Fourth installment in "Horror" franchise, starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox and David Arquette.
More details, trailers, showtimes and other information can be found at IMDB
.I'll start off by saying I am not a fan of the Horror genre. When I spend my time watching a movie, I don't want eerie or disturbing imagery adding stress, albeit fictional, to my day. I believe film should either entertain, make you think, question systems of belief or educate(which should exist in every case, to some extent).
This film, and it's like, is categorized as a Horror film, however I don't classify this type of film in such a manner. Films like the Scream, I Know What You Did..., Nightmare on Elm Streets Franchises, fall more into the mindless entertainment category. I don't think anyone, outside the very young viewers, could possibly see this or any of the films in this classifaction as scary, not at all.
The Scream franchise, and what I like most about their films, is their ability to poke fun, in an intellectual, almost classroom manner. They analzye the genre and make a mockery, to a certain degree, of the rules that came before them, before pulling the rug out from under the viewer for theier finale in Act III
Scream 4 opened up in a very entertaining fashion. It took this subtle jabbing a bit further, with a series of 'screen shots" from their own, make believe franchise, Stab.
The layout of the remainder of the film worked in the formulaic manner it had set up in each of the previous versions. Sydney Prescott arrives and murders take place. Certain characters are set up as the likely villains, only to unmask the "unexpected" Ghostface at the films ending.
This film went above its own formula however. It added the interesting tie in of Social Media and the internet. I have to say it did a pretty good job. We see news leaking out via the internet, before the police had even made any sort of announcement. We witness live video blogging, one of the characters hosted a weblog called Hall Pass, showing daily High School life, and the murders were then tied into this medium as the film progressed.
Lots of young hollywood cameos/supporting roles in this chapter. Hayden Panettiere from Heroes, Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars, Heroes etc.), and Anna Pacquin (True Blood, The Piano etc). This approach has been a staple in this franchise and its always fun to watch the unexpected demise of someone who, in any other role, would stay to the end.
One final point I'd like to make is the interesting questions the film poses to its viewers. How far, and what would someone be willing to do, to gain accolade and fame?; What point is too far, or distasteful to use as a springboard to celebrity, or to ride to promotion?
One has to wonder, how does someone move forward from tragedy, when tragic things seem to follow you every place you go?; How a feeling of, "It never will happen to me", can in fact invite or grow problems, providing a breeding ground for its damaging ways?
If you liked the other Screams, or are a fan of this style of "Horror", you probably will enjoy this film
In fact, I think you'll probably wind up ranking this chapter, right behind the the first, bypassing Scream 2 & 3 in the process.
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