Creators – Jay Beattie (Cold Case), Jill E. Blotevogel (Ravenswood), and Dan Dworkin (Revenge)
Starring – Willa Fitzgerald (Gotham), Bex Taylor-Klaus (The Last Witch Hunter), and Carlson Young (Heroes)
Release Date – 2015
Rating – 3/5
Tagline – “Welcome to Lakewood” and “You will never see it coming”
When I was in middle school I rented the 1996 slasher Scream starring Neve Campbell, David Arquette, and Courteney Cox and directed by horror icon Wes Craven. At the time I was not a fan so I never followed it up with the sequels. When I was young I did not appreciate the charm Scream had and how it was the film that bought about the new age of slashers where they were self-aware. Back in 2011 I married the love of my life and our mutual friend got me the first three Scream films. I decided that since they were a gift that I really needed to check them out. I was actually impressed with all three and loved them for what they are. All three were slashers for the thinking man. I really enjoyed them and could not wait for the fourth film to be released. When it was I liked it just as much as the others.
Last year when theScream TV show was announced I had my doubts. I assumed the show would be like One Tree Hill set against the back drop of murders. I skipped on checking it out because I was afraid I would not enjoy it. However, once the opportunity to review season one on DVD presented itself I jumped on it. Thanks Anchor Bay for sending this one my way!
**Spoiler Alert**The series follows the small community of Lakewood who has a hard time letting go of the past. A few decades earlier the small community was shocked when one of their own, a deformed teenager, stalked and killed several teens one night before being gunned down out at the lake. Now, as new murders happen, a small group of high school friends race against the clock to find out who the new killer is before it is too late. One of them in particular has to dig up her parents past in order to save her future.**Spoiler Alert**
I was ready to give this one a negative review even before I laid eyes on it. I assumed it would be more dramatic then horror with very little influence from the source material. I was wrong for the most part and was pretty impressed by the show overall.
The acting in this one is solid by the entire cast. Some of the characters were awkwardly cast but the show as a whole had a great cast that made the story go by smoothly. Though the acting is not bad, the show could have benefited from having some of the characters recast.
The story for this one does borrow some from the original Scream films but moves it into the modern times with YouTube and smartphones. This was a great way to make it modern but it made the show feel like it was aimed for the pre-teens and the teens instead of the now adults that were raised on the movies. Also, it moves and looks a lot like the dark drama Pretty Little Liars where a group of teenage girls is constantly looking for a killer named “A” using modern day technology. The story still had it’s moments and the suspense really pulled me in. With that being said, it still had several plot holes that we were able to look passed while others you could not turn a blind eye to. The story was far from perfect but was still worth a watch.
Finally, the film has several on screen kills that were clever and gory. I was not expecting the caliber of kills we did get. Though they were few and far in between, they were still outstanding and shock the audience. The effects were mostly practical effects which was a nice touch as well. You just can’t get the authentic look with visual effects and the team behind this one knew that.
Overall, Scream: The TV Series was not what I was expecting. Though it looks and feels like several popular television shows on television right now like Pretty Little Liars and One Tree Hill but it does follow close to the source material and deliver a few pretty cool deaths. It may not be prefect but it is mind-numbing fun. Check it out.
