. The lines themselves seemed to me like that was the intention, trying to make him the crazed yet funny and secretly mastermind character but Lillard was so expressive it only highlighted him as unserious

In its own right they have every reason to play that as a character except here I was just unsure. If I was to be completely honest I think the best characterisation happens after he is bleeding out and on the phone to Sidney saying he's sensitive and his parents will be pissed. That is the kind of mellowed out character I thought we were going to see but didn't and he's supposed to be half dead in those scenes so what that says about the characters I want to see I don't know. Anyway, all this is to say I don't know what Stu's motive would be for killing his classmates beyond ultimate craze and a thirst for the kill which he gives off spectacularly so really I'm completely talking out my ass.

There were also so many points where these two presumably 16 year olds were made to be geniuses. They killed Sidney's mum a year ago, they killed both Steve and Casey without the parents knowing until they really wanted to, kidnapping and framing Sidney's dad to the extent that they stabbed one another to play the victim more believably. And yet the second they have more than one victim alive that they are supposed to be in pursuit to kill they loose track of everything and end up dead. Which is something I personally love because what the fuck do high schoolers know about multitasking. Now I do want to talk a little more in depth on one more character but before that I do want to say the hype between Billy and Stu... I do not understand, overrated if you ask me but that is my opinion.

Last but not least I want to talk a little about Monica aka Gale Weathers. I do feel I should admit that through all the notes I made in this film every note I made about Gale I used Monica instead, so if I slip up and use Monica you know why. The main thing I want to mention is that if this was my first time watching with a complete clean slate she would probably have been my main suspect. I mean Dewey needs to stop thinking with his dick because at every turn and every event that happens, is Gale. I am aware she is a reporter but what better reason to hide behind than that, not to mention she is usually the first there. I was really thinking that her being the killer would make so much sense with how hugely she craves a good murder mystery. So by having her be the killer it would mean she was trying her hardest to create a stir by targeting the previously attacked family with Sidney and then being able to cover the report on the news. So I was slightly disappointed knowing that wasn't going to be a route they took however Gale as a character being so headstrong was pleasing to see.

I mean when she got back to the car and saw blood everywhere she was stepping on that peddle and didn't stop which is exactly what I wanted! The blood on the windshield, the body falling down and she just kept going. I mean she did crash but before then at least she was unfazed and determined to get the hell out of there! That being said clearly thou dost protest to much because why the hell is she suddenly giving a speech when the killers are in front of her. She has overheard their whole motivation speech so it isn't like she is still unsure it's a definite and yet she still yaps. Honestly a person from my true heart but it's that yap sesh that almost got her killed. As a result I had to deduct slay points. Next time just pull the damn trigger!

In summary there are plenty of points of confusion in this film as well as areas of uncertainty that I would have liked to see done differently. However for a film that was released in the 90's and because of all the scenes that remain quotable it's clear the movie remains a classic for a reason. As a result I will insert my final official rating below as well as some bullet points thoughts I couldn't find a place to include.

I will see you next time for Hocus Pocus!

Nonsense Bullet Points

•Get over your mum dying because he wants that good puss is insane

•Principal has a point yelling at the kids they are being insensitive but please put them fucking scissors down because you'll get in more shit than the kids

•Tatum brother is 25!?! And Monica is flirting with him (for information) by saying he looks like he's 12... And he's liking it!!

•Why is the janitor dressed in that other killer way I'm assuming similar stories in both which is the hint but I've never seen that either

•When they leave the party do they not see Tatum where the fuck is she hanging from... Oh she broke her neck and she's round the back back.

•DO NOT SIDE WITH BILLY ESPECIALLY WHEN YOUR MUMS DEATH WAS RAPE AND KILLED HELLO

•It took an hour and a half for a fucking throat slit like finallyyy

•Damn you fell from the roof too even if there was padding which there wasn't it was a fucking boat with a tarp that's gotta hurt like a bitch yet you're running fine.

•THE TV WOULDN'T ELECTROCUTE HIM LIKE THAT FUCK.

•RANDY WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN LOCA

•Love the umbrella stab but was the outfit really necessary, like she's in the closet between phone call trying to velcro up the fucking cape I'm screaming