Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, Scream 6 continues with the survivors of the latest Ghostface killings from Scream 5, sisters Samantha (Melissa Barrera) and Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega), and twins Chad (Mason Gooding) and Mindy Meeks (Jasmin Savoy Brown), leaving Woodsboro behind and starting a new chapter of their lives in New York City only to be plagued again by a streak of murders by a new Ghostface killer.
Last year this franchise made a major comeback with its 5th installment that very much surpassed most expectations and showed that even after the passing of Wes Craven the franchise was seemingly in good hands. But now in this sixth installment the series finally leaves Woodsboro, bringing the murder and mayhem to the big apple and leading to some huge changes to the lore.
There was a lot of risk involved with taking this series in such a bold direction and yet it ultimately paid off in massive ways, delivering another solid installment that may be one best of the entire Scream franchise since the first two films. It’s also the most brutal installment of the franchise, really taking the gloves off and going all out, using the New York setting to its advantage to dial up the horror and deliver a bloody exhilarating thrill ride.
It’s been made very clear that the team behind this film and the previous film are all about making this revival of Scream as consistently awesome as possible by respecting what made this series so uniquely good, as well as managing to breathe new life and energy into it to prevent it from getting repetitive or stale.
And yes, even though this is the first Scream film to be without Sydney, it very much stands out on its own so it didn’t necessarily need her in order to be great. There are some little things I did have issues with in this film but none of them ever ruined my overall enjoyment. This film has so many positive things going for it that could have easily been done wrong in less capable hands.
The performances from everyone involved are all fantastic but it’s the surviving members of the group from the previous installment, now dubbed the “Core Four”, that really stood out both in terms of acting and how they are written. This is their story and we get to see how they have changed since the events of the previous film, both individually and together as a group.
Jenna Ortega and Melissa Barrera once again rule, cementing themselves as the new faces of this franchise and having compelling arcs of their own. Both are individually dealing with the traumas of what they went through which in turn has impacted their relationship, and the decisions they make in this film offer great themes at the same time. One thing for sure is that they make a way more powerful duo in this film compared to the last, really giving the film lots of emotional depth and making you really care for them as they deal with the new and more dangerous Ghostface after them.
The Meeks were also way more investing in this film, delivering stronger performances that made me really love them in this. Jasmin Savoy Brown gives beautiful horror nerd energy as Mindy while Mason Gooding radiates with addicting charisma as Chad, being way more than the typical jock type that he appears to be.
For legacy characters, we have Courtney Cox back as Gale Weathers and Hayden Panettiere back as Kirby Reed, the survivor of the 2011 Woodsboro murders who is now a special agent in the Atlanta office of the FBI. Both were excellent in their performances and played good roles in the story as they were used respectfully and just enough that they never took away from the Core Four and newer characters.
As for the Ghostface of this film… Holy shit is he amazing. This is the most relentless, brutal, and terrifying Ghostface we have had in the entire franchise. The way this Ghostface moves and acts is very different compared to what we have had before, I never thought I’d be this on edge going into this film but I was loving it.
The revelation of who Ghostface was also really surprised me. There were so many times that I thought the killer or killers were so obvious yet I ended up being wrong at every turn. Some super fans of the series probably guessed the killers instantly and will probably consider me to be an idiot for not knowing from the start but I honestly did not predict the reveal at all. I’m glad they defied my expectations at every turn, which was what made me love this film even more.
As always with every Scream film there is meta humor involved, with plenty of it littered throughout the background and the writing. It was done so wonderfully, reminding me of some of the best humor we have had from previous installments like Scream 2 and 5, but still manages to throw in some original material at the same time.
Certain tropes from previous installments are used again in this film and while some of it is really good, having been given new spins, there were some that I feel didn’t entirely work, especially with the newly risen stakes. Scream is well known to have frequent fake-out deaths in each installment but I feel they may have overdone it a tad too much in this installment, taking away some of the impact certain scenes have. This film has higher stakes with the new setting and has very brutal sequences that do hit hard but there are some sequences that I feel do lose a bit of their kick, all because of the fake-out trope.
In a story that mostly defies falling into typical franchise tropes, I was a little annoyed that this particular trope wasn’t entirely avoided as it should have been. This is my personal view though so I don’t expect everyone to agree but I do want to make it clear that despite this flaw it never ruined my overall enjoyment of the film. It’s still a bloody great time, delivering solid scenes of graphic gory horror and terrific nail-biting tension that had me curled up. Also with the new setting, we get all new technical elements that are all really well done, with some excellent action, sets, cinematography, editing, and of course a great musical score that enhances the thrills.
They utilized the New York setting to the best of their ability which is more than I can say for another slasher franchise that attempted to use New York but failed miserably.
Scream 6 surpassed my expectations and showed that this franchise is in really great hands and that it can continue to be a great series going forward that respects the past while also not being afraid to try new things. Fans of horror and long-time fans of Scream are pretty much guaranteed to love this one. I’m going to give Scream VI an A = 96.
You can find more of my writing on instagram, and check out my channel on YouTube!