Erin: “Scream 4” is Good. Argue Wit Ya Mama.
After the original Scream trilogy came to an end—an end with, in my opinion, the worst Scream film (Scream 3)—the franchise needed a brave, new, refreshing start. Scream 4 did just that, and anyone who says otherwise is delusional.
Scream 4 had to pick up the pieces of an almost-destroyed franchise after the failure of Scream 3. Sidney wasn’t able to be in much of the film due to scheduling conflicts and it was time for the franchise to push the envelope of the slasher genre, especially with the emergent technologies that hadn’t been explored in the previous Scream films. In fact, it had been over a decade since a new film had been added to the franchise. This means that Scream 4 happened post-9/11, post-Obama, and post-invention of the iPhone! The slasher genre had evolved after a decade and again, in order to revitalize the franchise, Scream 4 not only had to provide a fresh new vision, but it also had to redeem itself from the catastrophe that was Scream 3.
Scream 4 introduced brand-new big-name Hollywood actors: Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, Anthony Anderson, Rory Culkin, Anna Paquin, Kristen Bell, Shenae Grimes, and Lucy Hale. It also introduced the very concept of a horror franchise. The original Scream trilogy was just that—a trilogy, but Scream 4 satirized the franchise trope in the horror genre, poking fun at movies like Saw. Additionally, Scream 4 introduced the concept of social media and internet fame, which we all know is a big deal nowadays. Scream 4 helped create the connection between horror and social media. What did Scream 3 help us do except understand how franchises have the possibility of dying because of the bad third film?
Scream 4 also finally allowed us to see the development of the older characters into their adult lives: Sidney is a writer, Gale and Dewey are married with Dewey being the sheriff of Woodsboro. Sidney, until she returned to Woodsboro, had received some form of closure—closure we were not given from Scream 3 because we were too busy being disturbed by an awful film. We got to see how the murders affected not only Gale’s life, but her marriage and friendship with Sidney. There was true character development in this film unlike Scream 3. Sidney’s book “Out of Darkness” coincided with the advent of fourth-wave feminism, which focused on the empowerment of women and intersectionality. We also saw internet activism as a key feature of the movement, thus giving us that social commentary with internet fame and this desire from Jill Roberts to be a “sole survivor” aka a final girl of her own.
What’s truly remarkable about Scream 4 besides the fact that it revolutionized the slasher genre—like the first Scream—is that it can be considered a standalone Scream film. The next two Scream films present interconnected stories with Kirby (our favorite Scream 4 character and for some our favorite Scream character altogether) coming back as more than just an easter egg, but as a reminder of the success of Scream 4 in its job in revitalizing the franchise. Scream 4 gave us drama, social commentary, beloved characters, and a new take on the genre. Scream 3 gave us the runs.
Leslie: An Emphatic Defense for “Scream 3”
Hear me out, this is not a claim that Scream 3 is the best out of the franchise. It is, however, an attempt to convince you that it is not the worst in the series. For me, that particular title goes to Scream 4, but I digress. Scream 3 was a film doomed before it even began.
On the outside, there were many factors at play that led to Scream 3 panning out the way it did. Lead Neve Campbell (Sidney Prescott) had a smaller role in the film due to her busy schedule at the time. Kevin Williamson, the writer of the first two Scream films, did not return for the third installment. Scream 3 also had real-world issues to contend with. Shortly before the film began production, the Columbine High School massacre occurred. While we are unfortunately more exposed to school shootings today, Columbine is one of the first school massacres the American public contended with and still one of the deadliest. Due to this tragedy, Scream 3 was forced to scrap the original script, and remove all mentions of a “high school shooting”. This led to the writers and director creating something different, a Scream like none before it or after, for better or for worse.
I’m not saying that all of these choices were the best choices, but it was definitely a situation where they had to make the best of a bad situation. There are pacing issues, an unmemorable ensemble, and lots of jumping around between different characters and locations. But Scream 3 really shines in the psychological and character development Sidney has through the course of the narrative, essentially creating the film for me. I’d argue this is Neve Campbell’s best performance in the series. It’s an exploration of the isolation she feels and her PTSD, which was also a subject of Scream 2. The third film is a realistic portrait of a young woman trying to feel safe in a world that is determined to steal her peace and make her a victim. Campbell’s performance shows a lot of maturity for Sidney’s character, really elevating the story with an impeccable arc that we aren’t often allowed in our final girls. Sidney is allowed to be fully vulnerable in this film, and we watch her struggle and connect with her at a heightened level in other films. She is no longer just Sidney the survivor, Sidney the badass. She is also Sidney the woman, Sidney in healing. Ironically for a slasher, there is a lot of healing in this film. Sidney reconnects with Gale and has a touching hug with her. She connects with her secret half-brother and holds his hand as he dies (despite him being a homicidal maniac). She ends this film with all of her friends being alive and truthful (for once), finally showing her that there are people she can trust and love. Scream 3 allows Sidney’s character to have hope, and by extension, allows us to hope as well.
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Erin works as a college instructor and is perpetually exhausted. They currently are the creator and co-host of the Black Brew Podcast and are a politics writer for TransGriot. They enjoy horror fiction, superheroes, Top 40s pop music, cocktails, and shaking they ass at gay bars. #BlackTransLivesMatter!!!
Leslie Anne Smith has an MA in Publishing from the University of Derby and has worked as an ESL teacher in South Korea and the US. They are passionate about language learning, minority language preservation, traveling, postcards, football (the real one), and uplifting queer voices. They live out of a suitcase most of the time, but the return address for all their post is for Alabama. Fodd bynnag, bidden nhw bob amser yn dweud annibyniaeth i Gymru.
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