Tara Carpenter is cooking dinner and waiting for her friend to come over when the landline rings. She ignores it. Then it starts ringing again. With a sigh, she answers it. It comes as no surprise that she is eventually asked what is her favorite scary movie, followed by the appearance of Ghostface.
In Modesto, CA, Samantha "Sam" Carpenter (Melissa Barrera) is sitting on a curb with her boyfriend, Richie (Jack Quaid) when she gets a call. Her sister has been stabbed but is still alive. Sam and Richie head to Woodsboro immediately. Upon arriving at the hospital, they meet Tara's group of friends (i.e. the suspect group). Sheriff Judy Hicks is less than pleased to see Sam back in town, hinting that Sam was a bad girl. Since Ghostface has returned, Sam knows who to see: Dewey Riley (David Arquette). Dewey let's both Sidney (Neve Campbell) and Gale (Courtney Cox) know that Ghostface is back then sets out to find out who the current copycat is.
Overall, this is a weak entry. The new cast is not particularly engaging, and the inclusion of the old cast is mostly awkward. Dewey is terrific. He's the old guy who has done this before and knows the rules of a horror movie. That he is separated from Gale and retired from the sheriff's department provide an excellent excuse for him to be in Woodsboro. However, Gale arriving to cover the story is clunky. She should just be offering her commentary from the New York desk while some field reporter is on the ground. I suppose her concern for Dewey might be an okay excuse but still... Finally, Sidney comes because of reasons. She's the old pro at this. No, she's not wearing protective armor and a helmet. She doesn't have a band of bodyguards with her. She has gun, will travel.
(SPOILERS)
The villains are particularly bad. When revealed, I was shaking my head. They are toxic fans who are upset with how the latest movies in the franchise have failed to keep faith with the earlier movies. As such, they are providing new material that will make callbacks to the original movie. Right. Worse, one of the villains is 5'3" and yet takes on the 6'2" football player. Before the villain was revealed, who knew? But after the fact, what?
There was a twist that Sam was the illegitimate daughter of original murderer, Billy Loomis. Moreover, she is taking anti-psychotic meds as she keeps seeing her long-dead father who died before she was born. Right. Anyway, this plants the seed that maybe she is one of the murderers and she is just hallucinating when she is attacked. Nope. Maybe that is a plot thread for the next movie.
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