Scream 6 takes the franchise to New York City, ditches the Woodsboro setting entirely, and delivers the series' most viscerally exciting entry. It is not as smart as Scream 5, and the absence of Neve Campbell is felt more than the filmmakers probably hoped, but as a pure horror spectacle it is enormously entertaining, with set-pieces that are bigger, bolder, and more physically intense than anything the franchise has previously attempted. The bodega sequence alone is worth the price of admission.
At a Glance
Director: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (Radio Silence)
Runtime: 122 minutes
Starring: Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, Courteney Cox, Hayden Panettiere, Jack Quaid, Dermot Mulroney
Release: 2023
Critics Rating: ★★★★ (4/5 stars, the franchise's most viscerally exciting entry)
Audience Rating: ★★★★ (4/5 stars, genuinely thrilling)
Review Breakdown
Plot
Sam and Tara Carpenter, now in New York City, find themselves targeted by a new Ghostface obsessed with the legacy of all previous Ghostface killers. The Ghostface shrine, a museum of franchise memorabilia assembled by the killer, is one of the series' most inventive visual ideas and a clever piece of meta-horror. The villain reveal is solid if not quite matching Scream 5's, and the film's pacing is excellent throughout, rarely pausing long enough for the plot's occasional contrivances to become a problem.
Characters
Melissa Barrera is excellent as Sam, given the franchise's most physically demanding material and rising to it completely. Jenna Ortega's Tara continues to be a delight, and the sister dynamic remains the new generation's strongest element. The return of Hayden Panettiere's Kirby Reed is the film's most emotionally satisfying development, handled with real warmth. Courteney Cox's Gale is given her best material since Scream 2. The absence of Neve Campbell is the film's most significant creative loss, and no amount of good work from the rest of the cast entirely compensates for it.
Tone
Radio Silence lean harder into the action-horror register here than in Scream 5, and the result is a film that is more viscerally exciting if slightly less intellectually satisfying. The New York setting gives the film a different energy from the Woodsboro entries, and the filmmakers use it well, particularly in the subway and bodega sequences. The meta-commentary is present but less central than in previous entries, which suits the film's more action-focused ambitions.
Direction
Radio Silence's direction is the franchise's most physically ambitious, with set-pieces staged with a kinetic energy and spatial clarity that makes them thrilling. The bodega sequence is the film's directorial highlight and one of the franchise's finest individual horror passages. Brian Tyler and Christopher Lennertz's score drives proceedings forward with real momentum.
Cultural Reception
Scream 6 received strong reviews and was another solid commercial performer, confirming Radio Silence's new generation as a genuine franchise asset. The absence of Neve Campbell generated significant pre-release controversy, and most reviewers noted it as the film's most significant creative weakness. The bodega sequence and the Ghostface shrine were widely praised as franchise highlights, and Jenna Ortega's continued rise as a horror icon was a major talking point. It is now regarded as a strong if slightly lesser follow-up to Scream 5.
Who Should Watch
Essential viewing for fans of Scream 5. Those who want the franchise's most purely exciting action-horror experience will find exactly that. Those who want the meta-horror intelligence of the original may find it slightly less satisfying, but there is more than enough here to enjoy.
Final Verdict: The franchise's most viscerally exciting entry and a thrilling horror spectacle. Barrera and Ortega are excellent, the bodega sequence is one of the franchise's finest set-pieces, and Radio Silence's direction is as confident as ever. The absence of Neve Campbell is a real loss, and Scream 6 is not quite as smart as Scream 5. But it is enormous fun, and the Ghostface shrine is one of the series' best ideas.
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