PopHorror Let's Get Scared
What’s your favorite scary movie?
This question is an easy one for me, that’s for sure… the answer is 1996’s Scream: the horror movie with rules that breaks all the rules at the same time. Scream brought back the slasher genre from the dead along with, in my opinion, the horror genre in general.
From the brilliant mind of the late, great horror movie director Wes Craven and the amazing screenwriter Kevin Williamson, Scream is an incredible film with an all-star cast. When this trailer was released in 1996 – yes, 20 years ago – people didn’t know what to think. To them, it seemed this movie was DOA. Little did they know that Wes Craven had done it again. He revamped the horror genre into this incredible masterpiece that no one ever saw coming, creating a movie that was well aware of its own genre and ended up grossing over a hundred million dollars at the box office. The script itself, written by Williamson, was originally titled Scary Movie and was completely written in just three days. After a bidding war, the film was sold to Miramax in one day.
There are so many reasons to love this film; everything from the quotes, the kills and the soundtrack make Scream a horror masterpiece. The scariest part about this film is its believability – this could really happen! These were relatable teenagers who watched scary movies with their friends when their parents weren’t home, all while dealing with the pressures of teen sex, the loss of a parent and an unflappable Principal Himbry (Henry Winkler).
Scream opens with teenage girl Casey Becker (Drew Barrymore) popping popcorn. When her phone rings, she picks it up and starts talking to an unfamiliar voice. (Fun fact: Drew never actually met the Voice on the Phone, Roger Jackson, but while filming she was actually talking to him so her reactions were very real.) She tells him he has a wrong number and hangs up. When he calls back, she takes the bait and starts humoring him with a conversation which kicks off the best opening scene of a horror movie I have ever had the pleasure to watch. It quickly goes from light conversation to a terrifying, manipulative game that leaves you breathless, your heart hammering.
Having a big name like Barrymore play the role of Casey was an unexpected move by Craven – and then to kill her off in the first five minutes! People were left speechless. I can attest to that fact. Every single time I watch this scene, it gives me the chills.
As for the girl next door, Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), the mystery seems to revolve around her and her mother’s murder. Some in town think she falsely accused Cotton Weary (Live Schreiber), sending him to prison for murdering her mother, Maureen. Now that the murders seem to have started again, even she isn’t so sure. One thing we do know and love about Sidney is that she hates clichés, saying, “Some stupid killer stalking some big-breasted girl who can’t act who is always running up the stairs when she should be running out the front door… It’s insulting.”
No worries, though, Sid. We totally forgive you for running up the stairs and not going out the bedroom window. That’s just one of the things that make this movie so great – it can make fun of itself and still be flipping scary! Neve Campbell stated that she took this role because she wanted to work with Wes. Thank you, Neve. My life would not have been the same these past twenty years if the role had gone to someone else. Besides, who wouldn’t want to work with the horror master Wes Craven?
Who can forget the slutty yet witty Tatum Riley (Rose McGowan) who bit the dust in the garage doggy door? Did this scene have everyone talking or what? You’ve got to give the girl credit for trying. “Please don’t kill me, Mr. Ghostface! I wanna be in the sequel!” Hence, how the name Ghostface got coined. Not only the wit but the actual attempt to make it out of the garage. I know I was sitting there thinking, “Maybe she can actually get through that doggy door…” Not the case – but what a hell of an attempt, making this in my top five horror deaths of all time.
You can’t have a horror film without the nerdy, know-it-all guy who never gets the girl. Jamie Kennedy as Randy Meeks was perfect casting for this role, especially when he gives the audience his set of Rules:
1. You can never have sex
2. You can never drink or do drugs
3. Never say “I’ll be right back,” because you won’t be back.
However, all three of these rules were broken yet some people survived, which is awesome! Rules are meant to be broken! The one rule Randy did have right was that the killer always comes back for one last scare… His clever puns and his believable love for horror made this movie even more epic.
What’s a great horror movie without some eye candy? Hello, Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich)! As sick and twisted as his pick lines were, who wouldn’t not want to lose their V-card to that? Although it worked later in the movie… fellas, take notes!
A worthy sidekick, Stu Maucher (Matthew Lillard) succumbed to peer pressure and was afraid that his parents were going to be mad at him, which makes you just love him even more. He also confessed to always having a thing for Sid. Did everyone in this movie just want some of her or what?
Two of my absolute faves from Scream are the bitchy Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) and the goofy Deputy Dewey Riley (David Arquette). Their chemistry was so on point that they actually fell in love on this set. I can honestly tell you that when they got divorced in real life, I was crushed! However, they did come back for Scream 4 (2011) and I can live out my love vicariously through Gale and Dewey. You can see that the whole cast just gelled. Courteney once said that she had to fight to get the part of Gale because of the bitch factor. The filmmakers thought she may have been too nice to play Gale since her character on Friends was so sweet. Well, Courteney, I think it’s safe to say that you can out bitch us all! Surprisingly, Dewey was originally supposed to be a hunk, but when David was going to audition, he told Wes that he should take the deputy in another direction. It worked so freaking well.
The big reveal at the end of the film is one of the biggest climaxes in horror movie history. Who really suspected two killers? Not this girl! But man, did I have fun guessing who the killer could possibly be. As Randy stated, “Everybody’s a suspect!” I actually started thinking it could have even been Fred the Janitor (Wes Craven in cameo and dressed as Freddy Krueger). Why not, right?
This movie was really a team collaboration. Every role was vital into making Scream the best horror film in the ‘90s and possibly ever! It started with a phone call and ended in a blood bath. The music also made this movie, with Red Right Hand, Youth of America and the ending credits song, “Whisper to a Scream,” just tying everything together so perfectly.
Fun fact: the house where the party was shot actually had two people die in it, so the cast believed it to be haunted. Boo!
There are not enough words in the English language to describe how much I love every aspect of Scream. What I can say is that I have never appreciated a film so much and what it did for the horror genre. R.I.P., Wes Craven. You are a true horror legend and may your movies continue to haunt and terrify every generation, keeping people screaming for decades to come.
