Scream 3
(2000)
Reviewed by Scott Marshall
Rating: 3 Beans

wasn’t going to waste my time dwelling on this
film. I fully expected it to blow goats and I was
not disappointed. But Wes Craven had to push it:
nobody wanted it, nobody needed it, but as I write
this Scream 3 will be re-released theatrically this
week. The man obviously has no regard for humanity.
But, that’s another review. It’s been a while and I
certainly won’t be paying good money to refresh my
memory, so let’s see what stuck with me from Scream
3:

o the usual ludicrous use of imaginary technology,
in this case a voice scrambler used by the villain
to make Sydney (Neve Campbell, whose eyes express
genuine terror throughout as she realizes the path
of her career) believe that her mother is haunting
her.

o Remember her mother? Ostensibly the root of all
the trouble in the first film? Turns out she was an
aspiring actress who was exploited in bad horror
films before settling down in Nowheresville with
Neve’s dad. And the director of those films is a
distinctly Corman-like figure, complete with Old
Hollywood scary mansion. Lance Henriksen is the
Corman-cipher while Corman himself has a cameo
elsewhere.

o Did I mention it was set in Hollywood this time?
That allows Craven to give us the ever-popular Film
Within A Film, "Stab 3," starring Parker Posey and
Jenny (ugh) McCarthy. McCarthy I can understand,
but Parker, come on. You can do better than this.
Although I do have to admit that you do a good
impression of Courtney Cox Arquette Springsteen
Geller.

o And yes, of course, the horror film "rules" return
along with a videotaped cameo by a guy who died in
the second movie. The rules to a trilogy? Gasp!
There are no rules! Anyone could die this time,
kids! Anyone! Except, of course, any character
that you WANT to die.

SCREAM 3 is a crapfest in a trilogy of crapfests.
There’s some good scenery-chewing by FELICITY’s
Scott Foley, who plays the ambitious young director
of STAB 3; and a cute cameo of Kevin Smith and Jason
Mewes as Jay and Silent Bob. Otherwise it’s a
complete waste of time. An extra wagging finger of
shame is directed at Campbell, who phoned in a
performance so weak that it was actually surprising.

I actually kind of enjoyed the first SCREAM, when it
seemed to be the leading edge of a smarter kind of
horror film, before its own mythology stretched and
snapped what little credibility the concept ever
had. To paraphrase an old saying: fool me once,
Wes Craven, shame on me. Fool me twice, shame on
you. Fool me three times? I don’t think so.

Other reviews for this movie:

Diane Squires

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