I can confidently say that “Scream,” the 1996 slasher film directed by Wes Craven is ONE of the greatest scary movies of all time. You will not change my mind. Opening the door for a new genre of horror, the film has an ironic angle that plays with the idea of poking fun at scary movie stereotypes through an actual horror film. With numerous big-name actors such as Neve Campbell (Sidney Prescott), Courtney Cox (Gale Weathers), David Arquette (Dwight Becker), Skeet Ulrich (Billy Loomis), and Matthew Lillard (Stu Macher), the film clearly did not struggle with finding an audience. 

“Scream” encapsulates a high school vibe, tainted with a psycho masked killer. After the gruesome killing of a popular girl at school, the community is taken over by fear, and as more and more students are murdered, the intensity and mass confusion rises. Sidney Prescott, the main character, begins to get stalked by said psycho killer right around the anniversary of her mother’s murder. 

The film’s use of satire and comedy intertwined with pure eeriness makes for an exceptional combination. The humor is that of a sarcastic group of teenagers, but it is used in the context of a city under the attack of a serial killer which adds a whole separate layer of irony. Somehow, the humor adds to the eeriness as it just makes the whole plot seem more realistic. Altogether a nice touch to the script. 

A handful of major plot twists and unexpected scenes are sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. You will find yourself wanting to solve the murders as much as the characters in the story. 

“Scream” combines so many different genres of film that upon its release, it totally brought new life to the horror scene. Not only was is it categorized as horror but also thriller, dark comedy, slasher and mystery. The mixture of all different elements made for an amazing and fresh film. 

Some have tried to argue that it is not a quality horror movie just because it is not as “scary” as they would have liked. Sure, it may not leave you shaking and scared to the core, but that is not even the point of the film. The fear comes with the understanding that this is very possible and realistic. Don’t believe me? 

Well, this movie is actually loosely based off a real serial killer that terrorized a college campus in Florida. He was known as “The Gainesville Ripper” and he murdered five students from the University of Florida.

The Scream franchise eventually stopped making movies after the fourth film came out in 2011. Their reign continues still, enough for Netflix to stream all four movies, 20+ years later. There is no debate when it comes to this movie. Not just a personal favorite, but clearly a favorite among others.

“Scream” will undoubtedly continue to be a classic in the horror world, thanks to the modern spin, the dark satire riddled throughout, the classic gore, and the intensity of the mystery. A solid 9/10 rating from me, it just has all the right ingredients. The only thing left to ask is, what’s your favorite scary movie?

The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of the GENESIS staff. Email Rayna Minix at [email protected] .