User Reviews

This was good but it lacked that Wes touch and a good story. I guessed who was ghostface in the first 10 minutes. Glad to see Dewey and the old crew back but this was OK to watch but not great.

After watching Scream 2022 (Scream 5), I'm confused as to how critics and fans are rating this film a 9 or 10 out of 10. The 1st and 2nd act worked well, the 3rd act ruined it. The conclusion felt random and unearned. Certain intentions made no sense. I also didn't appreciate the writers pretty much asking the viewers to suspend logic while watching. Whoever is placing this entry into the #2 or #3 spot of the franchise is living in La La Land.

That said, this movie opens itself up to an interesting 6th sequel if written well. Bring Kevin Williamson back to write the entire script. Bring in some more humor. Surprise me with something original.

Why "regrettably"? Because I really wanted to love this movie. I do not dislike this movie but it was not a very memorable movie experience. It was a very entertaining one, but with significantly less re-watch-ability than its predecessors. This is coming from someone who knows every shot of every Scream movie and the entire script of each, word-for-word! I did not enter the theater, expecting this one would outdo the original or be 'as good'. At the very least, I was expecting to be shocked, surprised, and dare I say even a little scared? Let me start by mentioning some of the good aspects of this movie before I briefly mention the not-so-good parts. The original trio have returned - a key ingredient for any Scream movie. The entire cast delivered great performances for the most part. The fact that they are back in Woodsboro also helps make it feel like a Scream movie. Tying the new characters' stories to the original was a great decision. There's a lot that Scream (2022) got right, but equally gets wrong as well.

The establishing shots in this movie lacked a certain cinematic quality (perhaps a shortage of wide-angle lenses?). We were previously treated to an array of wide angles and beautiful crane shots to give the audience a sense of the environment (location and scale). Before we entered Casey Becker's house in Scream (1996), we are shown the front and back yard with a low hanging, creeping mist. We know the house has a pool and a tire swing and that the house is fairly isolated. These kind of shots are sadly missed here. Instead you may ask yourself "where am I?" Showing the audience entries and exits (or lack of) could have added to a sense of dread and suspense. Scream (2022) needed to take a moment to breathe, paint a more complete picture, and allow its audience to absorb some ambience. The third act at the original Scream house felt rushed and each shot was very tightly cropped on the actor's faces. I would have loved to see more of the house in these shots (in the backgrounds) and I feel like the opportunity to do some interesting call-backs to the original set was missed here. This movie thinks it had its audience outsmarted with the 'big reveal', but it truly lacked the element of surprise here - it was more of a "I knew it" than a "I can't believe it".

Marco Beltrami's colourful and beautifully terrifying music cues were sorely missed in this movie. Instead we have to endure a cluster of strings in disarray, bunched up with out-of-place cymbal crashes (from a circus?). The score felt disjointed with no real theme carrying through. Almost as though someone was behind the curtain saying "okay, now give me sad strings".

I really wanted to like this movie more than I do. Would I recommend watching it? Absolutely, yes! In spite of its shortcomings, Scream (2022) is a fun ride. But if you are expecting to be left even a little scared, you will be disappointed. You might not even exceed your normal resting heart rate.

Would I watch it a second time? Yes, I would. A third time? Probably not. And I think that's where this sequel (or "requel") is fundamentally different. It is not the type of movie you would eagerly revisit each year around Halloween. The treats it serves are just not good enough to want a third helping.

Scream 1 set the benchmark for the horror films of today. And the franchise continued reaching its peak in scream 2. The 3rd and 4th films did not disappoint but they weren't as good as the first 2. Watching scream 5, I can definitely state that Wes craven would be proud and that this film does match up to the first film. However, the entire film builds up a lot of momentum only for the fans to be left disappointed with the ending. Maybe I speak for myself, but the ending is the reason why I gave the score that I have. Nonetheless it's still a thrilling film, and I would recommend people go and watch it.

I honestly don't understand all this enthusiasm and I find it ABSURD to say that this is the best after the first one, this is the worst of the saga, it's not terrible, it's really a watchable movie and that's it, the plot is weak, the killer and above all his motivations are ridiculous, this is definitely the worst Ghostface of the saga, in the end the film is saved for the level of violence and a couple of giveaways here and there but the first 4 films of Wes were something else.

If you love Scream, you will love this.

This movie is so self aware and nostalgic to the original, definitely one of my favourites.

It lived up to my expectations and delivered a jaw dropping film full of gore and suspense! - with a great addition of humour in the mix too.

Although some of the cast members acting was not on par with some of the legacy cast, I still felt it definitely added to the self aware nature.

The pace is great and the whodunnit story kept me guessing.

This movie definitely upped the gore in comparison to previous additions in the franchise, but I'm not mad. It was done tastefully, and added to the shock factor.

If you are not familiar with the previous instalments, I feel you might still enjoy this movie, but definitely not as much ad you would had you watched the original. Scream 2, 3 & 4 do not necessarily need to be viewed to watching this one.

Not since Scream 3, a Scream film is as funny as this. I mean, of course, the fandom passionately hates Rian Johnson's Stab 8.

While the self-referential elements can be overdone sometimes, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett clearly love and understands the franchise well since we can feel it throughout the entire film.

The social commentary might not be as sharp as previous films and the script was sporadically clunky, but Scream is bloody good fun.

The new characters were delightful. Still, must admit the film comes livelier when the legacy characters appear on screen, although they tend to be positioned as supporting roles only.

Ghost face once again terrorises Woodsboro, faces old and new.

I went in with fairly low expectations, and came out of the cinema feeling thoroughly entertained. It wasn't perfect, but it was a very good installment, it managed to pack a lot in to what by today's standards is a moderate running time (refreshing not to be sat for 2.5 hours!)

Let's begin with the two best elements for me, firstly the visuals, this movie looks terrific, some gorgeous shots, those behind the camera did a tremendous jobs. Secondly, the horror element, they managed to surprise you constantly, you didn't know when the next scare was coming, good fun for those that love jump scenes.

Nostalgia seems to be the order of the day in films for 2021/2022, and if you're a fan of the first few, there is a lot here to enjoy. They really do pay homage to the first one. A good awareness of where the film sits in the franchise history, and some nice commentary.

Slightly more serious than the last few, don't expect the humour from years gone by, there isn't much of it.

I'm reminded of the Halloween reboot, it's a quality film, that embraces its past, but offers something new as well.

I thoroughly enjoyed it, 8/10.

A nice touch regarding Wes.

This film is a slasher that requires you to turn your brain off. It is silly at times, and the plot is just very unlikely. It may be alright to kill some time with it.

So nowadays Hollywood is devoid of ideas, either remakes, new versions or anniversary rehashes seem more common than new films, horrors especially have declined as people seem scared to push the actual limit of what will or won't offend the new weak generation.

Scream is a classic, obviously not talking Oscar level etc but it's a classic franchise with a good following and a recognisable legendary mask.

This film tries to break the fourth wall like deadpool but if it's possible they're actually in door 74 as it's just cringey self aware nonsense. Explaining why and who and linking it was so lazy, it could've been literally written by a child. It's just not really a new film in the real sense.

What's ironic is it isn't clever or witty and it's actually just a bit of a shame, a lot of below par acting, too many cliche acknowledgements to catch out the audience and the same tired super loud sounds to get jump scares rather than doing anything actually scary.

The acting was abysmal, the story was a weak re hash trying to appeal to the current stupid generation. The injuries and recovery were inconsistent and ridiculous with who can deal with pain etc.

It was really predictable to, it wasn't even a swerve it was like yeah it's obviously you guys, I mean duh!

Stop ruining franchises by appealing to a generation who don't appreciate anything and think a hair cut last week was retro. It's weak, disappointing and too self aware to be entertaining.

It was slow,dull, predictable, did make a couple of attempts at gory kills but nothing that was creative or dramatic.

Do not understand the high score except it was a blast to see ghost face again.

Lazy. Pointless. Arrogantly self indulgent, appeals to the social media morons and not true fans. Acknowledging the scream logic to then do it worse is just ridiculous.

"You know that part in horror movies?"

Multiple times in this new Scream, a character shouts that statement and goes ahead to fulfill the expectation, such as answering the phone only to be confronted by a very bad voice that has wielded a knife or two in his time or going alone into a basement. So goes this successful requel or remake or reboot or sequel, whatever, to the 1996 Wes Craven slasher monument, Scream. Only no Wes this fifth time, and no problem this time.

Not only is Scream an enjoyable horror movie on its own, but it also enfolds other slashers like Halloween with a deft touch by directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett and writers James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick. Scream lampoons the slasher genre, with its ready-made tropes, in a way that freshens the genre while still being slavishly derivative.

It's a meta-take on the endurance and popularity of films that titillate and horrify while they induce appreciative laughs, just as my buds and I screamed out in delight in an almost empty auditorium (it was matinee and COVID time, after all).

Solidifying the connection with past Screams and other relics is the return of immortal players like Neve Campbell as heroine Sidney Prescott, Courtenay Cox as TV anchor Gale Riley, and David Arquette as former-sheriff Dewey Riley. These three veterans show the skills of seasoned actors, by contrast with the much greener slasher fodder like sisters Tara (Jenna Ortega) and Sam (Melissa Barrera). The vets viscerally connect the past to the present.

The meta-satire of the genre and mixing time and formula could have been overly complicated but turns out to be a felicitous gathering reminding us of "elevated" horror classics like The Babadook.

Have fun with family and friends at your local theater. Don't be afraid--Scream (2022) makes you anxiously await the next ingenious requel: "Would you like to play a game?"

Right off the bat, I hate the title. It should've been called Scream 5 or 5cream or Scream Again or Screams or Another Scream or Scream! Or Screamer or Screamier or Screamiest. This trend of naming the long-overdue/nostalgia-bait follow-up by its franchise's first film title is a TERRIBLE trend. Yeah, I'm talking about you, Halloween (2018,) Candyman (2021) and The Thing (2011.)

That said, I see why they did it. This is the very first Scream movie that 100% didn't feel like a Scream movie. You can truly see and feel the departure of Wes Craven, even with all the references made to him and his movies. Despite this being in direct continuity to the previous 4 movies, this felt like the Casino Royale, Halloween (2007 & 2018) or Superman Returns of the series.

Take that for what it's worth to you. Now, it has all the beats of the series, include the usual suspects/stars and what you'd expect from the Meta Horror Film Series. But the way it was shot, scored and edited, it's clear the crew wanted to make their own movie and was forced to include the goods.

Speaking of which - I actually didn't like how it was shot. Way too many closeups and very few wide shots. I prefer those, especially on the big screen. I understand a lot of this was to cause tension and hide big reveals. Sadly, the trailer already spoiled most of the surprises. I do my best to never watch trailers. Unfortunately, sometimes they're wrongfully thrown into my face and it ALWAYS spoils the movies, including the very end.

A new group of "kids" very much linked to the Original movie start getting knocked off one by one and the survivors need help from some familiar faces to resolve the murders.

Wow, sounds like I just described the last 3 sequels. And I did.

As previously mentioned, this is as Meta as possible. Much like The Matrix Resurrections from last month or Ghostbusters Afterlife the month prior. In fact, they all could be watched back-to-back-to-back for how incredibly similar they are, despite being from three separate genres. You'd be shocked with how restrained all three movies were when it comes to the actors NOT looking directly into the camera as the scripts were written as a conversation with the viewers/fans.

I liked it. But, it's definitely my 4th favorite Scream. That said, I think after repeat viewings or Screamathons, it may increase in ranking. I did like how real it felt as the others always felt very fictional. And by "real," I mean comparatively speaking. This is like all the other Screams where extreme coincidences have to happen in order for Ghostface's plans to work, but this felt more like a movie than just a Popcorn Horror Movie. (NO disrespect to the other Scream movies. I really liked how those were shot/felt. And like Superman 1-5 and Man of Steel, I liked both extremely different methods.)

I recommend it, especially to fans. I don't normally get choked up with nostalgia as it's so incredibly overused these days. Scream (2022) DID make me cry at one point.

You cannot do wrong here and it fits very nicely with 1, 2 and 4. I'm still trying to pretend #3 didn't happen.

***

Final Thoughts: I guessed the killer immediately in this movie. That's a first for me as I am literally a terrible guesser. I was so proud of myself when I tagged who Ghostface was like 10 minutes into the film.

Here's my ranking. Not hard; there are only 5 movies, despite this title:

1. Scream (1996)

2. Scream 2

3. Scre4m

4. Scream (2022)

99. Scream 3.

The fifth installment of the Scream franchise is part continuation of the story of Sid Prescott, part commentary on fans who get angry about the unexpected directions that franchises take. I enjoyed it.

Set a decade after the last film in the franchise, this film is a little bit meta, a little bit nostalgic and a lot of fun. Using proven formulas, and franchise favorites, this movie will appeal to both horror movie buffs and a new generations of fans. The blending of legacy characters and a new Woodsboro clique, is a little farfetched however the chemistry amongst the cast overshadows minor plot discrepancies. This movie may make you cry, will make you laugh, and there'll be at least one good jump scare for even the most seasoned of horror viewers. I also appreciated the Easter eggs which are abundant throughout the film. This movie doesn't take itself too seriously, and the viewer shouldn't either. Just sit back, enjoy the ride, and ask yourself "Do you like scary movies?"

The fifth installment in the "Scream" franchise is soft but good, it is due to nostalgia and happiness to see Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox and David Arquette together again and playing their iconic characters. As a fan of "Scream" and as a 30-year-old who grew up watching this franchise, I am happy with the result. The script is not very original and uses the scenes tributes to the original film and its sequels, as well as other slasher films, becoming repetitive on many occasions. The producers and writers did not learn from the mistakes of other films in the genre: not killing any of the protagonists ("Halloween: Resurrection" made it clear that it was an unforgivable mistake). The good side is that the death scenes are more explicit and the suspense factor is present. The reappearances of characters from other films in the franchise have their pros and cons: some are welcome and others are unnecessary or stupid. The murderers in this fifth installment are fledgling (but much improved compared to how ridiculous the murderers in part four were). The best part was seeing the original "Scream" leads together again and Melissa Barrera as the new final girl is refreshing and plays her character well. A soft but good movie that brings nostalgia.

Wes Craven's '90s cult horror film "Scream" (1996) was a groundbreaking flick that set numerous trends for the future of the horror genre. It was charming, well-acted and coherent, so it was also simply well-written. The first two sequels were good sequels that were fun, managed to keep a lot of the charm of the original and played a game with the endless sequels that were made in that period of horror classics and today have their very peculiar, but quite nice pop cultural value. The last part of the grand master came years later. "Scream 4" (2011) was not quite in the jolt of the original, and incidentally designed as such, trilogy, but was still entertaining and the signature of the director was still noticeable and valuable. Seven years after Wes Craven's death, the franchise is now being driven to the wall by insanely arrogant film producers and the woke age along with its concomitants of lack of respect and lack of originality of its own.

But from the beginning. The new Scream film claims to be a "Requel", as it also certainly does not forget to mention permanently in the film in clumsy reference to the self-irony of the original. A "Requel", we are instructed in the film, is a mixture of a sequel and a remake. So far so good, but more on that later.

The film actually begins in the classic Scream style and fulfills the one pole of the remake quite alright: an initial murder, which however remains only a murder attempt, the establishment of a circle of friends, (apparent) love for horror films and slasher moments, which now already obviously should not come up short. Then the other pole of a "Requel" comes into play: Connections to the previous parts are built up, old characters are introduced and the myth is dug into as if one were a mole. So it comes out that apparently everything revolves around the previously unknown child of Loomis, one of the two killers from the first part. A classic movie flow is unwound, with allusions to the horror movie world, a classic story progression, and even painfully foreseeable plot developments. As I said, so far so good.

As a viewer, you realize that while the weakest film in the series is taking place before your very eyes here, you still don't get the impression that this part was actually going to be particularly bad either. But to err is human, and trusting modern Hollywood productions is about as appropriate for one's health as stabbing one's heart with a long kitchen knife. The finale of the film should become the confirmation of this thesis and concomitantly the destruction of the preceding 85 minutes. Here the filmmakers, i.e. Screenwriters, directors and producers, seem to have succumbed to a premonition that their film would fail. But this lack of self-confidence on the part of the uncreative rascals was simply passed off, and such a thing is increasingly easy to do these days, in an age of wokeness, the desire for dead discourse, and the lack of ability for one's own self-criticism. Once again, the fans of the original and its successors were identified as the world devourers of modern cinematic art, i.e. Those who always raised a franchise to the Everest that today's uncreative filmmakers keep trying to blow up.

The finale of "Scream" (2022) pursues the thesis that those fans are always the branches in the gears of the bicycle ridden by the well-heeled and only ever demanding Hollywood aristocrats of today. Those fans who make up the very largest part of a potential audience, and who so far seem to have only made the mistake of passionately liking a franchise. The "Scream" franchise is one such franchise that has been kept alive by such fans, fans who are now portrayed as potentially insane murderers in this new installment. At the same time, they are still too dumb to understand modern movies, such as "The Babadook" (2014), and the derivation for this is that they - watch out, cleverness afoot - are into movies like "Scream" (1996), i.e. Those stupid and bad horror movies.

This is admittedly explained in a - attention - "Requel" by just such a luminary of that time. Well, thank you!

The whole thing could have been made humorous and more all-encompassing, perhaps in such a way that modern Woke society gets at least a bit of fat in a reflected way - then you could have taken it self-ironic - but one-sided moralizing of people, the basic ideas of democracy, discussion and the freedom of art is no fun. It's only through the finale that small points in the film that you could have simply overlooked before also start to bother you, but in the retrospective, i.e. After the final viewing of the film, this no longer seems possible. The disrespectful treatment of Dewey (David Arquette), for example, the clumsy man-bashing, i.e. The right-around variant of sexism in the 21st century, and a half-dozen other pandering to a Twitter community, which is 90% sure not a dollar for a tickets to see this film are simply too much of a bad thing. In the end, postulating that the film was made "For Wes" is probably no longer just questionable after having constantly ridiculed one's craft.

Those responsible should be ashamed of this film, but since shame obviously hardly seems to be a thing these days, that's not to be expected either way. Just as little as good counter-arguments from those who refuse to communicate and the modern Lancelots of discourse killers. In such a structure one does not need to mention any names. As is well known, fans of 90s horror wrote them on murder slips anyway and exchange them full of hatred in forums in order to throw branches that break the neck of modern film art into the bicycle spokes. Irony off. But irony also seems to be one of those great things that are almost completely lost these days, so what the heck.

Arrogant, stupid and certainly without such "unfashionable" values as respect and discourse skills.

Right off the bat I have to say, this is about as perfect of a sequel as I can remember. I had a smile on my face for most of the movie, except the parts where my jaw dropped. High-quality filmmaking all around.

They managed to make a fresh new entry in the franchise while somehow keeping the same feel as the originals. Everything feels natural, nothing feels forced. You would think the meta aspect is old by now, but nothing feels old if it's done well. It has one of the most meta scenes in movie history, and I loved it. It's funny, awesome and creepy, constantly keeping you at the edge of your seat.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but this fifth entry in the franchise is my favorite. I liked them all except for Scream 3, but this feels better in so many ways.

The writing is extremely clever, to the point where it feels like they're toying with the audience, and the audience likes it! No more stupid character decisions like the previous sequels. In fact, there are numerous moments where the characters do the smartest thing possible.

But what's the biggest improvement? The kills in this movie are all brutal. If there was a Scream kills ranking, this movie would have almost every top spot. It made me so happy (what does that say about me? Lol).

I had a blast with this movie. I can't wait to watch it again. Other writers, directors and studios need to study this case and apply it to all future sequel attempts. This is how it's done.

Edit: I watched it again before it left UltraScreen. I had the entire theater to myself :)

When it comes to mysteries, you worry that the second time around won't be nearly as good. But I liked it even better. I noticed so many things. All of the brutal kills still made my jaw drop and the big moments still gave me the feels.

This movie is so fast-paced. It's almost two hours long but flies by because it's filled with story and kills. I complain about so many movies because not enough happens, there isn't much movie "substance." In this movie, stuff happens. A lot.

They did an amazing job with making Ghostface such an intimidating presence. Every time Ghostface is on the screen, the movie gives you the feeling, "yes, it's time to poop your pants."

In the original Scream, there a references to so many older horror classics. Most of them were before my time. In this requel, they once again reference so many great horror movies from the last 10 or so years. And I've seen EVERY SINGLE ONE and loved most of them. I am able to enjoy the celebration of horror movies presented in this chapter much more than in the original. (3 viewings, opening Thursday UltraScreen 1/13/2022, UltraScreen 1/31/2022, 3/7/2023)

I had such high hopes and expectations but they were absolutely demolished due to the storyline, acting and most importantly the ending! The killer reveal was an absolute joke, my girlfriend and I predicted who it might have been almost immediately.

The best part of the film was the brutal murders, the gore was the best out of the whole franchise. I could have made a much better killer reveal and done a much better storyline, it felt rushed and didn't feel like there was an actual plan for the movie.

If there is a Scream 6 or another "scream" I hope the director's read through these reviews and make it exactly how the fans want it, no messing around and no trying to be different, just stay true to the director's.

Not any good? There are a few (A FEW) scenes that are a bit (A BIT) thrilling... BUT

The bad: this is a snoozefest, a sleeping pill. NO horror, NO real suspense, only a few (A FEW) bloody knife cut scenes, that's all folks.

More bad: the leading actresses in this movie are totally bland and lacking charisma.

It didnt help the movie either by reintroducing the old (good) actors, because they look lost in this movie now they are this old.

Better watch one of the old editions, because this sequel is quite a bummer.

I never learn. I attend a teen slasher movie and expect grown-up entertainment. Instead, I get an implausible plot, inane dialogue, lots of non sequiturs and, save for the adults in the cast, laughable acting.

Why do I do this? I thought this one might be a cut above the norm. Speaking of cuts, the picture is awash in blood and cutlery which may satisfy some percentage of the audience. At one point, one actor says to another, you shouldn't be here. The other answers, you shouldn't, either. Make that three of us.

**** 4 stars - website no longer prints my star rating.