JB & The Chop Do: Scream 3 (2000)

Peeps! We are totally on a roll with these movies, the most awesome Chop and I! Man, I have been having a blast, and I am thrilled the Chop was game to do another one of these. So now we are on to the third part of the original trilogy. This is, in my opinion, the weakest of the four Scream films… but what did PSC think of this thing?

SYNOPSIS: While “Stab 3” is in production, somebody in a ghost mask starts to murder the new cast members. This lures Sidney out from hiding deep in the woods where she lives, and she comes to Hollywood to face the killer for the final act. – via IMDB

So let me immediately start out by saying that Courtney Cox’s hairdresser completely screwed up her hair. Gale is this hot, tenacious reporter with very few qualms. Then she’s back here, and she is all those things but that fringe. Plus her wardrobe. Okay, there was just a lot appearance-wise that was just not working for her in this. Goodness. It was like a horror movie all on its own!

This one certainly lacked the charm of the previous two. I appreciated what was being done here, though I was not a big fan of everything being “the movies” and “on set”. It was gimmicky and didn’t work for very long. Scream 3 is certainly the flimsiest of the lot – the story is absolutely ridiculous, but what saves this is the consistency – seriously, the story, the actors reprising their roles, the humour, Sidney still wearing Derek’s necklace, it all works so well in keeping this movie afloat more so than it would otherwise have worked.

Randy Meeks got a little cameo, which was cool.

Neve Campbell truly is fantastic as Sidney, and she is one of my all time favourite horror movie heroines. She just won’t make anything easy for anyone and stands her ground. She is afraid, but she is also sick and tired of all the bullshit. Much love man, much love.

The “romance” of the phone calls has been lost, there are calls, but more often than not, like the last, it is more about slashing and killing than anything else. Scream 3 totally delivers on the gore and all, but yeah, there was just something missing.

Totally stoked to see Gale and Dewey back at it again – this is a romance I will always love. It is just so silly and it works.

Parker Posey irritates the ever-loving crap out of me always, and this movie was no exception. Aside from the silly story, I think she is the main culprit as to why this movie is not a little higher in my esteem, though I still enjoy it. She is grating, annoying, loud, ridiculous, and just all round grating. I don’t ever find her to be an asset or a selling point in a cast.

Anyway, Scream 3 is still fun, though definitely a decline after the other two, but miles ahead of most horror/shasher sequels. The reasoning and explanations get pretty fucking thin (har har) here, but it still entertains nonetheless, and the consistency of these movies elevates it. Much fun.

Scream 3! The last one! Bangs! Like I’ve said before, I’m not really familiar with these things, but I did find myself laughing a few times in this. Was this supposed to be more of a horror comedy? Or was this supposed to be a horror and the new writer through in some laughs? I know all three of these have aimed to poke fun at themselves for being a horror movie, sequel, etc but this one was kind of funny. Mostly with these two:

I’ve NEVER been a fan of Parker Posey but for some reason I liked her in this. She’s kind of…. dumb but hangs in there. When her and Bangs start screaming and running around with their arms flailing in the air, I liked it. LOL They also had some of the better lines. I liked it when Cox was tied up, off screen and she yells, “SHOOT THE FUCKER!”

I also see Jenny McCarthy’s in here. Obviously for her very good acting skills.

Plus, she really just screams purple!

The keen eye will also notice Emily Mortimer’s décolletage – look at me using fancy words!

I remember when this guy was popular as a kid – before JB was even born. Then he was popular again on that TV show which I never understood. My bad, I guess. Nice hair, bro.

So someone else has a hood and a mask and a knife and a voice altering device. He or she is going around stabbing people and throwing them through glass doors. While this one was bloodier and décolletage-ier, I thought this was pretty flimsy. Like – there’s this one scene where Campbell is running away from the ghost face guy and she opens this door on a movie set and almost falls to her death but then, when she pushes ghosty out the door he falls onto a bed that wasn’t there three seconds before.

Or, during the big climax-explain-why-hes-doing-all-of-this scene, he’s talking to her for several minutes in the killer voice but he’s not even holding the voice modulator to his mouth… because he can’t…. because he’s wearing a fucking mask! Plus, the whole reasons why this person decided to mass murder all of these people in cold blood was kind of stupid. It was kind of the cinematic rendering of this:

Meanwhile, not only were there Creed posters on the wall of the movie-set’s house, there were Creed songs played over the credits. So, speaking of asses:

Anthony Scott Stapp. Get it?? A.S.S. Get it???? HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAAH I fucking crack myself up. I’ve already watched number 4 by now so I can say – YUM

JB & The Chop Do: Scream 2 (1997)

“A year after running over a fisherman and dumping his body in the water, four friends reconvene when Julie receives a frightening letter telling her that their crime was seen. While pursuing who he thinks is responsible for the letter, Barry is run over by a man with a meat hook. The bloodletting only increases from there, as the killer with the hook continues to stalk Julie, Helen and Ray.”

Oh wait…. WHAT THE FUCK DID I JUST WATCH????

SYNOPSIS: Two years after the first series of murders, a new psychopath dons the Ghostface costume and a new string of killings begins. – via IMDB

For The Good Reader / Zutsonian with a keen eye (it seems paying attention these days is something a lot of people aren’t fond of) the team-up for the first Scream we put out was drafted over two years ago. Since then, I have spent over a year in a foreign land, living in a hotel and eating shit food until a few months ago when things started calming down and I was able to get a laptop back in action. Note: I am NOT fucking patient or OCD free enough to try and do posts on a tablet or phone. Anyway, since time is still precious, my entry here will probably be written in two parts before it goes live, so here’s Part One.

“A guy can’t even take a fucking piss….” that’s actually a quote from Angel Heart (maybe not [sic]) and it may or may not apply here but, I thought it was laughable that these two fellows were off pissing in their ROBES and MASKS setting up the first kill.

1. As a male, normally, you have to be able to handle the thing that releases the pee – which is why the Benevolent Creator (as it is, whatever you believe in) allowed humans to invent the slit in the front of the pants or, at least, a tie string so we can drop them and let go #zippers
2. The male human has to be able to see the thing that releases the pee in order to aim or else you fucking piss all over the floor and, likely, your fucking feet. Despite the fact that these people can somehow see through the ‘ghostface’ masks and run around all over the place, they probably really can’t and just befouled the floor and their shoes
3.  True story that no one will get: about 25 years ago I was at a St Patrick’s Day event at a local bar and went to piss. If you’re not familiar with urinals, you should educate yourself but I was having a good, solid, beer infused whizz, looked over and a popular sports celebrity was peeing next to me. I smiled, stabilized my drunken self, and I noticed was peeing all over his leg. #fuckingclassy #calegundy

Watching this, It’s not so fucking 90s as I remember the first one being but it’s weird seeing a bunch of these folks so young and skinny. I’m a huge fan of Ray Donovan (Liev Schreiber), Timothy Olyphant (you name it), Portia de Rossi (married to Ellen DeGeneres) (or was, that could have changed since I paid attention) but what I thought was the most funny thing, Rebecca Gayheart… I remember when I was a kid, having the hots for her in her OxyClean or Noxzema face cleaning ointment commercials. That picture, while digital, is probably older than JB.

Up next: Part 2:

Speaking of Timothy Olyphant, I see he’s wearing some sort of shirt and has a visible sleeveless undershirt on underneath it. I’ve never understood this. My lifelong understanding of wearing an undershirt was to prevent your armpit sweat from showing or staining your good shirt you have on to impress people. What’s the fucking point of not covering your armpits? Why wear two sets of shirts for no reason. I guess, if these things aren’t popular overseas, here’s what I’m talking about:

Jeez, nice thighs, man. The movie? I think I liked it more than the first. I liked the new cast better and it was “less 90s”. Plus there was some Foo Fighters in there. You can’t go wrong with a little Foo. It was basically the same story as the first, with more blood – which is something they talk about early on in “Film Study”. Now let’s pass the mic over to JB. Oh, since I know JB loves GIFs, I better include one.

Sequels aren’t usually that good, we all know that. It is a topic that this sequel harps on about, and it is  actually successful. For one, I still had an absolute blast with this movie, how conscious it is of the type of film it is, how it mocks and taunts again, even after having done all those things. Scream 2 manages to pull it off. Hell, it even has a (really) brief glimpse of Joshua Jackson in it, so there aren’t complaints for me – except maybe that it could have been more Joshua Jackson????? I need eye candy too!

Screw it, I will provide my own… just the one, I swear…

Anyway, let’s get to the movie. Super big fan of having Dewey back, and watching him argue and snipe at Gale is adorable. Seriously, I absolutely love watching these two together. It is sweet and it is seriously funny, too! David Arquette and Courtney Cox have fantastic chemistry. Sidney Prescott is back and kicking some major ass again, not to mention Gale laying down the law, too. There are a lot of throwbacks to the first movie here, but it all works. Scream 2 knows what it is and apologetically rolls with it.

Now, on to… *drum roll*

THE UNFORGIVABLE DEATH OF RANDY MEEKS

This! Fuck! Why?! This still rankles. I get why it would happen (do I really???). Doesn’t mean I gotta like it. And I don’t. I hatessssss it!

In Randy’s words, “Fuuuuuuuuuck yoooooou.”

Gale develops quite a bit more in this one, which is good. She’s still a bitch, but Gale is fantastic. Cotton Weary plays a bigger role in this one, but I still don’t like the damn creep. Icky, icky, icky.

We get tons of blood, tons of fun, tons of chases and tension and games, and plenty to quote. I thoroughly enjoy the humour in Scream, it just gels with me. In short, Scream 2 delivers everything you could want from a sequel.

Okay, this is the last one. I swear.

JB & The Chop Do: Scream (1996)

What the what?! Yes, you are seeing this correctly! The Chop and I return! We are back in business peeps! After all this time! This time we are back to see what we make of Craven’s slasher franchise. So gear up, get ready, and let it be like old times with our latest crazy collaboration!

SYNOPSIS: A group of teens are pitted against a masked murderer that tests their knowledge of horror movies. – via IMDB

What? A Scream collaboration with the Chop? YES! Dreams! You all know I have crazy love for this. Like, it is madness. My husband laughs at me, he thinks I have lost my mind, but he lets me get into it every time. It is one of my favourite things to watch, and something that gets my attention multiple times a year. I even recently got myself a Scream themed backpack, and I fucking love it!

I grew up watching the Scream movies, and as I have gotten older, I have seen there is even more to appreciate than I ever really realised as a kid – so they are both sentimental and smart for me, so winning! Scream is a stroke of genius. Why? Because it mocks on horror movies, does its thing, conforms (and yet stays original and fresh) and teases and jokes.

Scream also heralds one of the most memorable opening scenes ever. Wow. It stays with you and is handled so damn well, hooking you in the opening minutes. Barrymore was perfect as Casey, introducing the creepy call, and her death totally sets the bloody style for the movies right off the bat. So good!

Let’s not pretend Scream isn’t nineties as fuck, but you know what? It works for it. This movie just owns everything. I have serious feelings of nostalgia when it comes to these movies, and I know there are others out there. Love, love, love this, as you can all surely tell 😀

Then there is Sidney Prescott. For reals, this girl is a freaking awesome Final Girl. She doesn’t take flak, she puts up a fight, and she really goes for it. Sassy, smart, survival.

Speaking of specific characters, we cannot forget fan favourites Deputy Dewey and Randy. Man, Dewey you cannot help but adore, and Arquette is brilliant. Then, of course, there is Randy, the signature film geek you gotta love man. I enjoyed his references.

Scream has fun extolling the rules of the horror/slasher genre, and balances this so well with the movie. We get a fun movie, not something to be taken too seriously, but that still brings the gore, the tension, and the blood to the table. What more could you ask for?!

Also, gotta say, while he is not everyone’s cup of tea (and he isn’t even my cup of tea), Skeet Ulrich is doing the most messed up stuff here, but looks damn fine while doing it (I am specifically looking at all at the end – yes, I know how psycho that sounds).

Anyway, I say again, I fucking love Scream. I am going to stop here because I have reviewed these and discussed these all over the show, so I am going to leave it at these movies are awesome. I am looking forward to covering all of this with my partner in collaboration crime Eric. Much fun ahead. Now that you all know what I have to say about it, what did the Chop think?!

1st off – I would like to say THANK YOU to our JB for agreeing to do another series with me. I was afraid I scared her clean off after the Amityville run. When she came back around and asked if I wanted to do the Scream series, I was all “sure thing – I think I’ve only seen one of them” and now – WE’RE BACK!!!!!

Here’s my history with Scream: I really do remember when this came out and I really do remember that this was featured in the commercials here, where I live:

Obviously, I was intrigued but in 1996 I was going through a divorce and living in this shit-cheap apartment that was built back in the 1930s that really did have a BOILER in the corner for heat. That winter was VERY hard and cold and I basically had to sleep on the floor by the thing to try and stay warm at night. Anyway – one night, my friend and I went downtown to this bar and this band called Jackyl was playing behind it so we went out to drink beer and watch the show.  I’ve never been a really upfront/alpha kind of guy with the ladies – I’ve always let them seek me out – but, for some reason I started lurking lingering around this chick and let her sit on my shoulders to see the band and she ended up following me (us) home.

As things turned out, she had a bootleg copy of this movie on VHS so we popped it in and got under the blanket and started watching it and then *ahem* #romance happened and we never finished it. I also didn’t want to be in a relationship again so I never called her even though that was some of the best #romance I ever had. Several years later I was living with my girlfriend at the time who was totally cheating on me and one night we started watching Scream 3 and got most of the way through it before #romance happened so I’ve never really seen one of these all the way through.

Until now, but unfortunately there hasn’t been any #romance as a result of it although earlier I went and got my copy of True Detective back from my coworker since I’m leaving this place and I’ll never see her again and she said she’d be happy to be in my movie I’m working on and she’s willing to show her boobs if need be, so there’s that. Actually, I guess by the time this posts I’ll no longer be employed here so, hi Future Eric – remember to text XXXXXXXXXXX.

As for Scream – I thought it was good enough. I know I’m the old man of the group, so I didn’t grow up with these like JB and others did so it didn’t resonate with me in all of it’s 90s-ness like it will most people. I thought the “ghostface” costume was dumb and NOT scary and the wardrobes were awful – I half expected the cast to have their acid washed Guess? jeans cuffs pinched and rolled up over their ankles while they smoked Marlboro Light Shorts out of a box. They used to call that the French Rolled or Penny Rolling look around here and it was AWFUL but it looks like rolled up cuffs are making a comeback in Europe and they’re calling it “Pinrolling”. Shit.

Regarding the movie in general, I thought the cast did a good job and it was a lot bloodier than I thought it would be but I got kind of tired of the constant movie references and Matthew Lillard (who I like) drove me crazy at the end. If you’re not familiar with him you might remember him as:

I guess that’s it – I liked it enough and David Arquette was actually decent considering the giant douche he can be. Hopefully these get less 90s as they progress.

Sporadic Chronicles of a Beginner Blogger Trivia #1: due to the way I grew a great deal taller before everyone else and my lean physique, my nick name in high school was “Shaggy”.

Sporadic Chronicles of a Beginner Blogger Trivia #2: Sadly, that was not my nickname because I shagged all the hot chicks around town.

Review: Red Eye (2005)

“Sometimes bad things happen to good people.”
– Jackson Rippner

SYNOPSIS: A woman is kidnapped by a stranger on a routine flight. Threatened by the potential murder of her father, she is pulled into a plot to assist her captor in offing a politician. – via IMDB

I watched this in cinema when it came out, and never went back to it, and there were only certain things that stuck with me after, such as Murphy being a fantastic villain, and Rachel McAdams sure knowing how to wield a hockey stick, and how this all happened on a plane. I saw it the other day and thought I would give it a shot again, I usually really like Craven’s work.

Again, Cillian Murphy is a great villain. He is so charming and all initially and you are like nice, smooth guy, and just like that *snaps fingers* he turns into this menacing, super scary dude. The transition is seamless and amazing. Rachel McAdams, too, is your generic heroine for a horror, but sadly as much as she fights back, she never comes across as having spine (until that hockey stick, man). That is not to say she wasn’t good, she was actually solid, but not so memorable as to stay with you long after (hem hem Sidney Prescott).

Do not expect something deep from the story. Heck, some questions never get answered and some motives are never explored (who sent him, why was the whole things going down that he was sent in for anyway, these are just a few questions). The main reasons seem like a way to just throw these two performers together to get a scary movie out of a woman being terrorised on a plane, but it also requires that you suspend ridiculous amounts of belief, and there is not even much of a payoff for doing so.

It’s a pretty fun, light, fluffy movie though. Decent horror night material, but there are better ones at the end of the day. Such a far cry from Scream and A Nightmare on Elm Street, but worth a watch to be sure.

Scream: Season 1 (2015)

*CONTAINS SPOILERS*

What I liked:

• Noah Foster. Holy crap, this guy! I absolutely adore him. He is so geeky and I find that immensely cute, but aside from that, I find him to be a great character. I mean, just the way he says things, example: “Oh, holy Manson family album”, etc. It was like finding my spirit animal – just the weird ways of expressing oneself. I love it! Plus, he is the character pointing everything out to us in the show, as well as narrating the events.
• The contemporary references, etc. that made the originals so awesome.
• Everyone is fair game, and when they get killed, the gore is so rewarding. Yes, again, Noah could be my spirit animal.
• The humour. Really, this is something I had a total blast with. It was pretty geeky and quite entertaining.
• Noah Foster screaming. Really, it rivals Dean Winchester!
• The throwbacks and references to the movies, as well as how some scenes were shot. Big fan of the little details like that. This is an awesome page to check out to see more about it.
• The gore. Yep. At least they got that right, even though it was undercut by that stupid soundtrack.

I actually really enjoyed Kieran’s character, and hope we see more of him in the next season. And while not necessarily my cup of tea, he was pretty easy on the eyes. Just saying.

I beg to differ with Noah’s assessment. Sure, maybe not conventional, but the cute, geeky, nerdy guys have always been way more appealing to me!

What I didn’t like:

• The way this whole show feels like a girls show. I mean it, the music, focusing on such mundane things like your ex being a tit, and how you feel about the new guy. That’s all good and well, but could we check something besides relationships out? I am all for it, but not when her love triangle becomes the most important thing. UGH.
• The music. I bitched a bit in the point above, but really? Do guys actually listen to that crap? I might be really out of touch what people are listening to nowadays, but seriously. I hated it, and it irritated the hell out of me. It also undercut the gore and stuff, because the show just doesn’t feel like it is built for everyone, if that makes sense? The music alone could stop an entire demographic watching it because it just doesn’t gel with the content.
• Piper Shaw. She was such a flat, bland character for me, and didn’t break the mould in the slightest.
• How predictable the show was at the best of times.
• Emma. I know this is awful, she is the lead, and we are supposed to back her, but she just grated on me, for reals. She was whiny, flaky, annoying, silly, icky. She will never be the new Sidney Prescott, I don’t care what anybody says! What a useless lump.

Rating:

So I finally got to watching this, though I had my reservations, what with being a huge fan of the movies. The series isn’t really like the movies, but it is, if that makes sense. There are certain aspects that spill over, like the in your face way it tells you what is going to happen, and how all horror/slasher formulas work, and the stereotyped characters. However, where the movies succeeded, this failed in the sense that the show is really soft. It made me think (on more than one occasion) more of Pretty Little Liars and not so much other shows like American Horror Story or Hannibal (although nothing is like Hannibal, to be fair).

I expected something more hardcore, especially with the blood and gore that Scream would feature. Not to mention that the soundtrack does not help this out at all. I don’t know, do guys actually listen to that stuff? I might just be really out of touch with what people listen to as I don’t listen to the radio and watch TV, but I don’t know… it’s a little femme. I don’t say this in a derogatory sense or that guys can’t listen to that, I am just saying that this is the kind of music you find in chick flicks and shows for teenage girls (*cough cough* again why I thought Pretty Little Liars). Add to that, there is a hell of a lot of teenage drama going on, and so much relationship mush. Yep, these are all things that bugged me.

I know we are supposed to get attached to the characters and care, but only some of the characters that were killed were handled that well, the rest, not so much. Also, let’s just explore this really messed up relationship between Emma and Kieran – how is that ever going to work out? She has dropped this guy, hurt this guy, run back to her ex, jerked Kieran around, accused him of murder, crushed him, but hey, let’s do this thing? I am so darn confused. How much is he going to take from her, and why is he okay with it all? Also, I am not a fan of Emma, and found her entitled, whiny, and annoying, which  made giving a crap about her damn difficult. In fact, I didn’t, even right at the very end. Her fate is none of my concern.

Then there is Noah, and he is the only one I am concerned about, no kidding. That guy is my favourite thing about this show, and the reason I continued watching (because, let’s face it, the beginning of this show was rocky at best). He is hilarious, and so unapologetic about the nerdy, serial killer obsessed dude that he is, and I love that. My spirit animal, I swear. I wish that some of the other characters had been given more time. In a movie I can understand not having the time to focus on other characters, but in a series based off of a movie that is just under two hours in length, I would say there is spans of time to flesh out the side characters.

Anyway, this is a fun show if you don’t take it too seriously, though I don’t think it will ever, ever hit the heights of the movies. Not the worst series you can waste your time on if you have nothing else to watch, and it is a real quick, eight episode filler watch, probably great for when you are trying to decide what to move on to next.

Review: Scream 4 (2011)

SYNOPSIS: Ten years have passed, and Sidney Prescott, who has put herself back together thanks in part to her writing, is visited by the Ghostface Killer. – via IMDB

And here we are, the final movie! Thank you all for sticking with me, reading, commenting, everything. As always, it’s appreciate it! It’s been a blast.

This one is definitely not right up there like the first two movies, but this is really not the worst movie to be added to a franchise, especially so long after the fact. It is infinitely better than the last one though, that’s for sure! I will always be a fan of the fact that the same cast has always returned for their roles, it just gives the whole experience a more cohesive and authentic feeling, which is awesome.

Thank goodness Cox’s hair was sorted out – Scream 3 did her no wonders whatsoever, and whoever styled her hair with that fringe should have been shot. Seriously. Her and Dewey being together is adorable, and I will not lie, that blonde woman, Hicks, who was hitting on Dewey? She really made me angry Stay away or go find an available man, hooker!

I am still not sold on Emma Roberts – even her face just looks like a spoiled brat to me, and she always comes across like that, too. Ugh. She isn’t even that great an actress (or I have yet to see her in anything where she wows me, at any rate). Giving her such a huge role in here peeved me a bit, but there were other things to enjoy. As I understand it, there was quite some backlash when Hayden Panettiere was cast for this (although much humble pie has been eaten since, by the sound of it). I thought she was great, and definitely a character I had a lot of fun with.

Sidney has the worst agent of all time and she annoyed the fuck out of me. Like can you even?! The woman had no morals or scruples! There were quite a few reprehensible characters for this one though, but you can deal with it. There was a strong focus on the teens again, very reminiscent of Scream, and I enjoyed exploring that avenue again, though modern kids are less entertaining than they think they are.

Dewey with some power was awesome, and to see him getting hit on by the other cop and that pissing Gale off was classic, even though that woman irritated me (as I mentioned). Hicks did provide some classic entertainment for unleashing the snippy Gale Weathers we all know and love though.

Sidney is back in action of course, and the woman just keeps on getting crap flung at her. She has in no way had an easy life, and people seem so keen on constantly making her relive awful torment. This time around she is not taking anything, and puts up a great defense, terrified or not. She is making her stand and that is just that.

I almost died when they tried to call Rory Culkin’s Charlie Walker this generation’s Billy Loomis. Are you freaking kidding me??????

My argument:

Billy Loomis – sexy

Charlie Walker – not so much

The new and improved “rules” that were put forth in this movie and explored made me laugh, there were quite a few industry digs and they were handled quite well.

For a sequel to a set of films so long after the fact, Scream 4 is highly successful and hits quite a few high points and misses in other places, but that isn’t an issue for the most part.

Overall I had an absolute blast going back to these films as well as watching this one, the only one I hadn’t seen. I can see myself watching the hell out of these movies again, so much fun to be had! Thank you all so much for undertaking this journey with me, taking the time to read and share comments, I always appreciate it!

Review: Scream 2 (1997)

SYNOPSIS: Two years after the first series of murders, a new psychopath dons the Ghostface costume and a new string of killings begins. – via IMDB

Sequels aren’t usually that good, we all know that. It is a topic that this sequel harps on about, and it is pretty successful. For one, I still had an absolute blast with this movie, how conscious it was of the type of film it was (once again), how it mocked and taunted (again), yet did all those things anyway. Scream 2 managed to pull it off, but I had no doubt that it would, and no, not just because I had seen it a million times before. Hell, it even had a (really) brief glimpse of Joshua Jackson in it, so there weren’t complaints for me. Personally, I would have liked to have seen more of that.

The opening is one of those that have stuck with people for years after all was said and done, whether you remember the rest of the movie or not, we all remember the brutal toilet stall slaying of Phil and the screaming theatre death of Maureen.

I was so happy to see Dewey again, I think he is such an adorable idiot, and David Arquette was perfectly cast to play him. He is truly a favourite of mine, and watching him and Courteney Cox together was great, they just worked. Dewey’s fury with Gale and her book was a point of incredible entertainment for me, he was so childish about it all, yet still so infatuated with her.

There was no shock in the reveal (hopefully nobody was expecting there would be), and though there were more murders in this one, they were not as meticulously planned as the first one, and also much less phone calls. I miss the phone calls. They were something I truly enjoyed about Scream. I think one thing that really fell flat in this movie was Ghostface… not quite what I was hoping for, and it was a little bit jarring, too. It wasn’t as smooth as it could have been, though not a complete waste.

The back and forth between the characters was as sharp, smart and fast as always, so nothing has really changed there. Sidney is still hanging in there, our reluctant heroine who is surrounded by wonderful people. I felt so sorry for Randy, perpetually stuck in the dreaded friendzone. Sidney is a wonderful character to carry the Scream franchise because she isn’t too much or too little, she never takes over and is never forgotten, and that is something that so many horrors can mess up. The main characters from this franchise all have their time to shine.

Gale kicks some serious ass. I love this woman. She is a shark and a super  mean bitch but she is hardcore, and she doesn’t take much crap from anyone. Sometimes she is just too harsh for some, and her lack of morals really is a bit rough at times, but she is someone that I really like.

Then something that happened in this movie that I am sure many fans are still horrified about. (Highlight text to view – SPOILER if you haven’t seen this yet). Killing Randy Meeks?! After all that we have been through with him, after all the lessons that he taught us! The only main character to be popped. Ugh. Why?! Craven, how did you think that was alright?! What the ever-loving hell was the meaning of that? 

 

I adored how Scream 2 starts up, and you are thinking they are going to do something different and you are missing all the characters you came to love, and slowly but surely they start creeping through the cracks. It really is something to witness them all coming together again to battle Ghostface, again, though it cannot possibly be the delicious Billy Loomis.

Overall, Scream 2 is buckets of fun, while not as brilliant as its predecessor, it is a strong sequel with plenty of laughs, blood and gore – everything I am looking for in a film. Definitely worth the watch.

Review: Scream (1996)

SYNOPSIS: A group of teens are pitted against a masked murderer that tests their knowledge of horror movies. – via IMDB

Originally I had these lined up for a JB & The Chop collaboration, but extenuating circumstances meant that the outing would have to be cancelled. These have long been lined up for publication for the next few Fridays, and I was quite sad to see of Wes Craven’s passing on Sunday. What a pity, and the man gave us a lot of great horrors, slashers, and thrillers over the years. There would never be a more perfect time to line these up, and so they have become tribute posts.

Popping this in, as much as my other half was calling out how lame this was and how cheesy  and stupid, I have to admit that I had a total blast. Why? Not only because I grew up watching this, but as I got older, I could finally appreciate some specific aspects of these movies. When I was a kid, it was just about some weird mask and terrorizing teenagers and being different from other horror movies yet completely the same. I am older now, wiser. What this movie is, is actually a stroke of genius. Why? Because it mocks on horror movies, does its thing, conforms and teases and jokes.

In a quick way, it is fresh. Different. Goodness knows it has been ripped off from here to Kingdom Come, and it has endured a lot of mockery and cheese on its own, but when you get right down to it, Scream still holds up well after all this time. In fact, it holds up brilliantly. I swear I damn near wore the VHS out when I was a kid, I watched this movie so many times, checked it out of the video store a ton more.

The opening scene for this movie is infamous. We all know it. Or, if you don’t, I am not quite sure where you have been. A creepy, weird phone call to Drew Barrymore? Check. A strange conversation that starts as funny and goes sour, quickly? Check. The popcorn on the stove that she is prepping for a movie that is our timer? Check. A superbly grisly death by the end of all the taunting and the crazy chase? Check.  Totally just one of those movies that was going to nail all the things I love in a film, and handles the delicate balance so well. This movie could have bombed, but it didn’t because there is a certain finesse behind it that just makes it all come together wonderfully.

Scream is so nineties, there is no way to get around that, but on the other hand, that just gives rise to all the nostalgia I feel when I watch that. Not because the nineties were anything to write home about or anything, but that was my decade, rugrat that I was and all.

Scream is smarter than it is given credit for, and is constantly aware of what it is and how it is going about doing it. I find that awesome. It doesn’t get old, it doesn’t get boring, and it isn’t stale. It has an idea, and it runs with it, and is highly successful about it, too.

I was a big fan of the Freddy Krueger nod that was in here, as well as the way it was implemented. I had a pretty good laugh, especially seeing as it was Wes Craven in that outfit 🙂

While looking for the above, I found this… LOL!

Anyway, I also really liked the casting. I mean, half these people you don’t see in movies anymore, though they were pretty popular in the nineties. They all did a good job with what they were given.

They made me laugh, they made me roll my eyes and cringe, but they also had me invested in what was going to happen and how things were going to play out.

I feel for Skeet Ulrich – gosh, imagine getting a name like that as a kid and going through school?! I just couldn’t! Anyway, he was a cutie in a real fucked up, greasy sense, but it worked. Campbell was suited for the scared young girl with issues, David Arquette is a serious favourite of mine as the adorable Deputy Dewey, and Courteney Cox was perfect for the bitchy, sharky reporter. Seriously, like no qualms.

The movie is quotable, too, and played off on a lot of movie clichés that had been seen a million times then, and have been seen a million more since. However, they all just seemed to be done so differently here, which is awesome.

I know he is doing only the most fucked up shit here, but he is damn fine while doing it There’s something just slightly too erotic about the corn syrup licking and knife flicking…

I know I am not alone in my sentiments. I think. I hope. I actually don’t even care. Yep bestie, me and the psychos again…

If you can’t tell from all the points above, I am a huge fan of Scream, it’s smart, it’s great fun and definitely worth watching! Thanks to Wes Craven for having given us something so awesome!

JB & The Chop Do: Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (1994)

Another Elm Street flick! Can you believe it?! Yeah, sure! While it must be said, the last few have been particularly bad, it looks like there might just be some light on the horizon here! It seems the Freddy canon was still not ready to give up the ghost, even after all the flops before it.

SYNOPSIS: It’s nearing the 10th Anniversary of the film ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ and one of the stars, Heather Langenkamp is being scared by a voice on a phone, sounding very similar to the film’s villain, Freddy Krueger. When Heather’s husband is killed in a car accident and is discovered with slash marks on him, Heather starts to wonder something. Especially when she discovers that Wes Craven is writing another ‘Nightmare’ film. Soon, she realizes that Freddy has now entered the real world, and the only way to defeat him is to become Nancy Thompson once again. – via IMDB

After the last two films that were pretty darn dreadful, things had to start looking up, and truly, Wes Craven’s New Nightmare delivered on that front, though certainly not without flaws.  This Elm Street entry is definitely the biggest standout for me when growing up, purely because it was on TV all the time when I was a kid.

The plot is significantly changed up, which is a good thing for this. Freddy is now fighting to come into the real world, no longer content where he was. Who else, naturally, to bring him in but Heather Langenkamp, who played Nancy Thompson, the girl who beat him? So this is how it was going to be, but could the studio pull it off without the super flop the last ones were?

The answer is yes, mostly. New Nightmare is incredibly gimmicky, but it works in some strange way, though there are some icky flaws that are just not on. It is not inundated with cheese (too often), like the last few predecessors, and has a darker and more serious tone. However, what did not work for this film at all was the length. It was far too long and self-indulgent on Craven’s behalf, and could have easily been twenty minutes shorter as well as featured less of the director himself. Just saying. What I did like was seeing Robert Englund being himself then slipping away, though more time could really have been invested in watching his descent into the madness that births Freddy Krueger, and I liked Julie, though I feel she got too little screen time in this crazy long movie.

I was not a fan of Freddy’s new makeup or his permanent wearing of a trench coat or his new clothes so much, though the trench did make him look darker. I was a big fan of his boots and what not, very badass, very cool.

Yep… issues and all this was not a bad watch, especially when you compare it to the last few we have had to suffer through, like oh my gosh. I liked it for the most part, but I was so not a fan of the excessive length, that really was a killer for me.

Let’s start this off by saying that I liked this movie – I did – it was a fucking miracle compared to the last one. But I also need to make sure I mention that there are things I didn’t like about it.  I don’t ever care if a movie is about making a movie – as long as it’s good – but I always find it risky to let the director give himself too much face time – because he could come off as a pretentious asshole. I don’t know if Craven pulled that off here but he had a lot of screen time. Too much for me, but that’s just me, a dumb, old Chop. I can’t remember – did he have a ponytail in this? It was the 90s so ponytails on men were en vogue but I always thought ponytails on me were particularly not fashionable. Sorry Brian. Pretentious ponytailed assholes.

I honestly can’t remember if Craven is MAKING a new Nightmare movie in this or if he was just the writer but someone’s making a new Nightmare movie and Heather Langenkamp is requested to reprise her role from the 1st and 3rd movies. I think she’s hesitant about it but her husband is working on it and strange things start to happen – IN THE FORM OF MURDER!!!!!!!! eventually – Langenkamp does her best Nancy Drew sleuthing and figures out Fred Krueger is coming to life and everyone thinks she’s batshit – UNTIL MORE MURDERS HAPPEN!!!!!!! While I think this movie was much better than the last two – and Kruger is once again NOT a wise-cracking anus – some suspect shit happens – like when he’s some sort of god in the clouds and lifts Langenkamp’s kid across a busy highway.

Anyway – remember this????

Heather!!! Don’t look now!!!!! DUM DUM DUM TA DUM!!!!!

SLUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUULUUUUUUUUUUUUURP!

I also didn’t really care for the new make-up or the new hat or the new sweater but I did like the character of Julie:

Her scene, which JB has in black and white above, was actually pretty cool – and quite bloody. I’m glad they got away from the campiness of the franchise and tried to make a good horror movie again. Some people probably won’t get this but I think – while I liked this thing – it suffers from being way too 90s. Parachute pants, John Lennon sunglasses, men with ponytails, women with shoulder pads in their business jackets, shit music, etc. Oh – and too much of this:

Did I mention this??

Oh well – despite some minor irritants, this one wasn’t too bad but it’s a MIRACLE compared to the last one.

Love,

The Chop

(speaking of assholes!!)

JB & The Chop Do: A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984)

Well guys, naturally things just took on a life of their own with Eric and I and the movie watching thing, and it seems that Potter and Star Trek were not enough – it occurred to us that there are so many other film canons out there – and they all need to be probed! The next up on our “JB & The Chop Present” feature is the Nightmare on Elm Street movies! I think this is just the perfect way to celebrate the end of exams!

SYNOPSIS: On Elm Street, Nancy Thompson and a group of her friends including Tina Gray, Rod Lane and Glen Lantz are being tormented by a clawed killer in their dreams named Freddy Krueger. Nancy must think quickly, as Freddy tries to pick off his victims one by one. When he has you in your sleep, who is there to save you? – via IMDB

I freaking love this movie, I think it’s awesome! Freddy Krueger is just one of those movie monsters that was destined to catch on and become famous. Everyone has nightmares, and everyone is afraid of when your dreams really become a dangerous place, which is why I think this concept worked so well. Freddy’s first outing was fantastic, and remains the best Elm Street film in the canon for me. The reasons are obvious: this film had a story to tell, and everything was fresh and new, and it was not yet a parody of itself. Horror film canons have managed to make that of themselves over the years.

Anyway, A Nightmare On Elm Street is just essential viewing if you like horror. You can totally skip the rest if you want, but this one had it all. I can imagine this must have been extremely creepy when it came out, and this one is also slightly more serious than the others that came later, though not as serious as that piece of crap remake.

There were some fantastic scenes here, and this film was gripping and entertaining from the off, and it was most certainly something fresh and new. You dreams are a dangerous place? Yes, please! It starts off innocently enough, bunch of teenagers, blah, blah, blah. Nothing revolutionary here except maybe seeing an extremely young Johnny Depp. Other than that, nothing remarkable. But that soon gives way to the terror that is Freddy Krueger, and it was the smaller things that made this creepy. I was a huge fan of the scene where you see Freddy start his games with Nancy. The way that wall moved and all was just a stroke of pure genius.

Papa Thompson was a real tool, too, and seemed exceptionally insensitive towards Nancy having lost her friend and all that was going on. Not saying she gave a viable explanation or anything like that, just saying he was way harsher than a father should be. Anyhow, the gore in here was not overly excessive (but that might be for ol’ desensitised me, you might have to check that at a more reliable source) but there is a lot, make no mistake, and the effects were really good for its time. I had a lot of fun with the way the film was directed and the way the cast handled the material. Granted, sometimes it suffered from (typical) flawed horror logic, and other times there was some seriously unbelievable acting and reactions, but overall I think that lends to the film, if anything.

When the movie catches and latches onto Freddy messing with these kids, the strange scenes star popping up in an abundance, and that alone it worth sticking around for, even if you completely ignore the rest of what is going on. Let’s also just talk about Robert Englund: he is the only Freddy I will ever acknowledge because he is perfect in the role. He’s so iconic, too, making it damn near impossible for anyone else to helm the fedora and striped sweater, try as they may. He has become inextricably linked to him, and that is cool too. I know Haley tried with the 2010 remake, but seriously man, what the hell kind of Freddy is that?

There were some really awesome deaths in A Nightmare On Elm Street, memorable and awesome, and broken and disturbing as that may sound. Yes, I am sure that you can tell, I love this movie, and it is a classic for a reason. There may be flaws, but overall Craven delivered a solid monster and a good concept with plenty gore and a cool story. Don’t waste time. Rectify it now if you haven’t seen it, or just go watch it again.

I think I should start this off by saying that, unlike our last project, I’ve only seen two of these – this one and the third one – as a challenge from another bloggy person. I remember liking the first one OK but I thought the third one was a little silly and the way I remember seeing all of the commercials for these things was Freddy spouting cheesy one liners that deterred me from having any real desire to see them, in the theater or elsewhere. So, when our last project was winding down and we both agreed we wanted to do another one, JB suggested this as she loves these movies and who am I to say no to The Most Beloved JB??? So I bought the set for pretty cheap off Amazon and popped in the first one the other day and it was going pretty good until I saw this:

What the FUCK is Freddy doing running like that????? Is he getting ready to hump a barrel full of pickles or something??? I seriously did some LOL-ing and thought, “MMM HMMMM this is what I fucking thought!!!! This shit is going to be so stupid!!!! I’m going to have to give JB a lashing (or something)”. Then this happened:

That was pretty fucking impressive and got me excited for the rest of the movie!! I do love it when people go flying off and spinning around in the air! For real! So we had that goodness and then that scene in the hallway that JB captured up above was pretty fucking sweet and then, unfortunately, there was a little bit of this:

And I was all:

EWWWWW What the fuck??? Really??? but then there was some of this:

And I got too see a boob, so that was redeeming. But then it ended on kind of a dodgy note:

In any case – I liked this one pretty much! It’s not going to beat out Halloween as my favorite start to a horror franchise but I thought most of it was pretty good – with a little cheese thrown in. This was VERY bloody – surprisingly so IMO. But I will tell you this – I sure had fun putting together this post. I’ll tell you something else – I need a fucking haircut!