Highly Entertaining Sequel

Rating: Null/10 (11 April 2011)

Scream 2 (1997)
*** (out of 4)
Two years after the events in the previous film, a movie named "Stab", based on those events, is about to be released and sure enough Sidney (Neve Campbell) and her friends find themselves being stalked by a new ghost face killer. SCREAM worked so well because it knew it was a horror movie, knew the clichÃ©s and knew how to have fun with it. There's no question this sequel was made to cash-in on the success of the first film but thankfully screenwriter Kevin Williamson also knows this and keeps the fun going. There's a terrific sequence early in the film where some film students discuss the good and bad to sequels and we've got Randy (Jamie Kennedy) giving us the rules to survive a sequel. This all adds up to a winning film even if it falls somewhat short of the original. Williamson's screenplay certain makes the mystery deeper and adds some higher quality death scenes but perhaps one of the most interesting aspects doesn't get covered as funny as it could have been. I think the movie would have been better had they toned down some of the culture references and instead took a closer look at violence in movies and how it might relate to violence in the real world. This is touch on briefly and even is motivation for one of the killers. Those who were old enough to remember when this film was in the theater will remember some copycat killers of the first film so it's clear that both the screenwriter and director are stating their opinion that you can't blame movies. It's just too bad this wasn't explored a little bit more. As with the first film, the cast hit all the right marks with Campbell perfect as the victim and and we also get fine performances from Liev Schreiber and Kennedy. Sarah Michelle Gellar makes a cameo appearance but it's David Arquette and Courteney Cox who easily steal the film as Dewey and Gale Weathers. The two of them had remarkable chemistry in the film film and that carries over here as their playful banter just adds to the fun. The death scenes here are more violent than in the first film but they'll all well handled by Craven who certainly hasn't forgotten how to stage a scene. The highlight of the film is a sequence where Sidney and her friend are trapped in the back of a police car with the killer in the front seat passed out. The two girls have to try and crawl over him to freedom and this here is Craven at his very best as he milks the scene for every inch of suspense. I think the identity of the killer isn't as good as in the first film because there doesn't seem to be much intent on the "mystery" being a big aspect here. Of course they don't want you to figure out but when the killer or killers are finally revealed you realize there wasn't much rhyme or reason and that they could have picked anyone. While SCREAM 2 isn't a masterpiece it is rare as sequels usually aren't that good. This certainly isn't as good as the original but it's a good way to continue the story.