My experience with Scream (1996)

Rating: 9/10 (17 February 2016)

Last week, I revisited the first Scream film. Although the idea of there being two killers isn't an original concept, it certainly was fresh at the time of its release. I loved it when it came out in late 1996. I felt like I was one of the very few who experienced it before most people. It has a very simple plot that I was intrigued by in a horror film mainly because the genre had been absent from the silver screen for quite some time beforehand. I was a senior in high school. The Friday when this opened, it was a half day before the Christmas break and I decided to see it basically out of curiosity. The horror genre is really a hit-and-miss for me, but I remember how effective horror movies were when I was growing up in the early eighties so therefore I wanted to give this a try. At an old AMC theater which does not exist anymore that was pre stadium seating I showed up about forty minutes before the next show. I prefer to arrive early. It was quiet there that afternoon and for a horror movie I couldn't believe how long it was. I remember peeking in during the ending and seeing a young guy destroying stuffing out of a pillow in a living room. I thought this might be intense. I probably shouldn't watch anymore so I waited in the lobby. The next show it was practically an empty theater so I thought the timing was right and that it would soon be gone from cinemas. Since there was virtually no advertising before it opened, I didn't know what to expect, which was definitely beneficial. The first ten minutes was the scariest I thought. Long before those stupid spoof movies, I was initially startled when I saw that creepy ghost mask. I am more critical of it now than before. Honestly I think there should have been a higher body count towards the end. It makes sense to me because Billy and Stu were clearly deranged but I felt they were slipping. They were becoming distracted. Sydney's best friend could have been spared until later. That silly garage scene could have been totally omitted. Randy could have been killed off easily. He became completely inebriated during that party, which was going against his rules for surviving a horror movie. Deputy Dewey was stabbed in the back and could have been finished off. Billy had his chance to kill Gale. I don't know why he let her live. I think it would have been a much crazier ending if Sydney was the only survivor. I think she was probably the smartest one throughout the whole thing.