I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for More Scream!

“What’s your favorite scary movie?

Or rather, “What’s your favorite scary movie series?”

For me, it’s hard to beat the franchise that asked this very question from the jump(scare).

With the power duo of late director Wes Craven and screenwriter Kevin Williamson at the helm, the Scream films began as a self-aware send-up of horror movie cliches while simultaneously dispensing thrills and shocking deaths. As is the case with any franchise, the series has its highs and lows across its films. With the fifth installment’s recent release, I thought it would be worth watching every entry and seeing where each movie lands in the line-up.

So without further ado, here is my definitive ranking of the Scream films:

5. Scream 3

By the time the third entry in the series arrived, the Scream films lost considerable steam, both behind the camera and in front of it. This is the only film where writer Kevin Williamson is MIA and though his replacement Ehren Kruger does a decent job mimicking Williamson’s style, his writing doesn’t quite match the wit or pacing of the previous two films.

It seems as if the franchise’s heroine was also ready to call it a day by film #3. With Neve Campbell only being contractually obligated to film for 20 days, Sidney is all but a ghost in the first half of the movie. This means Gale, Dewey, and a cast of misfit actors are left to square off against Ghostface during the production of Stab 3. 
Although the setting at a movie studio makes for a fun backdrop, it prompts a shift in the film’s commentary. Rather than subverting the tropes of horror trilogies, Scream 3 instead takes shots at Hollywood’s toxic moviemaking practices. While it’s entertaining to a degree, the film takes on a much campier tone than the previous two installments and offers fewer scares.

However, there are still some fun elements. The brief opening winks at the audience with its quick dismissal of Cotton who’s determined not to be a cameo in some “cheap slasher pic.” The filmmakers also find a clever way to bring back fan-favorite Randy (Jamie Kennedy), who spells out the trilogy rules for his surviving friends via a past recording filmed before his demise in Scream 2.

The ending provides a solid twist that ties it to the original film. Although it doesn’t quite justify everything else leading up to the big reveal, Scream 3 still manages to pack in enough thrills and chills to make it worth a watch.

4. Scream 4

Scream 4 is the most polarizing entry for me. 

When seeing it for the first time in theaters, I remember being both entertained and creeped out (this is easily the goriest film of Craven’s entries). On this rewatch though, it doesn’t hold together nearly as well as that initial viewing.

The main issue is that despite a fresh crop of new faces, there aren’t enough endearing characters to root for. Most characters aren’t given enough time to make a lasting impression before Ghostface starts slicing and dicing (Kirby being the lone exception). The players that do manage to last long enough - a self-involved publicist, a cheating boyfriend, and a pair of clueless cops - aren’t written to inspire sympathy from the audience and instead feel like disposable victims you’d see in a lesser horror film.

Ghostface’s stalking and slashing method starts to show its age by this entry in particular, and the kills don’t feel all that inventive, either. 

Where Scream 4 truly delivers is in its ending, and the killers’ fame-seeking motive still rings true so many years later. Jill & Charlie may not be the most memorable villains across the four films, but their reasoning for being involved in a murder story to gain instant stardom doesn’t feel all that far removed from reality. 
Overall, Scream 4 does a better job balancing camp and horror than its predecessor, but it’s still a far cry from the franchise’s glory days.

3. Scream 2

With the success of the original Scream established, Craven and Williamson fully lean into poking fun at the hype surrounding slasher movies and their inevitable (and typically inferior) sequels. This entry gets points for assembling a crew that’s clearly in on the joke (“Who would want to do that? Sequels suck!”) and for continuing the series’ tongue-in-cheek handling of horror film conventions. 

Unlike Scream 4, the second film in the franchise takes its time making you care about the characters Ghostface terrorizes. There’s a good mix of new and old faces in Scream 2 and even though some characters exist simply to be picked off, the filmmakers develop them enough to make you invested in their survival. Cotton’s presence adds an interesting fold into the narrative, and Tori Spelling, good sport that she is, shows up as a long-delayed punchline from the first movie as the star of Stab (a self-deprecating prediction Sidney makes in Scream as to who will play her in a film adaptation).

The killers this time around are less obvious than Stu and Billy. Mickey’s “Blame it on the Movies” motive makes him the less compelling Ghostface here, but Billy’s mother Mrs. Loomis (an unhinged Laurie Metcalf) is a perfect villain for Sidney to face off against in the final act.

2. Scream 5

Recency bias could very well be at play here, but Scream 5 is one helluva ride! From the very first scene, it’s clear directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett are interested in making a “requel” (reboot + sequel) that not only respects Craven and Williamson’s source material, but elevates it.

A lot of the fun in Scream 5 is simply enjoying how much care and attention to detail the filmmakers put into making this movie. Characters from the earlier Screams appear in surprising and innovative ways, past locations are revisited with major payoffs, and the sequel continues the franchise’s tradition of saluting horror movie classics (let’s just say if you encounter Elm Street in Woodsboro, keep driving). There are so many easter eggs included that the film invites multiple viewings.

At this point in the series, Ghostface has his own set of conventions we’ve come to expect: creepy phone calls, knife-based kills, and a refusal to die in the movie’s climax. The filmmakers are wise enough to tweak these elements to give viewers a good time. Ghostface is at his most deadly in this entry, and the kills are especially brutal this time around — these scenes are not for the faint of heart.

In addition to having plenty of scares, the script (penned by James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick) rivals Williamson’s best offerings in the series. This wouldn’t be a Scream movie if it wasn’t chock full of self-aware characters spouting off horror movie knowledge, and this entry handily brings the series up to current-day horror trends.

Best of all, the film brings together faces from the past and present and nearly every new suspect has a connection to a previous character in the series. It adds an extra layer of enjoyment to the proceedings and just when you think you have everyone figured out, the film throws a curveball to keep you guessing until Ghostface is finally unmasked.

As hard as it is to imagine a Scream without Sidney, Gale, and Dewey, this entry makes a compelling case that, when placed in the right hands, the series can survive with or without its original trio fully intact.

1. Scream

The one that started it all! From the shocking first slaying of Drew Barrymore to Sidney’s showdown with her boyfriend-turned-serial killer Billy, Scream is a scream from start to finish. It set a new standard for slasher films in the 90s and ushered in a slew of carbon copy imitators that paled in comparison to this instant classic.

Scream’s winning combination of laughs and scares made it a bonafide (and deserved) smash. In comparison to its successors, the original film’s stabs at meta humor cut deeper, and Ghostface’s method of calling his victims right before killing them proved just as chilling then as it does today.
The filmmakers manage to pay clever homage to several horror classics such as Halloween and Nightmare on Elm Street. Craven himself even channels Freddy Kreuger in the series’ best cameo.

The movie isn’t without its flaws. Skeet Ulrich does everything but announce he’s the killer in his first scene and even with a few red herrings thrown in to cast doubt, Billy never shakes being the prime suspect. Williamson’s pop culture filled script offers some great lines (“The Exorcist was on. It got me thinking of you.”), but some references get recycled more than once (Basic Instinct and Sharon Stone are top of mind for everyone in Woodsboro). These minor faults don’t detract from the overall picture and it’s safe to say that after all these years, Scream still reigns supreme.