Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett direct Melissa Barrera, Jack Quaid and Jenna Ortega in this late sequel to the self aware slasher phenomenon where a new series of murders pull characters new and old back to Woodsboro.

I like scary movies and I love Scream movies. This scratched a slasher itch in a way little has over the last decade. The new director team really understand the slow menacing physicality of Ghostface, the sad power that impassive plastic face has when it is inches from you, being the last thing you see before the final knife stabs in. The whodunnit aspect was solid, it certainly looked like a Scream movie and I chuckled at the self referential stuff. Nothing too unpredictable happens and the set pieces lacked Wes Craven’s mastery of the form but they were impish rehashes of what we need from this series. It would be unfair to accuse a Scream episode of being too self aware but the winks to the originals play better with the fanbase than the slightly clunky “re-quel” commentary. It is admirable how effortlessly this tries to reset the format back to what worked in 1996 when the rule book was celebrated and canonised. If this is your first visit to the cinema to watch a Scream I reckon you’ll have almost as big a blast as I did when I was teenager. The returning players are cleverly rationed carefully throughout the later sequences, giving the newcomers a chance to shine early on. David Arquette’s Dewey proves MVP again with a decent amount of meaningful screentime. The killers are probably the highlights of the new cast but I’d happily see the survivors try and carry Number 6 on their own and let those old hands get on with their lives. Or at least have one spree off before being drafted back in.

7

Perfect Double Bill: Halloween (2018)

Check out my wife Natalie’s Point Horror blog https://cornsyrup.co.uk

We also do a podcast together called The Worst Movies We Own. It is available on Spotify or here https://letterboxd.com/bobbycarroll/list/the-worst-movies-we-own-podcast-ranking-and/