Wes Craven’s “Scream” series has always been first a slasher series, and second a movie series that comments on the horror fandom. Thankfully while Craven’s loss is still sorely felt in the overall franchise, “Scream VI” has kept much of the spirit alive. The next logical step in the franchise is pulling it out of Woodsboro and giving it a wider scope, and it does this by changing the backdrop to the big city of New York. While this would otherwise hinder the series’ development, the massive scale of New York gives “Scream” something of an automatic reset that I welcome.
Set a year after the confrontation in Woodsboro, sisters Tara and Sam Carpenter are now living in New York leading different lives. While Tara is still adamant that she has to be on guard, Sam is eager to forget what happened and start fresh. Things take a turn for the worse though when they realize they’re being stalked by a new Ghostface. This new Ghostface is more vicious and cunning than any they’ve ever encountered, and he has a score to settle with the sisters.
“Scream VI” is a great new direction for the horror series. While the long gaps in between the movies have allowed the sequels to tackle an aspect of the genre, “Scream VI” does a bang up job. This time though the writers take the chance to step back and look at the whole of the “Scream” series and dissect the current onslaught of “soft reboots” and what is regarded as “requels.” Because “Scream VI” is in and of itself a “requel” that strays further from the small town trappings of Woodsboro and ventures out in to a new hunting ground for Ghost Face. Writers James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick stage “Scream VI” as both an homage to the original prototype for “Scream” as well as the model of the modern horror franchise as a whole.
There are no more direct sequels. Now there are reboots, requels, legacy sequels, and movie universes. Understanding the structure of the film series allows the characters a chance to garner a leg up on the new Ghostface, and what the persona is planning. Directors Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin promised a leaner, meaner, and more vicious Ghostface, and they deliver in spades. This Ghostface is not above using other methods of disposal beyond the knife. There are some brutal moments involving the classic knife, but there’s also a brutal scene in a bodega, and some fun misdirection in a subway. The pair of directors stick true to the spirit of the “Scream” series while also steering everything in to the character arc of the Carpenter sisters.
Rather than the squeaky clean Sidney, we’re now faced with a new protagonist with Samantha who is a heroine constantly coming to grips with her dark side. This is a new heroine who has every potential to become a serial killer like her father, and this offers a new kind of edge that makes her more than a simple final girl. The cast are all mostly back with new additions, including the return of Kirby from “Scream IV.” Everyone is as good as ever including Melissa Barrera who injects genuine depth in to Samantha Carpenter. She carries the torch beautifully as the series’ new heroine, and I hope future sequels explore her potential for psychopathy more.
“Scream VI” is a genuinely bold and superb fresh new direction for the slasher series, and I hope it continues taking risks and holding a lens up to horror and how it tends to mirror society.