I have to go against the popular opinion here unfortunately and confess that I’m not a huge fan of scream. I totally get the meta reference love that people have for this film and there are definitely highlights to be sure. But to me, the whole thing plays out as a big joke. I know on some level that was the intention but I am always shocked to hear how many people are genuinely scared by Scream.
It’s certainly entered the public consciousness and was hugely influential. You can’t set foot in a Halloween store these days without seeing mass produced ghost face masks everywhere. And there are many who consider it one of the best slasher movies of all time. But by subverting the genre in a clever way, the film loses a lot of bite and almost crashes in on itself theme-wise. I give huge credit to Wes Craven for his genius in doing the film and appreciate it for that. But it’s not a favorite I enjoy revisiting.
I will say that the opening scene with Drew Barrymore is still great and holds up well even today though. And I like the twist ending to a point before it turns overly gratuitous and ridiculous. I think a lot of people younger than me can identify with this more but for me, the original slashers this film lampoons will always be more scary and in the end, more fun.