Movie: Scary Movie
Production Companies: Wayan Bros Entertainment, Gold/Miller Productions, Brad Grey Productions
Director: Keenan Ivory Wayans
Producers: Eric L Gold, Lee R Mayes
Scriptwriters: Shawn Wayans, Marlon Wayans, Buddy Johnson, Phil Beauman, Jason Friedberg, Aaron Seltzer
Main Cast: Anna Faris, Jon Abrahams, Carmen Electra, Shannon Elizabeth, Kurt Fuller, Regina Hall
Release Date: July 7th 2000
Running Time:
Certificate: 18
Introduction
So with it being horror movie season, why not look back at one of the commercially successful horror films of the 2000s: Scary Movie? Now while some of Scary Movie has aged quite badly, its willingness to poke fun at the traditions of horror films makes it a stonewall classic. Oh and yes it spawned about 4 sequels but we don’t talk about them. So without further ado here is my review of the film.
Synopsis
Scary Movie follows Cindy Campbell and her friends as they begin to realise that there is a killer in a Ghostface mask and robe out to get them. And why is the killer after them? Well because they murdered a guy and dumped his body in the ocean. The one problem for Cindy and her friends is that they are all mostly your stereotypical dumb teenagers who don’t take the threat seriously until it’s too late.
However, it does also help the killer seems to be just as dumb as his victims with several brilliant Scream parody scenes proving this as much. Oh and also the killer is definitely who you think it is but also if you’ve ever seen any of the Scream films you’ll probably crack who it is. But it is still a very good twist ending which is also a parody. So without further ado let’s get into the analysis portion of the review.
Analysis
Parodies in Scary Movie
To begin my analysis of Scary Movie, I’m going to discuss the film’s many, many, many parodies of other films. So where better to start than the Scream franchise? There’s the obvious reference to Ghostface, the constant phone calls from the killer before he attacks, the twist of there maybe being multiple killers and oh the most obvious one: Cindy Campbell instead of Sydney Campbell. One that’s a lot of material to discuss. Two, technically Scary Movie is a parody of a parody film so wrap your head around that. Now, obviously the main point of all these parodies is to generate comedy for the audience and that definitely is true.
An example of this would be when the killer is calling Cindy in classic Ghostface fashion. However as Cindy is trying to guess where he is in her house she spots him hiding behind a sofa. This plays into the stupid nature of the film but also exists to make fun of Scream as there are only so many places the killer could be. Oh and yes they do, the killer hides blatantly in the curtains as well. And what better way to end this section on parodies to mention the obligatory 2000s film parodying the Matrix scene?
Representation in Scary Movie
Continuing my analysis of Scary Movie, I’m going to discuss the slightly questionable representation at times in the film. And yes I realise how sharp a left turn this is from Matrix parodies but it needs to be said. So my two major examples of questionable representation involve Doofy and the school gym teacher Miss Mann. Now Doofy is shown to be intellectually disabled which could have been a good chance for representation but still at points it is used more to get laughs from the audience than give a good representation.
Oh and also without spoiling the ending Doofy may have been a very good actor because the ensign may have been a great parody but still feels a bit sour in the mouth. Oh and also Miss Mann isn’t much better to be fair. And as I’m sure you can imagine Miss Mann is transgender so naturally what does the film do? A parody of *that* scene from Basic Instinct. While it’s a funny parody, even still it’s more akin to Family Guy gross shock humour and definitely does no favours for the representation of Miss Mann.
Performances in Scary Movie
To conclude my analysis of Scary Movie, I’m going to discuss just a whole bunch of performances because there are a lot of good ones. For starters, Anna Faris as Cindy Campbell. Firstly, the fact she’s playing Cindy pretty straight down the middle is a great idea because it allows both her and her fellow actors’ comedy to shine through. Secondly, it’s just a great performance as she goes from hysterical to Matrix faster than you can say wait what?
Also another great performance comes from Cindy’s love interest, Jon Abrahams Bobby. Now this is evident because of the running gag throughout the film where Bobby keeps showing up with items which seem to suggest he’s the killer. Now not only is this another parody of Scream where 50% of the time it seems to be a partner but also it’s just a hilarious gag. Especially just after Cindy fights off the killer and Bobby shows up at her window with a mask, knife and blood on his t-shirt. This also plants the idea in the audience’s mind that Bobby really is the killer so the twist ending just hits harder because of this misleading joke.
Summary
To summarise Scary Movie, this is a ludicrously stupid film which both manages to act as a parody of the horror genre and just as a funny Halloween film to watch when you’re bored of all the classic horror films.
Overall Rating: 6/10 – Reasonable
Target Audience: 18+
Content Warning: Severe Sex and Nudity, Severe Violence and Gore, Severe Profanity, Moderate Alcohol and Drugs, Moderate Frightening and Intense Scenes
Recommendation: Yes
