With the recent release of Scream 7 and it currently raking in the dough at the box office, I figure now is a perfect time to talk a little bit deeper about all of the films and give my personal ranking of the franchise. I’ve always said that ‘Scream’ is one of the best and most consistent horror franchises out there. There really isn’t a “bad” movie per say in the entire bunch, just some much lesser than some others. The mystery element to these movies always help to really bring it up a level (although the killer reveals are at times when the films slip in quality the most), and Sidney Prescott is my personal favorite final girl of all time. So, without further ado. Let’s get into it and talk some Ghostface shall we?
#7: Scream (2022)
The reboot/requel chapter of the series is still my least favorite. There are things to like in it for sure and the new group was interesting, but I certainly had my issues with this movie as well. Not the least of which being killing off a legacy character in after tearing apart his life in this film. Dewey was always the sweet, silly, lovable character of the series and this movie not only made him a sad and lonely drunk, but they had him killed at like the beginning of the third act. At this point, I don’t think anyone has a right to kill off any of the legacy characters that are left and they shouldn’t have been able to get Dewey. Don’t even think about touching Sidney or Gale at this point though, you don’t have Wes Craven around anymore and they’ve carried these movies for 7 films. Maybe that makes me a pretentious horror fan but so be it. Also, the trope of the killer being the boyfriend like the original film felt a bit played out to me and not really that fun or surprising. I did like the cast though and it was still a decent film in a lot of bits, it just left a sour taste in my mouth after not having a new Scream film for over a decade and then doing what they did with legacy characters.
#6: Scream 3
In a lot of ways, Scream 3 is probably realistically the worst film in the franchise, and I’m sure it’s at the bottom of a lot of people’s lists, but I still have lots of nostalgic fun with this movie if I’m being honest. Despite its many weak or questionable qualities. The element of Sidney’s mom and her backstory being more focused on was a good thing and added to the overall story quite a bit, it felt so very dark and real, especially in light of current events and what we know about sleazy Hollywood tactics and Harvey Weinstein and all that stuff. It felt like this movie didn’t know what it wanted to be though because that raw storyline was in direct contrast with a bunch of silly characters and goofy moments played purposely for laughs. This was the silliest Scream of all time for sure, but it was also trying to do so much in telling backstory while wrapping up the overall story, so the finished product was sort of tonally jumbled. The killer reveal and flipping everything on its head also kind of stunk to me and has always felt weak and pissed me off so that’s a major setback as well. I get what they were going for with it, but it just didn’t land.
#5: Scream 7
The most recent installment of the franchise is a mixed bag for me as a fan. On one hand, it was nice to get the story back on Sidney and take her character in a new direction, presenting her as a wife and a mom to a teenage daughter was something we hadn’t been able to see for Sidney in the series up to that point and seeing her relationship with her daughter was an interesting new chapter to the story. The Ghostfaces and the kills were also some of the most brutal and blood soaked of the entire series throughout the film, then the 3rd act happened. I just feel like a lot of the ending of this movie was handled sloppily and haphazardly. Everything moved at a breakneck pace and characters were either quickly disposed of or conveniently disappeared from the movie for the climax. The killer reveals were also probably the very weakest of the entire series and the handling of Stu Macher’s character just felt like blue balling fans who have asked to bring him back into the fold for over a decade now.
#4: Scream VI
There was quite a bit that I liked about Scream VI actually, but it also kind of fell apart in the third act. Are you catching on to the common trend with this series here yet? Anyways, I actually liked that this movie kind of drifted away from the original group a bit more and focused a lot of the time and energy on the newer characters. This is still Sidney Prescott’s series, and it always will be, but this was the only film that felt like it was actually attempting to take things into a new direction with a new generation. This is in many ways the most different feeling ‘Scream’ movie in the entire series and I really appreciate that about it. The setting being in an urban area, NYC no less, was entirely new for this series as well and made for some fresh frights and kills in alleyways, subway trains, bodegas, and etc. The killer reveals were once again a bit weak though and the number of times a certain character was stabbed and still lived will always feel a bit ridiculous to me, but alas I still like this one actually.
#3: Scream 2
I will preface this by saying I enjoy the top 3 of this series for me much more than the rest of them. In fact, my #2 and #3 spots tend to change positions depending on the week. Scream 2 was great, an overall awesome follow-up to one of my favorite horror films of all time, but there were still a few things throughout this film that just bothered me. I liked the inclusion of Cotton Weary, he was a great character. Perfect levels of creepy scumbag to throw you off and make you think he could potentially be up to something. Sarah Michelle Gellar also had one of the more memorable kills of the series in this movie and the story taking place on a college campus this time was a lot of fun. I like high school/college campus horror. On the other hand, Sid’s boyfriend Derek annoyed me this entire film, Randy being killed halfway through the movie was a nut punch to every horror movie fan out there, and Debbie Salt aka Mrs. Loomis was a goofy and understandable killer reveal for this series and what they were trying to do, but she still sucked. I didn’t like her character at all.
#2: Scream 4
This was kind of like my generation’s ‘Scream’ film. I got into the series around the time this one came out so there’s a level of nostalgia with it I’m sure, but this truly is one of the best ‘Scream’ stories there is and I feel like it’s often the most under-talked about, underappreciated film in the series. This picked the story up 11 years later, so all our core characters felt a little older, but it felt like you picked back up right where you left off with them as well. It took the story back to Woodsboro for the first time since the original movie and this was the first time that Sidney wasn’t a part of the younger generation getting toyed with, but her niece was. The killer reveal and motivations were also the best of the series arguably, aside from the OG. Where a lot of these films stumble at the finish line with the killer reveal this one shines, and that’s partially why it’s so high on my list. I also kind of love Emma Roberts so that could be a part of it, but Jill was like the 2nd lead of this movie and she was Sid’s family, but she ends up being the evil mastermind behind this? That’s fresh, effed up, and awesome. This was also the last ‘Scream’ film that Wes Craven did. The cold open was one of the weakest of the series, but that’s my main complaint.
#1: Scream
As much as I enjoy 4 and 2 and have my fun with most all of the movies in this series, nothing still comes close to the original film and nothing ever will. This isn’t only my favorite movies of this series, but one of my favorite horror films of all time. Arguably my absolute favorite, but certainly top 3. Wes Craven made many great, original stories in the horror genre, he was a visionary director, but this is still my favorite of his films. This reinvigorated the horror genre in the mid 90s, a time where the genre as a whole was in desperate need of a face lift. Multiple teen horror films after this tried to copy ‘Scream’ throughout the rest of the 90s, hell its own series has been trying to copy it since the original, but nothing can top it. That’s what made this movie so fun and original. It was so smart, self-aware, and meta that it wasn’t afraid to turn the mirror inwards and poke fun at itself and horror tropes while still stringing along an enticing murder mystery with a fun group of characters that you liked spending time with. That’s not really an easy thing to do, but Wes Craven did it, and Scream has lived on and will continue to live on as one of the best and most influential horror movies of all time. Just let the series go and keep that legacy while you still have it.
That’s it for this one though folks! Again, my ranking isn’t the definitive right one, it’s just my personal thoughts and ranking. Let me know your ranking of the Scream franchise as well in the comments or by messaging the page! Make sure to like the page on social media or bookmark the website to keep up with all my latest posts on horror films, new release movies, WWE wrestling, and much more! Until next time, be good to one another.
