Tim's Movie Review of the Day: 'Scream 2' (1997)

Director: Wes Craven
Cast: Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Courteney Cox, Jamie Kennedy, Timothy Olyphant, Liev Schreiber, Jerry O'Connell

It must trippy as hell to realize that your life has become the personification of a horror franchise. Only Sidney Prescott, Gale Weathers, and Dewey Riley know exactly what that feels like. Is it really all that surprising that a person might watch another killer and decide it'd be cool to become a reincarnation of said killer? Not at all. In fact, the Zodiac killer is among the most copied killers in U.S. history. However, 'Scream' doesn't follow the rules of a traditional serial killer. 'Scream' follows the rules of a horror movie. But whenever there's a sequel, the rules change. You cannot simply survive by abiding by the original guidelines set in place by an original. The same concept applies to making movies (most of the time). Something new has to be brought to the table if a sequel is to be made, and violations of this cinematic law have churned out some notoriously bad sequels. If you need clarification on what I'm talking about, watch films like 'The Exorcist II', 'Halloween II', 'Blair Witch 2', 'Carrie 2', 'A Nightmare on Elm Street 2', and 'Psycho II'. Perhaps what qualifies 'Scream 2' as a better-than-average horror sequel is that it has such a heavy original concept to be based on.

Plot Synopsis (Possible Spoilers Below):
Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) is trying to move on with her life. Even though it's been two years since the original killers reigned over the town of Woodsboro, 'Ghostface' continues to haunt her mind. The killers may be dead, but the scars still burn. Sidney and Randy Meeks (Jamie Kennedy) have both moved on to college. Dewey Riley (David Arquette) suffers from a bit of paralysis from the bullet he took to the spine. Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox), however, has profited from the events of the first film by writing a best-selling book entitled "The Woodsboro Murders". But she hasn't been the only one. A series of slasher films called 'Stab' have been made to turn the killings into entertainment. The Woodsboro murders have seemingly become nothing more than a pop culture trend, with their residual power still maintaining a grip over the nation. That is until the killings begin happening again. The horrors are far from over for Sidney and the rest of the gang.

The original film took the concept of cliches and, by using them in every page of the script, managed to create something that was both memorable and original. The characters are the ones who actually give the feeling that they are simply members of the audience, too. Think about it. If a serial killer struck in your town, would you honestly not begin to think about your own chances within a horror film?

Now 'Scream 2' doesn't bring much originality to the concept. It feels more like a continuation of the first film than it does like a stand-alone picture. Now even though lack of originality is one of the key things that can knock a sequel flat on its face, we sometimes need to be put in the same environment. Many times, people will say, "Why fix what's not broken?" Well I say that overusing an unbroken object can put stress on it and the object will eventually wear down. However, some objects are just a bit stronger than others. Some have plenty more juice to squeeze out. Some don't. 'Scream 2' is the one of those rare sequels that does.

Besides, the only thing unoriginal about 'Scream 2' is the concept. What I loved so much about the first film is also present here. The dialogue and allusions to other films made it all the more entertaining. In that department, this sequel has no problem coming up with a bunch of new comparisons and rules. There's even a couple scenes in the film where a college student named Mickey (Timothy Olyphant) and Randy debate back and forth about some of the best sequels ever to have been made. It's exchanges like these that are a movie geek's wet dream, to put it bluntly. It's almost as if it's the filmmakers' way of acknowledging the share of the audience who literally live their lives for the sole purpose of seeing and discussing movies.

Now if you haven't seen this sequel, perhaps you're wondering if it's as scary and funny as the original film was. Well, I can't lie to you. The first one's better. I don't think there's that much debate regarding that. However, if you are one of those people who love to be challenged by a movie, then this is for you. You'll get plenty of jumps...and you'll get plenty of laughs as well. The style of humor hasn't changed a bit. If you're looking for more spoofs and celebrations of horror cliches, then you need look no further.

Final Consensus: 'Scream 2' may not offer much in the way of originality, but it still has plenty to say on the cliches of horror franchises.

3/4 Stars

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That would be awesome. I enjoy writing them, so it would be great if more people got to read them.

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