{"id":51875,"date":"2026-02-26T12:00:25","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T17:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/?p=51875"},"modified":"2026-02-25T16:37:31","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T21:37:31","slug":"scream-2022-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/2026\/02\/26\/scream-2022-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Scream [2022]"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Woodsboro’s murderous history returns as a new Ghostface targets two sisters in Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett’s fantastic requel Scream (V).<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Hello, Sidney\u2026 er.. Readers. Bob Here. The following review of Scream (V)<\/a> was originally posted on <\/span>CityOfGeek.com<\/span><\/a>, the site Kim, Cody, and I had until jumping over here at Cinema Crazed. For the sake of my sanity in editing, I\u2019m going to present it mostly as it is, with maybe a few touch-ups. Yes, at this point, any reader has probably seen both Scream V and VI<\/a>, but I still won\u2019t spoil. So, toss yourself back to January of 2022 for the mental state of reading my words (much more of them than normal) from back then.\u00a0 And on to the review!<\/span><\/p>\n

So, I\u2019m going to try to be vague about the details but still get the point across. I do try to do this in all my reviews, <\/span>especially for\u00a0Scream,\u00a0as the series functions as much as a murder mystery as a slasher, and I dare not tip my hand<\/span>. (Murder mystery, black-gloved killer revealed in the final act, motives often based on the repercussions of sexual violence?\u2026 is <\/span>Scream<\/span> a Giallo<\/a>?)<\/span><\/p>\n

Scream<\/span> 1996 is a very important film for me. Like many people of my age group, it was a seminal film for falling in love with the horror genre. I was 14 at the time. I enjoyed the genre, having already watched a solid amount of horror films (usually on TV, thanks to \u201cUp All Night\u201d and Joe Bob!). But Scream made me LOVE it. <\/span>Scream<\/span> turned me into a diehard horror fan as I started to fill in the missing bits of my genre knowledge the characters referenced, and then dug deeper and deeper.\u00a0 Decades later, I\u2019m not done digging that movie hole.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the Jaycees haunted house, I scared at with my friend Brian from 96 to 03; we often switched off Ghostface and Michael Myers. It was so much fun to play up the movements and actions of the characters to elicit reactions.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, yeah, <\/span>Scream<\/span> is an important movie to me.<\/span><\/p>\n

And in 2017, I was on a panel at Crypticon about the film (Matthew Lillard<\/a> was a guest that year, a heck of a nice guy), where I met Kim, and we became fast friends, and now both write and podcast here (this was in reference to City of Geek, but works for Cinema Crazed now)!<\/span><\/p>\n

The original 1996 <\/span>Scream<\/span> still holds up, after countless viewings. That it remains a cultural touchpoint is a testament to the strongly written, sharply satiric spin on slashers. <\/span>Scream<\/span> reflected the teens of that day, the first generation to grow up with cable TV and VHS. The back catalogs were readily available, or at least what was chosen to show. Media saturation brought a deeper understanding, left alone to soak it in or just run to Blockbuster to pick up whatever was wanted. The writing is smart. The characters are iconic. And the climax is still one of my favorites. The film has an amazing build and a weight to it. While the sequels<\/a> are fine, they were lesser, often bringing up ideas of sequels\/remakes without really following through (especially Scream 4)<\/a>. We all know how it revitalized a sagging genre.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Scream<\/span> 2022 is easily the best of the sequels. As a \u201cRequel\u201d (a term used in the film for films like itself, sequels that also essentially remake the original for a new generation), it stands as a loving tribute to the original (and nods to sequels) but also revamps the premise for today as in touch as the original was over the generation raised on VHS tapes to modern teens. Today\u2019s kids are more aware of \u201celevated horror\u201d such as <\/span>The Witch<\/a><\/span>, <\/span>The Babadook<\/span><\/a>, and Ari Aster\u2019s films; with the endless slasher series (the in-film series based on the previous murder, <\/span>Stab<\/span>, is up to its 8th installment, directed by Rian Johnson \u2013 the joke of how this one landed is barbed) regulated to barely remembered jokes. The reflection on modern culture, fans, and horror is more than mere lip service but serves the story and characters in delicious ways (and will no doubt piss off \u201cfans\u201d I\u2019m glad to piss off).<\/span><\/p>\n

Scream<\/span> 2022 follows many of the same beats of <\/span>Scream<\/span> 1996, but not completely- thankfully. Starting with a lone girl being asked trivia questions about horror to survive the night (now the questions relate to the <\/span>Stab<\/span> franchise, of course) to a bloody house party, it\u2019s familiar. But reflectively and welcomingly familiar. But as it\u2019s <\/span>Scream<\/span>, it is familiar with your familiarity. Likely the most meta of the films, it mines meta and nostalgia in thoughtful, smart manners, playing on reputations and expectations to the fullest effect. An aside: I\u2019m not one to love something purely for Nostalgic reasons.<\/span> Halloween Kills, Matrix Resurrections,<\/span> and <\/span>No Time to Die<\/span> all let me down majorly, despite my franchise appreciation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett<\/a> (also known as Radio Silence) showed in the gleefully bloody horror-comedy <\/span>Ready or Not<\/span><\/a> that they had a deft understanding of the genre with audience expectations, making them a perfect choice for the new film after Wes\u2019s death. (I\u2019m also a big fan of their V\/H\/S<\/a> segment 10\/31\/95, and Southbound<\/a>. <\/span>Devils\u2019 Due<\/span> is awful though).<\/span><\/p>\n

In<\/span> Scream<\/span>, they handle the characters\u2019 patter well and create memorable, tension-filled scare sequences. The highlight is an extended bit in a nearly empty hospital. It wouldn\u2019t be a horror hospital without being strangely devoid of staff and patients \u2013 there\u2019s a reason here, but still a favorite trope. At least it isn\u2019t a town of people screaming EVIL DIES TONIGHT a couple of hundred times chasing down someone who obviously isn\u2019t Ghostface. If nothing else, this sequence should solidify the strength of the film to viewers. But all the sequences are satisfying and fun, leaning into audience expectations to gleeful delight. The whole climax of the film literally had Kim and me squealing and cackling in delight.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>I really appreciate the simplicity of the kills. Shying away from complicated set-ups or Jason-like variety of fun weapons keeps it grounded but feels brutal, even with just a knife. The wounds are felt, and that goes a long way. The most complex is a wonderful series of set-ups and releases across a house, a favorite sequence.<\/span><\/p>\n

The pair didn\u2019t write <\/span>Scream<\/span>, with James Vanderbilt & Guy Busick taking over for series creator Kevin Williamson<\/a> (who also wrote all but part 3<\/a>). They have a variety of credits, good and bad, though outside of Busick being a co-writer on <\/span>Ready or Not<\/span>, there isn\u2019t much to indicate they\u2019d be good picks. But they were crafting a script that mostly works well, balancing the old and the new, the laughs and the scares, but ultimately delivers as a great Scream film. I do believe the twists and turns mostly add up, compared to <\/span>Scream 2 <\/span>having Mrs. Loomis and Kim\u2019s “boifrand” Timmy Oly-pants<\/a> know exactly what their victims are going to do. Not everyone, there is one HUGE \u201cwait, why?\u201d but I\u2019ll give it a pass. I give them credit, while I saw one reveal quickly, I was honestly guessing at the rest.<\/span><\/p>\n

Like other requels, a new set of characters form the backbone, with the legacy characters present to build muscle, give credence to the whole affair, but also to reinforce what worked previously and pass on to the new generation. Thankfully, the new characters aren\u2019t just analogs to the originals, mostly. And when they are very similar, it\u2019s called out in clever ways that don\u2019t just feel like lampshading. In the center is Melissa Barrera as Sam, who returns to Woodsboro after her sister Tara, current horror darling Jenna Ortega<\/a>, is attacked in the opening sequence. She brings with her a boyfriend, Richie, new favorite character actor Jack Quaid<\/a>, and they meet up with Tara\u2019s friends: ex-boyfriend but still close Wes, played by Dylan Minette, bestie Amber, future Oscar winner Mikey Madison<\/a> (this note added in 2026, I\u2019m not a psychic), twins Mindy, Jasmin-Savoy Brown, & Chad, the effortlessly charming Mason Gooding, and Chad\u2019s girlfriend Liv, played Sonia Ammar. Barrera is a little wooden, and Madison reads off, but Brown and Ortega almost steal the whole show away to balance it out. One issue is that the side characters vanish from the narrative for a long time while Sam and Richie investigate on their own. I wanted more of them!<\/span><\/p>\n

The returning main three in Sidney, Gale Weathers, and Dewey Riley, played as always by Neve Campbell<\/a>, Courtney Cox<\/a>, and David Arquette,<\/a> along with Scream 4\u2019s Judy, are used well, neither feeling like extended cameos nor overshadowing the new characters. They serve a purpose and do so well.<\/span><\/p>\n

Scream<\/span> 2022 builds on the impact of <\/span>Scream<\/span> 1996 (and to a lesser degree the sequels) for my first \u201cI love this!\u201d film of 2022. It\u2019s a great update to the formula, reflecting on the series\u2019 legacy, brushing against the modern era. It delivers on what the audience wants without resorting to poor fan service. The attacks and sequences around them are tense and often brutal. A fine way to start the year and revisit a favorite franchise.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Woodsboro’s murderous history returns as a new Ghostface targets two sisters in Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett’s fantastic requel Scream (V).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":32,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[219,477],"class_list":["post-51875","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-movie-reviews","tag-comedy","tag-horror"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51875","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/32"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51875"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51875\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":51882,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51875\/revisions\/51882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}