Scream 2

• Cat.no: PLFEB 37341
• Cert: 18
• Running time: 117 minutes
• Sides: 2 (CLV)
• Year: 1997
• Pressing: 1998
• Chapters: 21 (10/10+1)
• Sound: Dolby Surround
• Widescreen: 2.35:1
• Price: £24.99
• Extras : Original Theatrical Trailer
  

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  Director:

  Wes Craven

  (Nightmare On Elm Street, Wes Craven’s New Nightmare, Scream)

Producers:

Screenplay:

(I Know What You Did Last Summer, Scream)

Music:

Cast:

Sidney Prescott: Neve Campbell (Scream, The Craft, Wild Things, TV: “Party Of Five”)
Gale Weathers: Courteney Cox (Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, Scream, TV: “Friends”)
Deputy Dewey Riley: David Arquette (Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Scream, Fall Time, Road Flower, Wild Bill)
Randy Meeks: Jamie Kennedy (Scream)
Cotton Weary: Liev Schreiber (Scream, Walking And Talking)
Maureen: Jada Pinkett (Jason’s Lyric, The Nutty Professor, Set It Off)
“Stab” Casey: Heather Graham (Boogie Nights, Drugstore Cowboy, License To Drive, Lost In Space, Midnight To Sting, Mrs Parker And The Vicious Circle, Swingers)
Cotton’s Interviewer: Kevin Williamson
Cici: Sarah Michelle Gellar (I Know What You Did Last Summer, TV: “Buffy The Vampire Slayer”)
Derek: Jerry O’Connell (Jerry Maguire, Joe’s Apartment, Stand By Me, TV: “Sliders”)
Joel: Duane Martin (Above The Rim)
Debbie Salt: Laurie Metcalf (A Dangerous Woman, Internal Affairs, Leaving Las Vegas, Pacific Heights)
Sorority Sister Lois: Rebecca Gayheart (TV: “Beverly Hills 90210”)
Sorority Sister Murphy: Portia De Rossi (Sirens)
Tori Spelling: Tori Spelling (TV: “Beverly Hills 90210”)
Drama Teacher Gus Gold: David Warner (T) (The Man In The Iron Mask, The Omen, Star Trek 5, Time Bandits, Titanic, TV: “Star Trek: Next Generation”)

Scream 2sees the return of Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott,who thought she’d put the Woodsboro murders behind her as her mother’s killerwas finally laid to rest…until a crazed copycat killer begins acting out achilling, real-life horror sequel on her college campus.

What kicks it off is the premier of the film, Stab, based on ambitiousreporter Gale Weathers’ (Courtney Cox) novel, based in turn on theevents in Scream. As the bodies begin to pile up, Gale, deputy Dewey(David Arquette) and other Woodsboro survivors find themselves trappedin an all-new nightmare where no-one is safe – or above suspicion.

Those also returning in this sequel include Jamie Kennedy and LievSchreiber, while those new to the Scream franchise are HeatherGraham from the big-screen conversion of Lost In Space replayingthe Drew Barrymore character in the film-within-a-film, Stab, SarahMichelle Gellar, now on TV as Buffy The Vampire Slayer as well asappearing in writer Kevin Williamson‘s other horror film, I Know WhatYou Did Last Summer. The man himself also gets a cameo role as Cotton’sInterviewer.

Aside from that there are a number of small roles on display from JerryO’Connell as Sidney’s boyfriend, Duane Martin as the not-yet-deadcameraman, Laurie Metcalf as… well I won’t spoil the surpriseand cameos from Rebecca Gayheart, Portia De Rossi as well as ToriSpelling playing Sidney in the “Stab” movie and David Warner.

What I’d like to know, though, is why one of the names given top priorityis that of Jada Pinkett who appears on the front cover, but is offedwithin a few minutes. Also, why has the cover artwork changed? It previouslypictured Jerry O’Connell in the line-up, but he has been dropped forLiev Schreiber for the home-viewing version.

The picture quality is brilliant, brimming with colour, bringing outflesh-tones and gore in equal measures. It is also presented in its originalwidescreen ratio of 2.35:1. Anything less, such as the fullscreen rentalvideo, results in massive closeups of heads making the picture look veryunbalanced.

The sound quality is excellent too and as well as being used for the usualshocks and surprises you expect, plus those you don’t, the film has a greatsoundtrack with tracks from The Eels (Your Lucky Day In Hell),Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (Red Right Hand), Foo Fighters(Dear Lover) and a number of others, which makes one wonder why theavailable soundtrack CD comprising both films lasts less than half-an-hour.

There are 20 chapters to the disc and it could do with more, but at leastthis time round we get the theatrical trailer.

Overall, what starts off as an interesting premise falls apart when yourealise that whereas the first film was a satire on horror movies in general,with references to some by name and Halloween by showing a group of kidswatching the video, this sequel tries to satirise the first Scream,resulting in a film full of college kids talking about the killings, or tryingto escape brainlessly from a murdering madman as if starring in “Halloween39: Will Michael Myers Ever Take A Hint ?”.

If you’re a fan of this film though, you’ll be pleased to hear about thetop-notch picture and sound and the cinema trailer and the fact that a secondsequel is planned, not to mention the sequel to Kevin Williamson’s otherhorror shocker, named I Still Know What You Did Last Summer.

FILM : **PICTURE QUALITY: *****SOUND QUALITY: *****EXTRAS: *——————————-OVERALL: ***

Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 1998.