Third Time's Not a Charm
Scream Trilogy Concludes on a Dull Note

By the time you read this review, you will either have seen Scream 3 or you aren't likely to do so. A horror movie, as a rule, does very well in its opening weekend and then drops off dramatically. Nevertheless, if you haven't seen Scream 3 don't worry about spoilers. I've never spoiled a movie, and I'm not about to start. True, this won't make it easy to say what I like or don't like about it, but who ever said reviewing movies was easy work?

So, what can I say? Well, I don't think it will be giving away anything to say that the original cast (what's left of them after two slasher films) is back. Neve Campbell returns as Sidney Prescott, everyone's favorite victim. But ol' Sidney isn't quite the same after two horrible serial murder sprees. She has become a recluse, living in the woods. Courtney Cox Arquette and David Arquette also return as Gale Weathers and Dewey Riley, respectively. Liev Schreiber also returns as Cotton Weary.

Hollywood will never let go of a good thing, and in a parody of Scream's success, we see that the story of Sidney's horrible life has spawned not one but two sequels. The film "Stab 3: Return to Woodsboro" is in development. (Side note: the poster for "Stab 3" looks remarkably similar to another bad horror movie: Urban Legend.) Soon, it appears the ghost-faced knife-wielder has decided to kill the "Stab" actors, in the order their characters die in the film.

The movie within a movie is a little surreal, and somewhat confusing, but it lends itself to some humorous situations. Parker Posey plays Jennifer Jolie, playing Gale Weathers, the nosey self-center reporter. In doing so, we have "Gale" moving in a strangely synchronized mimicry of Gale. The effect is quite funny at first, although it gets a little annoying after awhile.

Lance Henriksen does a reasonably good job as John Milton, the head of Sunrise Studios. His appearance helps give the film some weight. Conversely, there are cameos that add laughs. Also, Wes Craven does a masterful job of leading us through this story, as he has the others. Scream 3 has a number of nice touches and some good humor, but in the end it isn't enough.

The major difference with Scream 3 is in the story itself, which was not penned by Kevin Williamson (who created the franchise) but by Ehren Kruger. This is not to say that Kruger is a bad writer, but I feel he doesn't understand the series the way Williamson intended it. It lacks edge. It lacks cynicism. Most importantly, the humor in the movie isn't the same kind of humor. Rather than being satirical, it's situational.

Scream and Scream 2 weren't just horror movies. They were satires of the genre. The "in" humor of the original movies came from the characters who constantly discussed what they should do "if this were a horror movie." In this movie, the casual cynicism has been replaced by fear. The characters (Sidney, et al) all know this is real, and there is no levity to lighten the mood. Scream 3 is not a satire. If anything, it is more like a real horror movie. (And where's the fun in that?) But as a horror movie, it fails to frighten the audience.

In what is sure will be everyone's biggest complaint, the final revelation of the killer is anything but spectacular. Sure, there are some twists and turns along the way, but in the end, we say, "So what?" Fans expecting a mind-blowing conclusion to the trilogy will be disappointed, but those who are just along for the ride will probably have a nice trip.

MY RATING: 5 out of 10.

RATED:
RUN TIME: 115 min.

Third Time's Not a Charm Scream Trilogy Concludes on a Dull Note

Third Time's Not a Charm
Scream Trilogy Concludes on a Dull Note