WES CRAVEN
Bil’s rating (out of 5): BBB.
USA, 1996. Dimension Films, Woods Entertainment. Screenplay by Kevin Williamson. Cinematography by Mark Irwin. Produced by Cathy Konrad, Cary Woods. Music by Marco Beltrami. Production Design by Bruce Alan Miller. Costume Design by Cynthia Bergstrom. Film Editing by Patrick Lussier.
Drew Barrymore‘s opening scene in this film is so effectively terrifying that it will ruin the rest of it for you. Wes Craven put the teen horror genre into top box-office form when this film was released, focusing on a California high school where students are being knocked off one by one. The culprit appears to be a raving madman who stalks them while wearing a mask in the likeness of Robert Munch’s Scream painting. The film’s self-reflective plot has the remaining youngsters listing off the trademark rules of films of the genre, making for more laughs than screams in some sections and resulting in an uneven experience. Neve Campbell is particularly weak in the lead role, especially since Barrymore’s earlier moments are a very tough act to follow.
