Hello Sidney
April 28, 2023 2023-09-01 8:55Hello Sidney
The Resurrection of The Scream Franchise
Wes Craven’s Scream franchise single-handedly resurrected the horror movie genre with its pop culture references, iconic characters, and suspense. The Scream franchise has returned with a bang after being dormant for 12 years. With Scream VI breaking box office records, the buzz around the franchise has been better than ever.
Scream (1996), where it all began, opens with the iconic murder of Casey Becker, played by Drew Barrymore. The people of Woodsboro have been rocked hard by the high schooler’s sudden death, now there is suspicion of a serial killer on the loose.
Her fellow high school student Sidney Prescott becomes the next target of Ghostface. He was revealed not only to be Sidney’s boyfriend, Billy Loomis, but also his friend Stu Macher. It was an astonishing plot twist.
Scream 2 (1997) kicks off two years after the events in Woodsboro and Sidney is now in college, living a somewhat ordinary life. That is until the killings start again on campus. All of Sidney’s newfound friends are targeted by Ghostface. In this rendition, he is revealed to be classmate Mickey Altieri and Mrs. Loomis, Billy’s mother. There is a clear pattern that this franchise has with the unmasking of Ghostface. In the end, this Ghostface duo is taken care of by Sidney and her friend Gale.
Scream 3 (2000) takes place in scandalous Hollywood. Sidney has been in hiding since the events of Scream 2 but is forced out when Ghostface’s presence arises once again. Since the very first Scream, movies have been made about the events of Woodsboro in a series called Stab. This version of Ghostface begins killing the actors in the order that they die in the movie. After all the actors are dead, the killer is revealed to be Roman Bridger, the director of Stab 3. Sidney suffers major blows but successfully defeats Roman.
It would be 11 years before the next Scream installment, in 2011, Scream 4 was released and Wes Craven certainly delivered. Woodsboro is once again cursed when two high schoolers are found deceased just when Sidney decides to visit. In Act 3, Sidney’s cousin Jill is revealed as Ghostface as well as her accomplice Charlie Walker. Jill would have gotten away with it if Sidney hadn’t survived her attack. After a tense battle in the hospital, Jill was dealt with.
Scream (2022) is the first installment where Sidney, Gale, and Dewey aren’t the focus of the movie. It instead follows Sam Carpenter as she deals with her estranged sister, Tara, being attacked by Ghostface. The killer is revealed to Sam’s boyfriend, Richie Kirsch, and Tara’s best friend Amber Freeman.
Scream VI (2023) takes place in New York City and this Ghostface is unlike any Ghostface seen before. It is complete with elaborate set pieces and cold-blooded murders. It continues the story of the Carpenter sisters. The Ghostface of this movie has people thinking he is invincible with how he escapes his victims’ defense mechanisms.
“What makes the Scream franchise so good is Ghostface. His persona is funny, and he’s slick with it. I don’t think Scream is going to disappear anytime soon,” said DBHS freshman Schadrac Tienna.
Scream VI is a movie for the ages. After 27 years of terrifying audiences, there is no sign of the Scream franchise dying anytime soon. Sadly, Wes Craven cannot be here to see it as he passed away on August 30th, 2015. But the franchise seems to be in good hands with Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. Viewers cannot wait to see what killer surprises these two have in store.
