Scream VI

22 years had to pass between the premiere of Scream 3 and that of Scream 5 (officially titled Scream, just dry). Sufficient time for a generational change: the young people who enjoyed that phenomenon of the 90s already had children, or at least nephews, also teenagers, ready to scream and, the smartest ones, smile at the "meta" comments for moviegoers. Between those years there was a Scream 4 (2011) that already smelled of nostalgia and that served as a dignified farewell -but not up to par- for the master Wes Craven, director of the first two installments (the best, obviously).

How to sell to the new generations a franchise that already seemed finished, and that was also supported by references to youth horror films from decades before the 90s? If I knew, I would be lying on a mattress of money, but the fact is that, against all logical odds, Scream (2022) did very well, introducing a new team of heroes and with the "classic" survivors in supporting roles, passing the bar for the following protagonists, more in line with the new times (more ethnic and sexual variety and less hooliganism).

As happened with the original trilogy, one of the jewels of the Weinstein team, the producers of Paramount and company have rushed to launch an immediate sequel, barely a year after the previous installment. In their favor, they have the repetition in the cast of Jenna Ortega, who between Scream and Scream has risen not only as one of the new muses of the horror genre but also as a mainstream star thanks to the bombing of the Netflix series Wednesday, where he plays the titular character.

In any case, Jenna Ortega is not the headliner in Scream VI, an ensemble film like all those in the franchise, but rather the somewhat-more-protagonist-than-the-rest is the Mexican Melissa Barrera, in the role of Sam Carpenter, relief of the iconic Sidney Prescott played by Neve Campbell, who, for the first time in the saga, does not appear at any time.

As discussed in the film itself, in one of those moments that pop cinephilia like so much, at this point we are no longer talking so much about a series as about a franchise, and the classic characters are dispensable. They can even be sacrificed to add a little spice to a formula so used that, due to sheer wear, it loses its flavor. The sign of the times, as evidenced by a premiere almost simultaneous to that of Scream IV, that Creed III in which Rocky Balboa is conspicuous by his absence.

Whatever the hook with which Scream (2022) was made with the young audience, it is maintained in Scream VI, which takes up the previous film where it was left without introducing hardly any plot or stylistic novelty, despite the fact that Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown), niece of the long-awaited Randy (Jamie Kennedy) and heiress to his role as Greek commentator/choir, promises us that this is going to be a totally different installment, more spectacular and bloodier.

The main difference would be that the film takes place in New York (actually, Montreal with some digital funds) and the aforementioned absence of Sydney. Beyond that, the film adheres to a winning formula that combines the springs of the whodunit and the satire of the genre, with its moments of light gore (nothing to do with the bloody excesses of Terrifier, Hatchet, or other contemporary slashers). ) and, most interestingly, moments in which Sam mentally chats with her personal Jiminy Cricket, her late father Billy Loomis, a representation of a psychotic gene that hangs over her like a Damocles machete, if you will.

As has happened since the first film, Scream VI offers its best sequence in the prologue, this time with the leading role of the always fun and statuesque Samara Weaving, star of Wedding Night, an acclaimed film from directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, in charge of both this Scream and the previous one. In this prologue, the cravings of the most veteran slasher fan are also immediately satisfied, which are none other than a mention of the hilarious eighth installment of Friday the 13th: Jason Takes Manhattan.

Synopsis

Scream (2022), a self-described 'requel' to Scream (1996), relaunched the saga, with Sam and Tara Carpenter as the core around which the plot revolved, and Scream VI has brought together a few familiar faces to offer an experience of Earth-shattering terror, bloody and loaded with poignant wit.

Melissa Barrera reprises her role as Sam Carpenter, the illegitimate daughter of Billy Loomis, the first serial killer to don the Ghostface mask alongside his sidekick Stu Macher in the original 1996 film. “It's fun to get back into character,” she says Barrier. "This movie feels bigger in every way, and it's also great to be back with family."

From the on-set atmosphere to the film's plot, Scream VI is a family affair. In the film, Sam, his half-sister Tara (Jenna Ortega) and their friends, the Meeks-Martins, Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown), and her twin brother Chad (Mason Gooding), have moved from Woodsboro to New York after the Ghostface's latest kills will leave you as the sole survivors of your group of friends. The traumatic experience - which had its origin in the intention of Richie, at the time, Sam's boyfriend, and Amber, who was Tara's best friend, to recreate the Stab saga, creating new original material and at the same time using Sam's link to Billy as the basis for framing Sam for the murders - has affected each of them differently.