Scream 2 is a 1997 American satirical slasher horror mystery thriller film about a spate of new killings by Ghostface. The movie is obviously a sequel to Scream (1996).
Once again directed by Wes Craven from a screenplay written by Kevin Williamson.
Plot:
Two years after the events of Scream, Sidney Prescott and Randy are attending Windsor College. They are trying to get on with their lives…
Until a new Ghostface killing spree begins. With the help of Dewey and Gale, Sidney must find out who’s behind the murders. As the body count goes up, the list of suspects goes down…
Review:
Scream 2 mainly works on the level of a fiendish, darkly humorous murder mystery. Given that the sequel to the blockbuster shocker Scream was cranked out rapidly (by the same filmmaking team of director Wes Craven and screenwriter Kevin Williamson), premiering in theatres a year after the hugely profitable original, the quality is actually pretty good.
Once again, it’s a sharp `whodunit’ swathed in the clichés of a Hollywood slasher-horror film, with characters who are amusingly aware of how these things normally play out. Thus, the clever banter is broadened to include the alleged racism when black characters are the first to die (you may remember Omar and Jada?) and the effects of violence in cinema and TV spilling into real-life mayhem (you may remember Get Rich or Die Tryin’?). But such dialogues rarely go deep into the topic or take any definite moral position.
Maybe because the casualties are no longer underaged, or the slashing isn’t quite so savage, or maybe even because there’s a growing affection between squabbling Gale and Dewey (actors Arquette and Cox became a real-life married couple), the results don’t feel quite as grisly.
Charles Cassady Jr., MOVIES & MANIA
Other reviews:
Everyone falls victim to being associated with Sidney, which is wholly unbelievable because the killer could just take her out at any moment. But that’s what makes this work, oddly […] It’s ridiculous, and the characters are written with an elevated style and deep, strange earnestness that grounds the film in an incredulous reality.” Ready Steady Cut
“Craven and Williamson flourish here, both in content and presentation, giving Scream 2 the same sort of zenith as Final Destination 2 and Friday the 13th Part 2 […] everything is on point, almost perfectly pieced together in a big slasher flick jigsaw of numerous suspects, red herrings, heroes and villains; the body count is liberal without going ballistic and it’s sufficiently grisly and occasionally scary.” Vegan Voorhees
Cast and characters:
Jada Pinkett Smith … Maureen (as Jada Pinkett)
Omar Epps … Phil
Heather Graham … ‘Stab’ Casey
Roger L. Jackson … The Voice (voice)
Peter Deming … Popcorn Boy
Neve Campbell … Sidney Prescott
Elise Neal … Hallie
Liev Schreiber … Cotton Weary
Kevin Williamson … Cotton’s Interviewer
Craig Shoemaker … Artsy Teacher
Michelle Gellar … Cici
Timothy Olyphant … Mickey
Jamie Kennedy … Randy Meeks
Jerry O’Connell … Derek
Courteney Cox … Gale Weathers
Duane Martin … Joel
Laurie Metcalf … Debbie Salt
Lewis Arquette … Chief Hartley
Rebecca Gayheart … Sorority Sister Lois
Portia De Rossi … Sorority Sister Murphy
David Arquette … Dewey Riley
Marisol Nichols … Dawnie
Technical details:
2 hours
Audio:Dolby
Aspect ratio: 2.39: 1
Trailer:
