Scream 2 Review

A new month a new batch of movies to talk about. We start things off with a 1997 horror film that aimed to be the best sequel in history but really landed somewhere near the bottom. While the opening sequences were quite good and the parody and horror comedy mixed well, the rest of the film fell apart, especially the last piece of the puzzle. Scream 2 hit you right up front, then left you for dead, and well...it wasn't all that good when the lights came back on.

The second film takes place around 1 year after the original film and all survivors are in this film again. This time around the characters have either exploited the murders or have tried to hide away from them. As people that were around to experience the first film start dying off, another conspiracy is afoot and everyone is suspect. In succession all the suspects are cornered and proven not to be the killer, and you suspect there might be more, considering the plot of the first film, and it all leads to one final showdown, so you'd hope.

There are a lot of different points of view in this film, and you get to look at things through all lenses. From the reporter trying to get a scoop, the former deputy trying to reprove himself, to the main character "Sidney" who is just trying to get away from the murderous rampage. ALl in all it's not a terrible film, and like I said in the opening paragraph, it works well for what it is; a parody of horror not necessarily pure horror.

The classic cliche lines from Jamie Kennedy are here, and the body count is higher, the rules are a bit shaken, and the killer is a lot tougher to kill. But when the movie ends up in a theater where art is imitating life, you get bored and tired. The killer is stupid, you end up hating the film because of the lame ending, but hey, it's an ending none the less.

There's not a lot in the way of gore, although there are some points of interest, but not too gruesome. There are no major sex scenes that I can remember, and well, the whole film plays off as a comedy rather than a horror gem. It really doesn't do the first film justice at all.

Is Scream 2 a Scary Film?: No.

This movie failed to move me. The only cool part of the film is the beginning. Jada Pinkett and Omar Epps getting mopped up while a major movie premiere is going on is classic. I loved it. Other than that? I didn't really think this film had the credibility or the prowess that the first film had. Sure it has the name, but it fails to rise to the level of the first and is once again one of those terrible second films in a trilogy...but then again, they're making a fourth film...ouch.

Wes Craven does a good enough job with the pacing, and I wasn't completely bored with the film. I've seen better sequels, and while this film felt more like a "tales from the crypt" episode, it still manages to pack a punch, then again, the ending comes back to haunt me. I hated that part. I am not going to say this is complete garbage, but it's not exactly that great either. I'm torn, maybe you'll like it, maybe you won't. It's no original, that's for sure.