|
"It's
a 'Scream', Baby!"
by Scott Mantz
"Scream 3"
Neve Campbell, David Arquette
Directed by Wes Craven
It was perfect
timing. Just when it seemed like the horror film was dead and buried,
the first "Scream" movie came along and breathed new life into the
genre. For anyone who lived through the schlocky slasher pics of
the 80's ("Friday the 13th", "Halloween", "Nightmare on Elm Street",
and their endless sequels), "Scream" was the perfect inside joke,
and everybody got the punchline. To say that it was somewhat successful
would be like saying that Freddy Kreuger was somewhat ugly. Thanks
to genuine suspense, fun thrills, a hip cast, boffo box office,
and enough pop culture references to make film geeks drool, a sequel
was inevitable.
Unfortunately,
so were the copycats. Faster than you could say "I'll be right back",
theaters were inundated with enough Gen-X slasher pics to make you
wonder if the horror revival was going to be worth it. Unlike the
80's, where the killers were deformed superhuman freaks, the killers
of the 90's looked like they just stepped out of a casting session
for "Beverly Hills 90210". Some films were successful ("Scream 2",
"I Know What You Did Last Summer"), but most were not ("Disturbing
Behavior", "Urban Legend", "The Faculty"). However, one thing was
for sure--you can always count on the "Scream" films. Now, with
the long awaited "Scream 3", the trilogy comes to a close. Though
it may not match the freshness of the first two films (after all,
how could it?), it should satisfy the Screamheads who've been around
since day one.
After her traumatic
experience (or, should I say, experiences), who can blame Sidney
(Neve Campbell) for living like a recluse as far away from civilization
as possible? Under an assumed name, she now passes time answering
calls on a woman's self-help hotline. Meanwhile in Hollywood, production
is well under way on "Stab 3", yet another sequel to the film that
was based on the events that happened in the first "Scream" movie.
When two people are murdered in the order that their characters
are killed in the film's script, production comes to a grinding
halt. It's up to Dewey Riley (David Arquette), Gale Weathers (Courteney
Cox Arquette), and Sidney Prescott to put an end to the killings
once and for all.
The first "Scream"
was overflowing with references to "the rules". Suddenly, it was
hip and cool to know everything about the 80's slasher pics, and
that's what made watching the film such a hoot. "Scream 2" studied
how the media inspired violence by staging a movie within a movie.
The rules were taken to the next level, but the joke was starting
to wear a little thin. Now with "Scream 3", we have a movie within
a movie within a movie (got that?). This is a trilogy, not a sequel,
so the previous rules don't even apply. While the joke has effectively
been run into the ground, there's still a lot of fun to be had by
watching these characters do stupid things.
Unlike with
the first two films, Neve Campbell's character takes more of a backseat
to David Arquette's more prominent role. After living through the
actual events (twice), he's now the technical consultant on the
Hollywood set of "Stab 3". He's a little older and a little wiser
(the key word being "little"), but he still conveys the innocent
protectiveness that made him such a good guy. Newcomer Jenny McCarthy
plays a bratty actress named Sarah Darling (you gotta love these
movies), and Lance Henriksen plays the film's sleazy producer. If
anybody, it's indie queen Parker Posey who has the best role. She's
the actress in "Stab 3" who portrays Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox
Arquette's character from the "Scream" films), and her dedication
to do a better Gale Weathers than Gale Weathers is downright hysterical!
Kevin Williamson,
who's been quite busy since penning the first two films, submitted
only the treatment for "Scream 3". After writing "I Know What You
Did Last Summer" and "The Faculty", writing and directing "Teaching
Mrs. Tingle", and creating and executive producing TV's "Dawson's
Creek" and "Wasteland", Hollywood's golden boy had effectively burned
himself out. This time around, screenwriting chores were handled
by Ehren Kruger, who penned last year's underrated, but excellent,
"Arlington Road". Williamson's a tough act to follow, but Kruger
does a fine job mixing satirical wit with genuine suspense, even
if he does surrender to a few cheap thrills. The story is a little
confusing and convoluted, but it's still not bad considering it's
a sequel (oh, pardon me--a trilogy!).
There's definitely
a sense of closure with "Scream 3", and there are some interesting
hints that everyone involved was ready to move on. The director
of "Stab 3" was reluctant to do another horror flick, but relented
only when he was promised a more contemporary film to go along with
it. Director Wes Craven agreed to do "Scream 3", but not before
he got a chance to film Meryl Streep in last year's mainstream schmaltz-fest
"Music From the Heart".
So this begs
the question. Is this really the last "Scream" film? Well, that's
what everybody's saying. But for a film series so hell-bent on following
"the rules", let's not forget Hollywood's biggest rule of all--money
talks. If this film does gangbusters at the box office (which it
will), someone will find a way to bring "Scream" back from the dead.
It worked for Mr. Spock, didn't it?
|
