Best of Scream New Wave Slashers

[rhett]

With SCREAM 4 right around the corner, let's look back at the movie that started it all, or more specifically, the new wave of slashers it inspired. After SCREAM came a ton of hip, tongue-in-cheek, The WB-ish slashers aiming to cash in on the Wes Craven-Kevin Williamson breakout. Which of the pack is your favorite?

[Luki]

Urban Legend for me. Love the music, the cast and gothic vibe some of the sets have. Too bad they shot the movie in summer when the script took place during winter.

Valentine. It's the most reminiscent of the 80's slashers and a whole lot of fun.

[SaviniFan]

Halloween H2O. Although not a great film by any stretch, at least it had Jamie back.

I personally hated Scream and all of the films it inspired. I think the 90's had some of the worst dreck in horror film history.

[DVD-fanatic-9]

Originally Posted by SaviniFan

I personally hated Scream and all of the films it inspired. I think the 90's had some of the worst dreck in horror film history.

I agree it was a very weak decade when compared to the 70's. But I think the new millennium is far worse. At least the horror films of the 90's were actually easier to differentiate between one and another. This past decade, there's so much genre incest and factory-stamp sameness about every single thing released (especially post 2002). I guess this war between me and the people here who think the new millennium didn't suck for the genre is all about the attitudes of the films themselves. They don't like movies they think were pretending to be smart and I don't like movies that pretend to be horror.

I would vote Bride of Chucky but the dang pole is closed. Scream was a masterpiece and the thing that really made it special is exactly the kind of thing nobody noticed about it: it's dark sense of almost anarchic humor. It may have a reputation for "winking" at its' audience but a great deal of humor is to spite the characters. I still laugh at the ending and have an ear-to-ear smile that kills my face during the whole cheerleader scene. Bride of Chucky and Urban Legend were the only films that realized Scream's humor was more complex than some stupid college-kid hip dialogue. The Scream haters don't seem to realize that the film isn't necessarily glorifying this kind of thing. Or trying to be realistic. It takes liberties with characterization to make a point. It's a fucking brilliant film. About teenagers who mostly didn't watch horror movies. It's not about them knowing what people do in horror films, it's about us knowing what happens. The only things they remembered were "some guy in a white mask..." To them, it could have been any one, wielding anything sharp.

If only the last decade's Haute Tension's and The Descent's had been half as intelligent as Scream instead of just pretending to be intense, we wouldn't be just going through the motions like the genre is now.

Anyway, Bride gets my vote (symbolically) for it's highly progressive view on pop culture and the attitudes of the victims. Not to mention it really blew away the shitty Child's Play 2 and 3. It's also a lot smarter than the first film, if not technically as exciting. Though it's sure more flashy and has some very impressive scenes. Plus, the whole "Martha Stewart" thing was absolutely hilarious. It had a lot of resonance in the movie too since it was something of a domestic-harmony satire in several scenes.

As for Urban Legend, I just thought the movie wasn't afraid to be entertainingly bad. Instead of taking itself too seriously, like the Summer's did. And even though the murders kind of ripped off other movies (on the commentary they admit to copying Heathers and Pet Sematary), I thought there were some good ideas. Plus, I just can't say enough about Alicia Witt. Compared to Neve Campbell, Jennifer Love Hewitt, and Katherine Heigl in their movies, she isn't the type at all who can pull off moping around with her hair in her face- etc. The only one not trying to look sad.

I would really love to see Cherry Falls, but I have to see it uncut. I've heard legends about how insane it is and I can't wait to see what everyone else is talking about. Since the only companies in the U.S. to release it don't seem to give a shit about it, I don't see why an Anchor Bay or something like that couldn't nab the film and get it to us uncut.

As for Halloween H20... Well, I actually had to defend that film during my brief stint on the OHMB (that fucking place is sick- the biggest collection of anti-social degenerates I've ever come across in my life; it's moderated by a maniacal cretin and the administrator gives him the run of the place, I watched them tear nearly a dozen good people apart just for the fun of it). Not too many fans of it there. Here, people seem to like it more than I do. Is it the best film on the list? Hardly. Compared to Scream, you have to call it unoriginal. Compared to the previous sequels (especially 4 through 6), well- anyone could have made a superior film after that string of disasters (even Rob Zombie).

Originally Posted by maybrick

Jason X, Bride of Chucky, and the Halloweens are merely continuations of much older series so even though they have elements in common with the Scream New Wave slasher films I'd personally put them in a different category.

That's fair for you to say but I completely disagree. At least, as far as Bride of Chucky is concerned. The film really felt like it was re-introducing Chucky for the first time. Especially since it was very much like the producers, etc(.) gave Don Mancini a free pass to do whatever he wanted to. For a change- instead of changing all his better ideas. The first film was supposed to be something more than a few people chased by a killer doll but wasn't. Bride of Chucky was.

Originally Posted by WesReviews

Valentine for me, as well. I think over time, more fans will open up to it.

I re-watched a couple minutes on YouTube a couple months ago and think it's actually getting worse as time passes.

[_pi_]

Valentine for me. Has the most replay value and there's just something special about it. I also love how it ends.

A close second would be I Know What You Did Last Summer. I still remember seeing that in the cinema and completely loving it. When I think about it nowadays, it's still a pretty classy, well-shot and tightly written slasher.

[crikan]

Halloween: Resurrection. I know...everyone hates this one, but I had a lot of fun with it. Busta is annoying but his screen time can't be more than 5 minutes.

[zompirejoe]

Bride Of Chucky is awesome ! It's a lot of fun, a pretty original sequel that more than keeps up with the original.

[SaxCatz]

Halloween H20 for me. Its not as great film like the original or its first sequel as it has some failings, but it also has some great aspects. Of that list, the only other ones I enjoy are Urban Legend and Bride of Chucky. Both films are quite fun. The first I Know What You Did is a movie that I was fond of many years ago but have since developed a distaste for... same goes for Jason X... however, the sequel is rubbish. I haven't seen Valentine.

[SickNick89]

H20. Definately hasn't aged well but in 1998 seeing Jamie Lee Curtis and Myers together again, hearing mr. sandman and the begining of the film and Michael getting his head cut off at the end all together gave me a horrorgasim.

[TheShape]

Originally Posted by SickNick89

H20. Definately hasn't aged well but in 1998 seeing Jamie Lee Curtis and Myers together again, hearing mr. sandman and the begining of the film and Michael getting his head cut off at the end all together gave me a horrorgasim.

I agree. For me I was the perfect ending to the Halloween series. Too bad it was ruined by Halloween Ressurection. I can't believe that Jamie Lee Curtis agreed on this one. I prefer to ignore it. Just like I ignore everything that came after the first Highlander...

[bigdaddyhorse]

I hate going against Jason X as it's easily the funnest film on the list, but I think Urban Legend is the best on the list. Bride of Chucky gets honorable mention, but UL works on different levels and is tense in a few parts.

[CPT HOOK]

Cherry Falls!

Honorable mention to Bride Of Chucky.

[NightAndFog]

Bride Of Chucky was pretty funny, but man, talk about garbage movies! Those titles are just horrendous, pathetic excuses to cash-in

[MorallySound]

I still haven't even seen the Scream franchise in full (Bits of part one, none of part 2, and all of part 3), and probably should do so before Part 4, but my favourite of the slashers it ushered in: I Know What You Did Last Summer.