There's no need to scream, it's actually quite good.

Rating: Null/10 (5 May 2004)

A horror film that resurrected the sub genre of the teen-slasher movie, made us laugh, made us think, and above all made us scream? I didn't think it was possible. I thought I'd seen it all before. Gruesome deaths, virgins survive, everyone is a suspect, yadda yadda yadda. Scream gave us something similar but so very different at the same time. It played with the conventions of the genre and parodied it in a way that made us inquisitive about the storyline and interested in the characters, murders and the film as a whole.
The plot of the film is typical of the teen- slasher genre, much like other films such as Halloween and Friday 13th which share some of the conventions of the genre with Scream. The small town of Woodsboro is shaken by a masked mass murderer. It begins with Casey Becker, played convincingly by Drew Barrymore, meeting her untimely death at the hands of the killer. Woodsboro then becomes one big crime scene which allows bitchy and ruthless news reporter Gale Weathers to research her next juicy, blood-splattered story. The town already has a history, after 1 year previously the mother of Sidney Prescott was brutally raped and murdered. The plot sees Sidney's friends meeting their gory ends as the killer has her in mind for the final conflict.
The characters in the film are a piece of genius. They all have very contrasting personalities and personal issues which makes it difficult when trying to identify the killer. Sidney Prescott is the typical virginal character but with a strong, hard edge due to having to deal with the death of her mother. Her ongoing battle with Gale Weathers, who is constantly bothering Sidney and interfering with her life, acts as a strong and witty narrative strand. The portrayal of Randy as the film geek allows the conventions of the horror genre to be conveyed to the audience in an obvious way, highlighting the way in which the film parodies the genre. The performances by the actors are diverse and often chilling, which is indicated in the death sequences. Courtney Cox shows her abilities as an actress by making Gale Weathers a memorable and undeniably important character in the film.

The killings themselves are psychotic and terrifying. Visually and acoustically they are realistic. You actually see the knife going into bodies and can almost feel the pain the characters are suffering. Most of them take place where the characters feel at home and relaxed only to becomes victims of gut-ripping, neck breaking, blood spurting deaths. This technique is enough to make the audience feel nervous in their own homes for days after watching the film!
Scream is yet another work of art from director Wes Craven whose captivating horror stories sparked a new way of film making and a new sub culture. I would rate this film 9 out of 10 as it was successful enough to become one third of a terrifying trilogy and reinvented the face of the teen-slasher genre. Strong characters and strong performances from the actors complement a smart, funny and innovative storyline, it's definitely one for the DVD collection.