Growing up, I was a big fan of the horror/slasher trilogy, Scream. So naturally when Scream 4, the latest installment in the saga, was released I was one of the first in line to see it. With Halloween just days away, it is the perfect movie for a Collegiette™ scary movie marathon. Scream 4 is a new release on Netflix and RedBox, just in time for Halloween.
The latest addition to the series picks up ten years after the events of Scream 3. Sidney Prescott, the protagonist and prevailing target of the series, has recovered from her traumatic past and managed to move on with her life by writing a novel about her experiences. She returns to her hometown for a book signing and it is not long before her past returns to haunt her. During the book signing, she is informed by Dewey that the horrendous murders have begun again by a new masked killer.
The movie plays on the horror film stereotype, as a movie recreation of the events of the first three movies in the series have been made into horror films that the high schoolers in the movie watch religiously each Halloween. However, there is a new twist; along with the new digital, tech-savvy generation that has replaced Sidney’s generation, comes to the technology for the killer to be sicker than ever. Webcams enable the masked slasher to share their murders with everyone on the web via a live feed, making the killings more sadistic than ever.
Neve Campbell returns in the horror flick as the cunning and stronger than ever Sidney, along with familiar faces David Arquette as Dewey Riley and Courtney Cox as Gale Weathers-Riley. Newcomer Emma Roberts takes over as lead of the movie, playing Sidney’s resentful cousin, Jill Roberts. Hayden Panettiere rounds out the cast as long-surviving friend of the psychotic victim-turned-killer, playing horror film buff, Kirby Reed.
I was impressed at the series’ transition from the 1990s to now. It has been fifteen years since the first Scream film was released, and Scream 4 builds on the timelessness of the franchise. The events of the first three movies are shown through the fictional series Slasher in the movies, allowing viewers to reminisce on the older flicks, while ushering in a new generation that are watching the movies in the film.
Collegiettes™ who appreciate horror/thriller films should check Scream 4 out. A Scream marathon would be the perfect way to celebrate this Halloween; just remember to lock your windows!