From “Friday the 13th” to “Halloween” to “The Shining,” there’s plenty of classic horror films I get excited to watch throughout the spooky season. However, there’s one that I can’t stand no matter how hard I try, that is the “Scream” series.
There are many reasons I dislike this series, and I’ll get to them, but let me give you the facts. This is a series of six mediocre films that have a rather lackluster villain and a very half-baked story with virtually no depth.
I understand the argument that all slasher films can be perceived as pointless; however, at the very least there’s an underlying story that gets fed into through the duration of “Friday the 13th” and “Halloween.”
For example, Michael Myers from “Halloween” is a deranged child who killed his eldest sister and continues to target those similar in demographic. He’s supernatural and almost never truly dies, fans have long speculated about his origins, and there’s always new lore to be discovered with him.
Jason Voorhees from “Friday the 13th” is a child who suffered severe bullying because of facial deformities and drowned at summer camp at the bottom of Crystal Lake because his camp counselors were too busy having sex. This led his mother, Pamela Voorhees, to go on a killing spree until her eventual death. Jason rises again and proceeds to kill in honor of his dead mother.
Now what does Ghost Face, the main antagonist of “Scream,” have? I’ll tell you, it’s nothing. He’s a guy in a mask that essentially prank calls people right before he kills them in their own homes; he has no motive, he has no depth, he’s just a rogue killer who likes prank calls.
Then they made six movies out of it. I don’t understand what the allure is. I’ve watched five of the six films and I remained bored throughout each film.
I have to acknowledge that Ghost Face has a cult following and there are plenty of people that love the character.
But I’m convinced those people that claim they love Ghost Face have never actually watched the films and thought the mask looked cool for a Halloween costume one year, and they’ll watch the films to try and seem like legit fans. Then, to the Ghost Face poser’s surprise, they find out how bad the films really are. Instead of enjoying the film, they spend the whole time looking for the small positive aspects of the movies then latch on to those notions in order to defend this mediocre series.
I can’t stand how most people can even consider this as a classic horror film; there’s nothing classic about it. It was a “Halloween” rip-off that came out in the 90s and has been held together as a legit franchise by some edgy junior high students that thought the mask was cool and watching the violence made them feel like rebels.
Scream isn’t even scary. Some argue any slasher films aren’t, but this one is especially bland. The “Scream” franchise and its viewer base have been trying so hard to be everything “Halloween” and “Friday the 13th” are and to be held to that standard.
Maybe it did have potential to be held to a high standard if only the producers tried to make something original.
Instead, we got a half-baked Michael Myers with a weird voice and the story depth of a shallow river paired with an annoying fanbase doing its best to be cool and different while knowing deep down that their movies suck.
“Scream” should’ve been a one-time deal, and that one time shouldn’t have been as popular as it was. Back in 1996, “Scream” should’ve been ridiculed and quickly faded into obscurity, but that’s unfortunately not what happened in this timeline of the universe.
