Scream VI

How sharp can a slasher with a ‘six’ tattooed on its back be? As early as in its opening sequence, the entry proves that, much like the returning Kirby Reed (Hayden Panettiere), the Scream series is incapable of flatlining for long; the cloak- and knife-wielding show once again makes it worth our while.

Last year's requel, fashionably titled Scream, introduced us to the meta bloodbath with a familiar landline call sequence. This year's edition exercises a similar homage. A recipe for tedium? It could seem so. Meanwhile, we are treated to a scene that begins at a fancy restaurant in downtown New York. It is here that an associate professor in film studies (Samara Weaving, whaat!) answers the phone from a killer. Without going into details, the following minutes inspired a collective sigh of surprise in the screening room.

The first two acts are a knockout. Returning a year after the Woodsboro mayhem, our "core four" hope to lie low in New York, while wrestling with individual traumas. Sam (Melissa Barrera), drifting from one counselor’s office to another, tries to keep her dark impulses in check. Tara (Jenna Ortega) annoyed with her half-sister's overprotectiveness, drowns her confusion in college distractions. Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown) blames herself for the failure to unmask Richie and Amber. Her brother, Chad (Mason Gooding), does his best to keep this family together.

When the carnage ensues, suspicions about the identity of Ghostface will naturally fall on the obligatory new faces, including Mindy's girlfriend Anika (Devyn Nekoda), Quinn (Liana Liberato) - the daughter of a local Detective (Dermot Mulroney) - and the dorky Ethan (Jack Champion), whom Chad takes under his wing. To complete the line-up, there is a mysterious neighbour (Josh Segarra) and Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox), who couldn’t resist producing another opportunistic novel.

This new installment is the real proving ground for the actors portraying our Woodsboro fugitives; after all, they didn't fully come to the fore last year with the old guard still very much around. The first two acts are a display of the "core four's" excellent onscreen chemistry. The young cast effortlessly impresses on the audience their genuine bond. Still relative newcomers to the franchise, they benefit a lot from having the intros, catch-ups, and high-fiving the OGs behind them.

The reason for Neve Campbell’s absence (inadequate financial compensation) inspires plenty of frustration. From the storytelling point of view, however, lending more screen space to the new generation hits the bull’s eye. In fact, throughout the film, I questioned the necessity of bringing back Gale.

Scream VI takes the meta-commentary down a notch compared to its predecessor, but still finds time to poke fun at true crime miniseries, Letterboxd buffs, and Hollywood franchises. It is from the concept of the contemporary franchise that Mindy's renewed list of rules emerges. The third act could have performed more radical experiments: the screenwriters opt for simplicity when revealing the killer's identity and motives. The novel The Mary Shelley Club by Goldy Moldovsky (give it a read), itself inspired by Kevin Williamson and Wes Craven’s brainchild, would have supplied a few twisted ideas for how these winks to franchise-making could have been expanded upon at the climax.

Don't let this grumbling give you the wrong impression, though. Scream VI is likely to remain, and I feel no shame declaring this in early March, among the most intoxicating cinema experiences of the year. It thoroughly nails the tone. The mix of thriller and humour is nearly on par with the original. The execution of the chase scenes and disembowelments is second to none in the franchise. The cosmopolitan setting pays off, too; a subway scene, for instance, emphasises just how effectively this relocation choice raises the stakes. The film is also adequately topical - shout-out to how unobtrusively it incorporates social media.

In a way, Scream VI is the inverse of its predecessor. Last year, it wasn’t all shipshape and Bristol fashion until the thrilling third act; there were occasional hiccups while setting up the pieces on the board. The latest instalment, conversely, sees a final act struggle to live up to the nearly pitch-perfect two acts that precede it. The new entry still accomplishes something that few would have foretold given its lightning-fast production timeline: it leaves one with a ravenous appetite for more Ghostface spectacles.