Scream VI review: Most brutal and entertaining instalment in franchise

The Scream franchise looks like it can go on forever. Ever since franchise creator Kevin Williamson rewrote the rules of horror in the first movie, there has been an appeal in the way the series addresses and challenges horror tropes. It helps that the series has seen an influx of new blood, both in front and behind the camera.

Noted horror auteur Wes Craven directed the first four Scream movies before taking a break, and directing duo Guy Busick and James Vanderblit released their sequel and soft reboot in 2022 after an 11-year hiatus. All of which has led up to the sixth instalment in the franchise, Scream VI — to which we want to say to the duo, may this franchise never end.

Scream VI brings back Scream’s (2022) core cast. Jenny Ortega, fresh from her Wednesday fame, returns as Tara Carpenter, while Melissa Barrera reprises her role as the older sister with a twisted past, Samantha.

They are joined by Jasmin Savoy Brown and Mason Gooding as twins Mindy and Chad Meeks-Martin and while franchise veteran Courteney Cox’s Gale Weathers is the only legacy character from the original movie to make a return and she is joined by Hayden Panettiere’s Kirby Reed, who survived the events of Scream 4. 

After surviving the attacks in Woodsboro, the group moves to New York City for a fresh start. Tara starts college with Mindy and Chad so their friend group has expanded to add Tara and Sam’s roomie Quinn (Liana Liberato), Chad’s roomie Ethan (Jack Champion) and Mindy’s girlfriend Anika (Devyn Nekoda).

Tara has also secretly begun dating again, with next block neighbour Danny (Josh Segarra). They’re all still healing from Ghostface’s attacks but of course, it’s only a matter of time until a new Ghostface emerges in the Big Apple to finish the job once and for all.

Thankfully, they now have Kirby — who is now an FBI agent — and Quinn’s father Detective Bailey (Dermot Mulroney) on their side. Except, well, as we know from Scream, you shouldn’t really trust anyone. 

Scream VI has all ingredients that fans love the franchise for, starting with a really good killer. Scream VI is — and we don’t say this lightly — the most brutal movie of the entire franchise.

We’ve seen plenty of slashing and stabbing over the yearsbut Scream VI takes it up a notch. Stabs through the eyes, the nose, straight in the gut and then shimmying the knife around and up, Scream VI is not for those who get faint and weak at visuals of blood spurting out of limbs and holes, intestines spilling out of torsos and heads off shoulders.

Guns also seem like a favourite weapon in this movie but we personally enjoy a little stabathon and old methods seen in previous movies recycled for a new generation. 

Self-awareness has also been brought to a whole new level in Scream VI. The franchise has always been aware of certain horror movie cliches but they still use it to their advantage.

Not only are these cliches deliberately used for comedic effect, it also proves that the cliches do work in favour in certain situations. We know not to pick up the phone every time it rings, but our characters still do. Only this time, they’re feistier and know better than to fall for Ghostface’s tricks. 

Another moment of self-awareness (that is non-violent) is when Mindy gives yet another spiel on how horror movies work and who among them is the likely suspect.

Mindy did not just add on to her theory on sequels and requels (as she did in the previous movie), but she also explained the use of legacy characters and the impact it has on IPs, as if almost warning and preparing audiences for the worst but also keeping us on our toes.

Mindy debunks some theories mid-spiel and even proposes new ideas that audiences likely may not have thought about themselves because let’s be real, the characters are not the only ones trying to figure out who the killers are — that’s part of the fun! 

Cox’s Gale Weathers making a Glee joke when referring to Panettiere’s Kirby’s last known appearance is also a moment we’d like to highlight because for a horror and thriller, Scream VI sure knows how to get multiple laughs out of its audience.

As far as characterisation goes, Scream VI has improved tremendously. Most of the characters in Busick and Vanderblit’s previous movie were not at all interesting — with the exception of the legacy characters Gale, Dewey and Sidney and catalyst Sam.

Tara gets a bit more spotlight in this sequel and Chad is so much more likeable, although, with a name like Chad he’s still insufferable somewhat, but we like him now. Growth! 

It goes without saying that sisters Tara and Sam are the most memorable characters in this sequel. After all, the whole plot of the films surrounds killing them and Sam’s serial killer father, Billy Loomis.

Where we felt like Tara did not have much screen time in the previous film because she was busy being in the hospital for being the first unfortunate victim, Scream VI makes up for it. It’s also no surprise that Ortega is pushed forward in this movie after reaching global fame thanks to the hit Netflix series, Wednesday.

Ortega is talented and versatile as an actress and we’d love to see more of her in future films, Scream or not. 

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ie2qmAOc6Q[/embed]

Barrera’s Sam is also more focused. She was written as an absolute mess in the previous movie but Scream VI sees more confidence and surety in the character. Yes, Sam is still messy — how does one recover from being the spawn of a famous serial killer anyways? — but the writers really did a much better job at whipping up Sam, and all their other characters into shape. 

Maybe we’ve watched one too many thrillers and whodunits, so it was much easier spotting clues and piecing them together to figure out who Ghostface is, but the reveal was still impactful.

Scream’s reveal of who the killers were and their motivations was one of our major complaints but Scream VI’s revelation had us more convinced. At least it made more sense than just obsessive movie fanatics. 

One thing that Busick and Vanderblit also improved on is the film’s conclusion. Scream (2022) ended with us feeling dissatisfied with the reveal and lacklustre ending, but Scream VI wraps it up nicely, like a present on Christmas day. It leaves audiences with no questions and a sense of resolution but it also keeps things open enough for a potential sequel.

Sam’s ‘Billy Loomis is my dead father who still haunts me’ problem still persists and the events of Scream VI seem to hint that there’s still way more to Sam’s psyche than lead on.

Tara, oh sweet sweet Tara is no longer the little teenager we first met — could all the trauma she’s endured start a new taste for violence and instability? Who knows? Likely Busick and Vanderblit, so please, keep the Scream movies coming. This is a franchise we (currently) don’t want to see end.

ALSO READ: Did IMDB just reveal who Scream VI's Ghostface is?

This article was first published in Geek Culture.