FILM REVIEW: SCREAM 7 (18) ESP RATING: 2.5/5
- Gavin Miller
- 2 hours ago
- 2 min read
The classic horror franchise plays it incredibly safe with this fan-pleasing helping of nostalgia.
This seventh instalment moves from the original playground of Woodsboro – via New York for the sixth movie – to the quiet home town of Pine Grove, where legendary original teenage survivor Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) has built a new life.
Here we get a stereotypical (and unfortunately quite monotonous) mom and daughter angst sub-plot to proceedings – after a commendable opening salvo involving Landman starlet Michelle Randolph – that sets the tone for pretty much the entire movie, that never really gets out of third gear.
Sidney – despite being well known in her community as a Woodsboro survivor – is a closed-book when it comes to her daughter Tatum (1883 star Isabel May), and is still overly protective and deflective of any questioning from her past.
But when a new Ghostface emerges, Sidney’s darkest fears are realised once again as Tatum becomes the headline target – and she must face the horrors of her past.
Enter the usual suspects/key players including: original film (presumed dead) antagonist Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard), Sidney’s cop husband Mark (Joel McHale), paranoid mom Jessica (Anna Camp) and horror-loving son Lucas (Asa Germann), Tatum’s flame Ben (Sam Rechner), and her besties – Hannah (McKenna Grace) and Chloe (Celeste O’Connor) etc, and the scene is quite predictably set – bar the Macher twist.
Pencil in the inevitable Courteney Cox cameo as Gail Weathers, along with the extremely pointless additions of Scream 5 and 6 brother/sister returnees – Chad (Mason Gooding) and Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown) – and this seems like more akin to say, a Scream 4, forgoing the fresher semi-reboot feel of the past two films.
Coming from original film scribe Kevin Williamson on his first directorial duty for the franchise, he takes it formulaically back to its roots, and despite one or two suspenseful set-pieces, this does seem like a step backwards.
As always, there’s a decent death scene to be had – see head impalement-turned-beer pump for one – but the painfully long ‘whodunnit’ finale where the killer/killers (no spoilers) explain the reasoning for the carnage is painfully tired.
That said, Campbell and May try their best, and it just about does what it says on the tin for cinematic slasher entertainment.
Even if it only really fires out a few intermittent yelps – instead of an enthrallingly intense scream . . .
ESP Rating: 2.5/5
Gavin Miller
Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough & Odeon Luxe Peterborough, Out Now
Cast: Neve Campbell, Isabel May, Courteney Cox, Joe McHale, Anna Camp, Mckenna Grace, Sam Rechner, Asa Germann, Celeste O’Connor, Michelle Randolph, Jimmy Tatro, Mason Gooding, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Ethan Embry & Matthew Lillard
Running Time: 1 Hr 54 Mins
Director: Kevin Williamson
Film Review Venue: Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough
For all the latest film information & showtimes at Peterborough’s Showcase Cinema De Lux & Odeon Luxe Cinemas go to www.showcasecinemas.co.uk and www.odeon.co.uk
Comments