Screaming for stronger finale

While humorous and nostalgic, 'Scream' (2022) sadly sacrifices good writing for modernization

There is an expectation among moviegoers that sequels must be original while maintaining iconic aspects of the previous films; that is especially true with a franchise like “Scream,” which has become a darling of both horror movie buffs and superfans. This, however, is no easy feat.

Horror movie sequels often lack the same je ne sais quoi that the originals have due to overused tropes, predictable jump scares and a new cast that struggles to rival the original gang.

“Scream”(2022) – the franchise’s fifth film – falls into a similar boat: it attempts to renew a franchise for younger generations while incorporating OG castmates but is ultimately a dissatisfying end for Ghostface enthusiasts.

After the death of the franchise’s cre - ator, Wes Craven, fans speculated how the fifth “Scream” film would proceed. Would it continue as yet another unnecessary sequel torturing our poor heroine, Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell)?

For better or -- in my opinion -- worse, the new film attempts to become a “requel”, meaning that the original cast appears alongside new characters in a bid to modernize the franchise while keeping Craven’s original themes.

The film opens with Tara (Jenna Ortega) texting her friend, only to get a phone call from a mysterious caller. The caller threatens Tara’s best friend while asking the teen trivia about the original “Scream”. This leads to a classic thrilling Ghostface chase, with modern flair: at points, Tara attempts to arm her home security system and uses her phone and the internet to answer Ghostface’s questions. This memorable scene mirrors the first movie’s iconic sequence with

Drew Barrymore, simultaneously incorporating aspects that a Gen Z audience can relate to. Unfortunately, this is one of the only moments of the film that did a respectable job enhancing a “new” scene with nostalgia, with later attempts seeming overly cheesy and random at times.

After Tara is brutalized, her angstridden estranged sister comes to her aid, equipped with a ridiculous backstory and suspiciously kind boyfriend. As the main character of the new “Scream” film, I expected Sam (Melissa Barrera) to have the same grit and presence on screen that everyone’s “final girl,” Sidney Prescott, had. I was disappointed by her bland characterization, especially since other modern horror films have been churning out great female leads.

“Ready or Not,” “Midsommar,” around campus.”

Moore said SG sent out competition interest forms to professors in the Arts & Humanities school to start garnering interest, but any student from any school can participate. Different from the first iteration of the gallery, all art forms are accepted – including 2D, 3D and digital art. Students who submit to the interest form – which is due on Feb. 4 – need to indicate what art medium their craft fall under and fill out their contact information so SG can contact

“I want to emphasize the excitement of getting to host things in person on campus and get people together over creativity and kind of showing off what they do as a student,” Moore said. “I think, you know, as a STEM school –and it’s a fantastic school, I love UTD –but art can go a little underappreciated. So, getting to kind of show off that talent and the work people put into their craft is a really great opportunity and something I’m really excited Student Government is a part of.”