BLERD AT THE MOVIES
Just because you leave Woodsboro doesn't mean Ghostface will leave you alone...
Welcome to Blerd at the Movies, where I share what movies I've been watching in theaters (when it's safe to do so) or at home while socially distancing during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
In today's edition: Ghostface returns for another a game of hack-and-slash -- this time with the four survivors of 2022's revival/sequel. Directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (two-thirds of the filmmaking collective Radio Silence) bring the bloody action down to New York City, bringing together familiar faces and new suspects/victims to face down the franchise's goriest and vengeful Ghostface to date. Read on to find out if Scream VI is a Broadway baby or a big-time flop. (Oh, and just so you know: there's no spoilers for Scream VI here... but there are some spoilers for Scream (2022), so I suggest you watch both before reading this one. Don't say I didn't warn you.)
​Title: Scream VI
Where to Watch: Paramount Plus The Pitch: Following the latest spree of Ghostface killings, Woodsboro's newest generation of survivors -- sisters Sam (Melissa Barrera) and Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega, Wednesday) and siblings/Tara's high school friends Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown, Yellowjackets) and Chad Meeks-Martin (Mason Gooding) -- decide to relocate to New York City for a fresh start. Tara, Mindy, and Chad start college and attempt to move on from the traumatizing events of last year, while Sam is haunted by what has happened, leading her to become a helicopter older sibling in the hopes of protecting the kids from Ghostface and, maybe, her own haunted family legacy. Unfortunately, leaving Woodsboro does not stop a new Ghostface from emerging. What results is a gory trip through New York City that reunites the Core Four with erstwhile reporter/true crime writer Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) and former survivor Kirby Reed (Hayden Paniettiere), leading all of them to band together and put an end to this new series of Ghostface killings once and for all. CONTENT WARNING
The following review contains mentions of intimate partner violence; conversations surrounding abuse and survivors of abuse; the #MeToo landscape; patriarchal misogyny; and the exploitative nature of true crime media. If any of these topics trigger you, I encourage you to take precautions before reading.
​Do not feel ashamed for prioritizing yourself; your mental health matters.
Ghostface takes a ride on the subway in this year's Scream VI. (Paramount Pictures/Spyglass Media Group | 2023)
I should start by saying that Scream is one of my favorite movies of all time. When I was a teenager dipping my toes into the horror genre (and seeking out media that was a little more "mature" than what my peers were watching), 1996's Scream was a common title listed on a few of the 'gateway to horror movies'-type lists I searched for online. The moment its iconic opening sequence began, I was hooked -- and I've been hooked ever since.
We've been in the middle of a classic horror reboot era for awhile now, but it's kicked into high-gear in recent years. Before we'd get a reboot or remake every once in a while (e.g. 2005's House of Wax; 2006's When a Stranger Calls; 2010's A Nightmare on Elm Street), but, now, Hollywood is serving them up like hotcakes almost every year. Truth be told, I'm not very judgmental about reboots and remakes. I'm an opportunist (to a fault), so I tend to be optimistic about a reboot or remake regardless of the genre it falls in. Alas, you can only be scarred too many times before you become jaded, and horror is no exception. Thanks to films like Black Christmas (2019), Evil Dead (2013), and the entire Halloween 40 trilogy (2018-2022), I tend to side-eye classic horror reboots and remakes now, especially since a number of them seem determined to tarnish the legacy of their beloved origins and the appeal of their respective franchises (and, by extension, mid to big-budget horror offerings). ​Scream (2022), the long-awaited fifth entry in Kevin Williamson and the late Wes Craven's game-changing franchise, however, was a refreshing change of pace. A funny, tense, and satisfying reboot (or "requel," as Jasmin Savoy Brown's Mindy calls it) set eleven years after the gory, cynical, and mean-spirited Scream 4 (the less we talk about that, the better off we'll all be), successfully bridged the gap between the original films and this new cast of characters and stories to kick off a new phase of bloody, slasher-whodunnit tales set in the cursed town of Woodsboro, Calif. Although the film is critiqued for banking too heavily on the nostalgic return of Ghostface and the OG trio of survivors (Neve Campbell's ever-resilient Sidney Prescott, Courteney Cox's ruthlessly ambitious Gale Weathers, and David Arquette's disarmingly heroic Dewey Riley), Scream (2022) doesn't completely overindulge in nostalgia in the way other major franchises (i.e. Star Wars) have and continue to do today in media. In the hands of new directors Matt Bertinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (Ready or Not), Scream '22 was a successful reboot that seamlessly reintroduced Woodsboro and Ghostface to a cinema landscape where horror is (apparently) divided into factions like "elevated horror" and "mainstream horror" and the horror franchises of the past are being repackaged and repurposed in the hopes of creating Zoomer-era horror geeks to varying degrees of success. On the surface, Scream VI (2023) sounded like it would be the Halloween Kills of the revitalized cult horror franchise.
Meet the "Core Four." (from left to right) Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, Jasmin Savoy Brown, and Mason Gooding reprise their roles as Woodsboro's latest crop of survivors in Scream VI. (Paramount Pictures/Spyglass Media Group | 2023)
In addition to being a sequel (particularly one that follows in the footsteps of 1997's Scream 2, which sent the surviving teens of the first movie to college), Scream VI is the first film in the franchise to not feature its beloved protagonist Sidney Prescott. Before marketing or production for the film began, news broke that Neve Campbell would not return to star in this entry, seemingly ensuring the movie was fated for flop status. I'll admit, I was worried at first when I heard the news; Sidney is such an integral part of this franchise that it's hard to imagine a Scream movie without her. But after rewatching the previous entries before seeing this one, I wondered if, maybe, there could be life for the Scream franchise without Sidney.
Part of this feeling stems from the fact that Sidney's story wrapped up back in Scream 3, which finally gave her the closure that she needed, despite the film's disjointed, near-parody level tone and kills. (Unfortunately, Scream 4 walks back on this, bringing Sidney back to face off against a Ghostface that eerily predicted our current landscape of influencer culture and inconvenienced white woman syndrome, just to make a point about how reboots taint the legacy of their original movies... I guess? This article does a better job of parsing out whatever the movie was supposed to be.) Another reason for this feeling was the presence of Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega as Sam and Tara Carpenter, respectively. Scream '22 did a solid job introducing us to Sam and Tara, establishing their strained relationship, the traumas that resulted in Sam abandoning her family, and the sisters' desire to reconnect with each other in spite of what they're facing. By the end of the movie, I got the sense that the torch was truly passed, that Sidney might be able to move forward with her life once more, even if the feeling of looking over her shoulder never truly goes away. This is Sam and Tara's story now, and bringing Sidney back would have likely hindered their arcs. (With that said, I want to see Sam and Tara reunite and properly team up with Sidney one last time before the franchise takes its final bow. Hopefully, Paramount and Spyglass are able to pay Campbell what she's worth for the next film.) Scream '22 showed Sam and Tara's potential as the franchise's new Final Girls, Scream VI finally (and confidently) entrusts them with the revered title.
Let's Talk About that Opening (No Spoilers... I Promise.)
Samara Weaving as Laura Crane in Scream VI. (Paramount Pictures/Spyglass Media Group | 2023)
The opening minutes of any movie is always a litmus test for the rest of the movie -- and, by extension, the audience.
Some movies set the bar so high that the rest of the movie just can't clear it (e.g. Evil Dead (2013); Us), while others are held back by a shoddy opening scene (e.g. The Menu; Bodies Bodies Bodies; Halloween (2018)). It's difficult to tell which category Scream VI's opening falls, exactly. As a Scream fan, I already know which basic elements to expect from a Scream opening -- the unsuspecting victim; the mysterious phone call; the taunting modulated voice at the end; and, eventually, the prolonged bloodletting before the title card -- and while nothing tops expected leading lady Drew Barrymore unwittingly answering the phone back in 1996, this franchise has delivered a few memorable ones, like Jada Pinkett-Smith's Maureen attending the fatal opening night screening of Stab in Scream 2 or the mind-bending movie-within-a-movie stabbings that set the tone for Scream 4 (another example of a movie with a shocking and awesome opening that the rest of the flick can't match). Scream VI plays on the nostalgia fans of the franchise hold dear to them. Australian actress Samara Weaving, who starred in Gillett and Bettinelli-Olpin's 2019 horror-comedy smash Ready or Not, plays an innocent blonde college professor with a love for classic slasher movies and a wardrobe that somewhat calls back to both Casey Becker and Scream 2 victim Cici Cooper (played by everyone's favorite vampire slayer, Sarah Michelle Gellar); her love for slashers are apparent (as is her jadedness over teaching them to bored and snarky students), even though her date is more interested in rom-coms. Furthermore, Scream VI continues the tradition of treating the opening sequences of these movies like their own, standalone short films, achieving something specific while setting the tone for the rest of the movie -- not to mention living up to the expectations and legacies of these unique openings in the franchise. In its own way, Scream VI does that. Rather than introducing us to yet another Ghostface who is obsessed with making the real world (as it exists in these movies) a slasher movie, we get a Ghostface who gives zero fucks about cinema, and that immediately ratchets up the terror. If this Ghostface isn't interested in turning Sam and Tara into reluctant Final Girls and filleting their friends with the intent of becoming an eventual Dead Meat "Kill Count" video, then what exactly does this Ghostface want? In eliminating the movies from the potential motives list, screenwriters James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick have crafted the most unpredictable, vengeful, and terrifying Ghostface this franchise has seen so far. Succeeding in pulling that off is actually far more surprising and shocking than what the film puts Weaving and Tony Revelori (Marvel Studios' Spider-Man trilogy)'s respective characters through. While I respect what the filmmakers were trying to go for in the first half of the near-twelve minute opening scene, it simply didn't resonate with me. Others have applauded it for being bolder than the rest of the film, and I'll let them have that opinion. I can only speak for myself when I say the first twist of the opening sequence feels more at home in an episode of Columbo; that's a cozy mystery TV move, not a Scream move. The best thing the opening does with that first twist is, after giving viewers a few fleeting minutes to sit with it, hacking it up so that the real Ghostface could stand up and make their mark. If I had to compare this to other Scream flick openings, Scream VI isn't as bad as Scream 3 (which has the weakest opening, largely due to how it wastes Liev Schreiber's Cotton Weary) but it's not as inventive or compelling as Scream '96, Scream 2, or Scream 4's respective openings. If anything, Scream VI proves that, despite their ability to build up tension and suspense, Gillett and Bettinelli-Olpin have yet to master the art of a Scream opening. (But I have to admit, the second twist of the opener was a nice way to cap off the sequence.)
Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega as the Carpenter Sisters
(from left to right) Melissa Barrera as Samantha "Sam" Carpenter and Jenna Ortega as Tara Carpenter in Scream VI. (Paramount Pictures/Spyglass Media Group | 2023)
Scream '22's strongest asset was casting Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega as estranged sisters Sam and Tara Carpenter, respectively. Of all the new characters the previous installment introduced, Sam and Tara were instantly my favorites, and this was due to Barrera and Ortega's performances.
Not only were they instantly believable as sisters, but Barrera and Ortega also approached their characters not as carbon copies of various versions of our beloved Sid (Tara as the fresh-faced, still-innocent Sidney of Scream '96; Sam as the traumatized, emotionally distant Sid of Scream 3). Rather, they worked to establish Sam and Tara as singular young women who were more than just the archetype the previous entry unfairly tried to box them into. In their performances, viewers got to see there was more to Sam and Tara than the tropes attached to them, that there was still love and care between the two despite what was threatening to tear them apart. In the end, Sam and Tara came together to fight back against Woodsboro's latest Ghostface killers, and chose to move forward together. Scream VI fleshes out both sisters beyond their initial introductions and lets Sam and Tara grow further into their own women rather than as replacements for Sidney. No more is this more apparent than with Barrera's Sam, who was seemingly set up as Gen Z's Sidney (not unlike Emma Roberts' Jill back in Scream 4) -- but with an edge. As the biological daughter of the original Ghostface, Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich, who returns to creep us out -- and not in a good way -- with the same wonky, de-aging CGI from last time), Sam was clearly a traumatized young woman, and it didn't help that she had an undisclosed mental illness that caused hallucinations of her dear old dad. Scream '22 seemed to be pulling a whole "insane = violent" hat trick (which is far more dangerous than you think), and it definitely didn't help that Sam was the one who put down one half of the Ghostface duo in that movie. Thankfully, Scream VI pivots away from that angle to take Sam's trauma more seriously. Naturally, after the events of the previous film, Sam's traumas have intensified, isolating her from her sister and their friends and making her a prime target for intense media scrutiny and hatred, let alone dismissal and misunderstanding -- even by the people who endured the same hell she went through. Thanks to a steadier and stronger script, Barrera is finally able to come into her own as Sam, emerging as a complicated, paranoid woman struggling to cope healthily as she overexerts herself to protect Tara, Mindy (Brown), and Chad (Mason Gooding) from this new Ghostface. I empathized with Sam, especially since her mental health took a toll throughout the film. All she wants is a clean slate, to reconnect with her sister, and release all of the shame and anger that she has held onto, but she simply can't catch a break, let alone find a therapist that won't make her feel like shit. (More on that in a minute.) Barrera gives a confident, emotional, and compelling performance that proves that Sam Carpenter is more than just Billy Loomis's daughter. After being benched for much of Scream '22, Jenna Ortega is finally given an opportunity to shine as Tara. Like Sam, Tara is also struggling to cope healthily with the traumas of the previous year, yearning to be a normal college student rather than a victim or a survivor. Whereas Sam is stuck, Tara hits the ground running, trying to avoid the past instead of healing. Ortega conveys Tara's pain and rage convincingly, reminding the audience that Tara didn't ask to be thrust into a horror franchise; she's just a girl who has been denied the opportunity to be normal more than we thought. Alongside her performances in the sleeper horror hit X and Netflix's modernized Addams Family series Wednesday, Ortega is quickly building up her status as both a Gen Z scream queen and a talented young actress blazing a trail in the industry. I'm interested in seeing where Radio Silence takes Tara next, especially after she shows that she isn't the helpless high schooler who kept getting grievously injured in Scream '22. Together, Sam and Tara pull no punches when it comes to stopping Ghostface. Although the latest iteration of the slasher villain tries hard to break both sisters down, Sam and Tara continue to fight tooth and nail against Ghostface, proving to be just as relentless and ruthless as the killer -- and, my goodness, it is so fucking satisfying. That climactic face-off? So good.
Bring Back My (Legacy) Girls!
After a twelve-year absence, Hayden Panettiere returns as fellow Woodsboro survivor (and now FBI agent) Kirby Reed in Scream VI. (Paramount Pictures/Spyglass Media Group | 2023)
Thanks to the requel-sequel rules, Scream VI not only brings back Cox's infamous Gale Weathers (now the only character to appear in all six movies), but also fan-favorite Kirby Reed (Hayden Panettiere), who managed to survive the 2011 Woodsboro massacre and flies down to NYC to aid the Core Four in stopping the newest Ghostface.
One of the biggest complaints of the last film (that I mostly agree with) was its use -- or, in the case of Gale and Sidney, lack thereof -- of the franchise's legacy characters, who seem to only be included for the nostalgia grab. Aside from Dewey getting a proper survivor's arc, Scream '22 didn't really know what to do with its core two heroines; one could make the argument that the film didn't really need them, and that's a shame because we deserve more of Gale and Sid teaming up to take down Ghostface killers. Unfortunately, that problem continues in Scream VI. This time, Cox is ruthless as ever as Gale, with the film implying that her tendency to make money off of horrific traumas is partly responsible for the hell that the Carpenter girls (namely Sam) face in their daily lives, let alone the return of Ghostface. In fact, her actions are so treacherous that, in the middle of a long-anticipated showdown between them, Ghostface calls Gale out for monetizing trauma to stay relevant. Unfortunately, Scream VI pulls its punches with Gale, especially when it comes the subject of true crime. The Scream franchise has come back to cinemas in the midst of the modern true crime media boom, which is now facing a crisis of ethics and morality thanks to both a number of questionable projects about infamous killers and the ease with which we've become comfortable with exploiting people's trauma for clout. To some extent, these movies have paralleled the evolutions and problems of the true crime genre, from its privileging of white victims to feigning ignorance over the role noxious sociopolitical issues play in various crimes. Yet, Scream VI doesn't want to address the elephant that's been hanging in the room for six movies now: Gale Weathers is the biggest clout-chaser in horror movie history. Gale is a reflection of the true crime boom's biggest moral and ethical concerns, something this movie lays out bare through multiple characters, but it backs off of this -- likely out of fear that we won't see her as sympathetic anymore. However, I'd argue that just pulling that punch doesn't really do much for Gale's character arc overall. Scream VI reverts Gale to her worst self under the flimsy guise of grief and trauma, but does nothing to really explore how much pain Gale is in now that Dewey's gone and Sidney's sitting this one out. We get a dope showdown between Ghostface and Gale that reminds us Gale Weathers does indeed slay, but... that's not really enough. If these movies insist on bringing these characters back, then their presence needs to be meaningful. Their stories have got to serve some sort of thematic purpose, not just nostalgia bait. In addition to Gale, Kirby Reed is also underutilized. Despite her character's knowledge of Ghostface's spree killings and horror movies (which leads to a memorable exchange with Mindy over horror fandom), Panettiere is essentially here to tick the nostalgia box off the checklist. Considering her personal fight to overcome being seen as a victim and her determination to put a permanent end to the Ghostface trend once and for all, Kirby should have played a greater role in the story. Unlike Gale, Kirby's arc feels like an afterthought, and that does both the character and the actress such a great disservice. Although she imbues each scene with charm, dry humor, and ferocity, Panettiere alone can't elevate the weak material she's working with here. Gale and Kirby's return only further reinforces the fact that the franchise is in good hands with the Core Four; they don't need to rely on legacy storylines and characters to keep it alive. Maybe the next (and final?) Scream will give them -- and Sidney (fingers crossed!) -- their just due.
Y'all Mind If I Wyl Out Over the Twins Real Quick?
Nothing but respect for my favorite survivor twins.
(from L to R) Mason Gooding, Jenna Ortega, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Devyn Nekoda, and Melissa Barrera in Scream VI. (Paramount Pictures/Spyglass Media Group | 2023)
If you ask me to pick my favorite member of the Core Four, I would say Mindy and Chad Meeks-Martin. Without hesitation.
From the moment both of them were introduced in Scream '22, I instantly loved them -- even though their screen time was minimal. I got the sense that there was more to Chad than the dude-bro jock archetype he was being squeezed into, and Mason Gooding did show flickers of something more to Chad. As for Mindy, she was everything I could have ever asked for. A sardonic, stylish, and queer mixed-race Black horror geek who knew horror movies like the back of her hand -- and got to make out with a cute girl at a house party; she would have made her Uncle Randy proud. The fact that they both got to live to see the sequel was more shocking than I thought it would. Not only did the TV spots for Scream '22 show a bloodied, limping Chad trying his damndest to get away from a sprinting Ghostface (another Casey Becker callback), but the final product even showed Mindy unknowingly paying homage to her deceased uncle's unexpected attack from the original Scream. You'd think that the rise of Jordan Peele would cause me to breathe a little bit easier whenever I see a Black person in a horror movie, but, unfortunately, the exact opposite has happened. With each successful horror movie Peele makes, along comes an army of imitators that seem to enjoy inflicting Black trauma, death, and/or gratuitous injury (and respectability politics) on its characters -- and audience -- more than making a good horror movie that just happens to have Black people in it. (see: Antebellum; Bad Hair) Yet, Mindy and Chad survived the previous movie, making them the first pair of Black characters to survive a Ghostface massacre -- with Mindy being the first out, mixed-race Black, queer woman to make it out alive in the franchise. In Scream VI, Mindy and Chad remain the same charming, lovable, and emotionally healthy pair of siblings audiences met in the first movie, but they take on slightly expanded roles in this one. As a result, Mason Gooding gets the chance to flesh Chad out into a sweet, loyal, and compassionate guy who wants to protect his sister and friends from danger but is also terrified of getting hurt again. A character snarkily calls Chad "an alpha male," but this movie proves Chad is anything but, making him a solid subversion of the archetypal displaced jock who can't imagine a life outside of being worshipped for his good looks and athletic prowess. Additionally, Gooding and Ortega get a couple warm and fuzzy scenes between their characters that highlight their strong chemistry and the remaining innocence that hasn't been hacked up by Ghostface. Jasmin Savoy Brown's Mindy is given the opportunity to step outside of being the Gen Z Randy Meeks and step into being an out queer college kid enjoying being in a loving relationship with another girl, Anika (franchise newbie Devyn Nekoda), while never losing her snarky humor and cinephile know-how. I'm all for lesbian film geeks getting to kiss the girl and shade pompous Letterboxd users for being pretentious over film franchises, and I'm gonna need more of them in my horror media, let alone the Scream franchise. (With that said, this film encounters a familiar, problematic media trope involving queer characters and, frankly, we need to start growing past this because it is deeply irritating.) While the Scream franchise has never been egregious in mistreating Black characters, it's never been that good with them either. A number of Black characters, from the aforementioned Maureen in Scream 2 to Anthony Anderson's Officer Perkins in Scream 4, have been brutally killed off without receiving any further character development. It's a testament to the franchise's willingness to evolve that the filmmakers are not only making Scream's queer subtext text, but that they're also letting Black characters make it to the end without being brutally killed -- and having their subsequent murders motivate the other protagonists to off Ghostface for good. This may not be a big deal for some, but the fact that two of the Core Four are mixed-race Black siblings (one of whom is an out queer young woman) is major, and that's part of the reason why I love the twins.
The Most Ruthless Ghostface To Date
Ghostface has finally made it to New York City in Scream VI. (Paramount Pictures/Spyglass Media Group | 2023)
The Scream franchise knows the mere glimpse of a bright, white Ghostface mask will elicit a familiar chill from the audience, even if they never watched a single Scream movie. But there's something really unsettling about an aged, cracked, and slightly dirty Ghostface mask, especially when you contextualize it within Scream VI.
Naturally, Ghostface is the monster lurking in the shadows waiting to strike victims when they are least expecting it, but he's the ghastly figure that reminds all of them of the pasts they just can't outrun. Whether it is because of family ties (e.g. Mindy and Chad as the deceased Randy Meeks' niece and nephew), past traumas (e.g. Gale facing down a number of different Ghostface killers over the course of twenty-seven years and Kirby surviving a near-fatal Ghostface attack twelve years ago), or lingering fears that directly impact their lives and relationships (i.e. Sam trying to make amends with Tara and be a good older sister), Ghostface is always there, even when you think they're gone for good. Scream VI leans into the specter-level quality of Ghostface on both an aesthetic and a storytelling level. In a memorably eerie scene that was teased in one of its full length trailers, Scream VI features a scene where our main characters come across a shrine to Ghostface, one that bares a spray-painting of the killer seemingly watching all who pass it with the words "What's Your Favorite Scary Movie?" emblazoned across the figure. It's a reminder that Ghostface is always watching them; you can't ever escape them, and each killer thrives on instilling that level of fear and paranoia in the people they target for death. The New York setting also ratchets up the terror, especially in a memorable set piece involving a subway ride and a number of Ghostfaces riding along with Halloween partygoers. We know Ghostface is watching the Core Four and their allies, but we can't even tell where they are and if they're even in the same setting with us. Once the killer makes their presence known, however, it becomes a frantic fight for survival and Ghostface never ever holds back. (With that said, seeing Ghostface holding a shotgun and firing it in a public place hits too close to home. I don't necessarily believe movie violence will lead to an influx of real-world violence, but, considering how many mass shooting incidents have occurred in public places such as stores and schools, Radio Silence should have thought twice before filming a scene where Ghostface trades in their signature knife for a shotgun.) This Ghostface is the most relentless one introduced in the franchise, ruthlessly toying with each of their victims in an agonizing build-up of suspense and struggle before spilling as much blood as it possibly can. Almost every kill feels visceral and more cruel than any of the others I've seen in the franchise, and that's saying something. Scream never runs low on brutal kills, but this one aims for cold, calculating, and unrelenting kills from start to finish -- and this Ghostface is proof positive of that. Although the quantity is low, Ghostface's kills are still gory, cruel, and terrifying; this incarnation of the killer is not aiming for high body counts. Rather, they're aiming for psychological terror in a way we've yet to see in this franchise, and that might be jarring for some viewers. After all, a number of fans and critics have decried this Ghostface for being the weakest one introduced, but I disagree. In addition to embracing the haunting nature of Ghostface on an aesthetic level, Scream VI also embraces Ghostface's status as a spirit of vengeance more than previous entries ever have. Vengeance has been a core idea in the franchise and many Ghostfaces have been motivated by this, but, as the franchise has gone on, each Ghostface's motives have devolved into petty grievances that call for deactivating their social media accounts (i.e. Scream 4 and Scream '22). In Scream VI, however, it truly feels like an enraged spirit has emerged from the afterlife to exact revenge on the Carpenter sisters by playing on the cracks in their bond and, more importantly, Sam's struggles with her mental health in the wake of the previous film's bloodied events. For every Ghostface, these killing sprees are always personal, and this one returns to that tradition tenfold.
Predictably Bad Meta Commentary, Unexpectedly Decent Social Commentary
(from left to right) Melissa Barrera as Samantha "Sam" Carpenter and Jenna Ortega as Tara Carpenter in Scream VI. (Paramount Pictures/Spyglass Media Group | 2023)
If there's one thing I will ding Scream '22 for its the shoddy meta commentary.
Sure, it gave us the (clunky) referential term "requel" and Mindy's memorable rundown of the franchise's history via the film's in-world horror franchise Stab, but Scream '22 made the arguably abstract subject of toxic fandom its major target. (In contrast, the original Scream targets, among a few other things, the devaluing of horror as a piece of work and how that very devaluing led to the major drop in quality of horror films throughout the 80s and into a bulk of the 90s.) In fact, the ending of Scream '22 can be contextualized as toxic cishet white fans being reminded that they live in the 21st century by a changing media landscape that will leave them behind to focus on characters hailing from historically excluded non-white and queer communities; they can either let go of their internalized racist nostalgia or stay stuck in the past like the other weirdos who can't believe a Stormtrooper can be Black, a superhero can be gay, or a Final Girl could be a pair of Latina sisters. Would this have been an impactful message? Probably, but some stronger, refined points of commentary about the subject would have definitely helped improve it. As a result, I was hoping Scream VI would drop the toxic fandom subject and talk about something else. So, it sets its sights on franchises, discussing how legacy characters are not safe from being gruesomely killed off or how requel-sequel rules are "different" (I guess...?) from regular sequel rules. Honestly, Scream VI doesn't do any better here. Considering that franchises contain movies working within a cross-pollination of various genres, Scream VI trying to make a big deal out of franchise rules and regulations feels too much like a ripoff of Randy's deadpan explanation of sequel rules and tropes. The best thing about Mindy's franchise explanation is her dig at predictable Letterboxd snobs. In the end, Radio Silence blew an opportunity to mine modern franchise/blockbuster filmmaking formulas, flaws, and whatnot for some interesting commentary; it's not enough to make Mindy a Deadpool-esque character who knows she's in a horror movie and is pointing out tropes and holes in the horror movie she's trapped in. (Moreover, it undermines Brown's performance and character.) With that said, Scream VI did manage to interweave some unexpected social commentary into its story. In addition to the aforementioned (albeit bungled) true crime angle via Gale Weathers, Scream VI explores the social, emotional, and mental hardships facing women who have survived violence at the hands of men, particularly their romantic partners (see: Scream '22). Sam may have survived one vicious attack, but she struggles to shield herself and her sister from the constant string of abuse and harassment she faces when her disturbing family secret becomes public knowledge. Couple that with Sam's struggles with mental health and past traumas, and Sam immediately becomes less of a "perfect victim" and more of an aggressor; even a therapist that she initially seeks out refuses to offer a safe, affirming space for Sam to open up about her traumas. There's even a scene where the therapist grows visibly uncomfortable and immediately mentions he's legally obligated to report Sam to the police, all because she opens up about how she survived the attack in Woodsboro. It's a microcosm of the relentless character attacks, dissections, and analyses Sam witnesses online, all conducted by people fascinated with the previous Woodsboro massacre, the Stab franchise, and the 'true crime' of it all. One confrontation with a background character angrily shouting about Sam being a killer, just so her friend can film Sam's angry reaction is a reminder of how the true crime media boom has not only desensitized people to tragedy and violence, but also how it has encouraged/enabled people to play an active role in the desensitizing. Additionally, it is a reminder that women who endure violence and abuse at the hands of men closest to them have nothing to gain from being thrust into the spotlight and their stories becoming a lightning rod for social media chatter. The only thing they gain is unwanted attention and attacks, their stories and characters get discredited while the violent male attacker/predator is turned into a sympathetic figure worth defending. If this all sounds like deja vu to you, dear reader, it's because you've seen these stories before. Again. And again. And again. And again. Although the commentary is admittedly surface-level, the fact that Scream VI's script has ample material to work with reinforces how much the horror genre reflects real world women's experiences -- including women's fascination with true crime and the ease with which we erase and ignore the experiences women of color faced within those cases.
Scream VI Is My Third-Favorite Scream Movie
The killer is somewhere in this picture...
(from L to R) Dermot Mulroney, Jack Champion, Jenna Ortega, Hayden Panettiere, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Melissa Barrera, and Mason Gooding in Scream VI. (Paramount Pictures/Spyglass Media Group | 2023)
If Scream '22 was a solid reintroduction to the franchise that reinvigorated several genres -- yes, including horror -- in the late 90s, then Scream VI is the confident requel-sequel that assures us Ghostface is ready to terrify a brand new generation of horror geeks.
Boasting a pair of confident lead performances by Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega and the most ruthless and vengeful Ghostface to date, Scream VI attempts to put the nostalgia down and tell a story fitting for the franchise's new pair of Final Girls. It may follow a story framework similar to Scream 2 (and that will indeed turn off some fans), but this movie is unafraid to ratchet up the suspense, gore, and scares by taking advantage of its New York setting and the aesthetic and thematic elements of Ghostface as a vengeful killer constructing a cat-and-mouse game with our Core Four. Compared to Scream '22, Scream VI feels more confident in its attempts to help the Carpenter sisters stand on their own instead of making them replacements for Sidney; no one can replace Neve Campbell's iconic Final Girl, and Barrera and Ortega are not trying to. Sam and Tara Carpenter finally begin to grow into their own characters, and I'm excited to see where they go next. (And I hope Sidney comes back one last time for one final -- hopefully -- confrontation with Ghostface.) Although this one is nowhere near close to the incredible heights achieved by the original Scream and its subsequent sequel, Scream VI is a couple of steps above its last three predecessors. Radio Silence is still clearly trying to get a handle on making a Scream movie that honors Wes Craven and Kevin Williamson's original vision while fleshing out the vision they have for these new films, but, for the most part, this franchise is in good hands.
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