The opening sequence of “Scream VI” begins in somewhat unfamiliar territory for those who are quite familiar with the slasher franchise: A Film Studies professor —played by Samara Weaving— sitting in a posh bar, not in Woodsboro, but in New York City.
This sequence – which ends on a gory and surprisingly unforeseen note for the viewer – signals a different approach to the overarching signatures of the film series. This is especially apparent with the film taking place in the Big Apple.
With this premise, one can’t help but be reminded of one of the more infamous instances where a major slasher franchise decided to transport to the Big Apple – that being 1989’s “Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan.” However, unlike the “Friday the 13th” series, critics have mostly been quite keen on the satirical “Scream” franchise, and “Scream VI” seems to be continuing that track record.
Following the events of the previous film, Sam Carpenter (Melissa Barrera) has moved with her sister Tara (Jenna Ortega) – along with other survivors – from Woodsboro to New York City, in order to begin a new life and to try to leave their traumatic past behind. This all soon changes with a new string of Ghostface murders, the targets being people that can be connected back to the Carpenters.
Barrera once again portrays Sam, this time with her character being in a completely different state of mind, processing the trauma of Woodsboro, along with the ghost of Billy Loomis looming over her. Unlike “Scream,” thanks to the writing, Barrera’s performance here is really great, with her character being more fleshed out and more three-dimensional.
Ortega – fresh off the success of Ti West’s slasher homage X, Tim Burton’s international phenomenon “Wednesday,” and of course last year’s “Scream – gives a good performance in reprising her role as Sam’s younger sister.
Along with the Core Four of Woodsboro, is an acquaintance named Quinn (Liana Liberato), the Carpenters’ promiscuous roommate.
Investigating the grisly Ghostface murders is a returning character to the franchise: Now-FBI agent Kirby Reed, played by Hayden Panettiere – who was in “Scream 4,” the last film that Wes Craven directed.
As for the writing of the film, James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick have written a script that has managed to outdo last year’s “Scream,” a film that was commentating on the emergence of the elevated/arthouse horror subgenre, which has been on the rise ever since 2011’s “Scream 4” release.
With this entry, they wrote a screenplay that is a commentary on the nostalgic elements that permeate most modern film franchises, whether it be big blockbuster franchises like “Star Wars” bringing back characters for “The Force Awakens,” or long-awaited sequels such as “Top Gun: Maverick” and David Gordon Green’s “Halloween” trilogy of films.
They achieve this facet in Scream VI, with the inclusion of characters from previous entries, such as Gale Weathers and Kirby Reed, along with a scene where Mindy – played by Jasmin Savoy Brown – goes over tropes that appear in horror films and applies it to this latest string of Ghostface killings, with the friend group. Additionally, Vanderbilt and Busick have also fleshed out some characters and improved on their overall writing of them, especially Sam Carpenter, which was one of my biggest issues with the last entry.
In terms of the direction, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (the collective known as Radio Silence) have achieved transitioning this script to film, visualizing the rather creative kills, with this film being a lot gorier than the last film, as the screen is at times displaying an utter bloodbath. Combined with this, there are some really suspenseful moments in certain scenes.
As with other entries in the film series, “Scream VI” has a pretty good soundtrack. There are some music cues interspersed throughout the film, such as Billie Eilish’s “When the Party’s Over” being featured briefly in a scene where Tara is in her room, in the first act, along with callbacks to previous entries, such as the usage of “Red Right Hand” by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds in another scene.
“Scream VI” shifts the slasher franchise in a new direction, while still retaining the sharp satirical essence of the original Wes Craven films, with this aspect still remaining relevant and crucial in this current age of genre cinema.
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