Scream to Scream, Scene by Scene: SCENE 29 of Scream (1:16:06-1:21:30)

In this project I attempt to review the entire Scream trilogy scene by scene in chronological order. Heavy spoilers and gore throughout!


SCENE 29
Length: 5min 24secs
Primary Characters: Sidney Prescott, Ghostface, Billy Loomis, Randy Meeks and Kenny the Cameraman
Pop Culture References:

• Halloween (Randy continues to watch it and the chase sequence resembles it in some ways)
• The Spiral Staircase (some say the way Sidney bangs on the attic window is identical to this movie)
  

This scene is title "The Chase" on the menu screen and, well, that's what it is. I think this is one of the best chase scenes of its kind; it covers so much ground and space and really just kicks everything up a notch with everybody getting their part. Well, except Stu who, in retrospect, was probably the only feasible suspect at this point alongside Sidney's father.


The way Craven constantly puts telephones in the frame is great, isn't it? The audience sees one and is immediately on guard for terror. Watching the Scream 4 trailer this past week (over and over again) and I can't tell you how happy I was to hear and see a good ol' fashioned landline phone. Scream 3, if I remember correctly, relied too much on mobiles and while I am sure Scream 4 will have its fair share of them (iPhones, as also seen in the trailer) it was just refreshing to see traditional phones as well. Random observation, I know...















I'd like to be all smart and say that I figured out that Billy was the killer during this sequence (because it's so obvious just looking at these images,) but I wasn't. I remember cottoning on to it during the staircase sequence, but we'll get to that later. As for now... Billy?

My favourite shot is the second last one where Billy reaches out to Sidney and the way it's framed makes it appear that their hands are touching in what Sidney would have thought of as one last embrace. Of course, we all know better, don't we? Yup!


I have gone on and on about the art direction of Scream, but Stu's house is a marvel all its own. I'm not even sure how the design of this house makes sense with the places Ghostface emerges from at times, and this moment is an example of that.


One of my favourite shots. Don't ask me why, it just is.



I like Scary Movie. It doesn't work as a spoof so much because, well, Scream kinda already is one, but I still think it's funny and has some great gags (the sequels, not so much). However, one thing that it did have the smartness to mock was the way the Scream killer, at least in the original, is a big ol' klutz that gets hit by a lot! I know they couldn't do it due to the need for surprise, but it's amazing Billy and Stu didn't have big welts before the final confrontation. Also, I remember finding Anna Faris' run, where she flails her arms around like Neve Campbell does here, to be hilarious. Oh, to be 15 again...


I think this shot is good at giving a better look at the layout of the property, but I find it humourous that Gale and Kenny were trying to be inconspicuous and yet the van is really actually quite close and out in the open for anyone to see.



That second shot is an incredible one, don't you think? It's that shot that makes me think they definitely modelled it a bit on Psycho with the focus being on one little upstairs window.






We briefly saw that boat earlier in the movie, so we know what's coming. Meanwhile, cue the "looking back to where you were only to discover the killer is no longer there!" cliche being roundly mocked. It's always struck me as such a silly thing as well. Like, what are the odds that the killer moved?



I'm glad they showed Sidney discovering Tatum, it again just adds another dimension to her plight. I also like how this movie parallels the moment in Halloween that Randy is watching inside.

Speaking of which...


"Watch out Jamie, you know he's around."
No, you watch out Jamie!


Oh Kenny! While everyone else is running around getting murdered or stalked or running about trying to stop people being murdered or stalked, you're there dozing away in your van after pigging out on Doritos. And that's why we love you!







And with that we say goodbye to Kenny to Cameraman (well, we see him again very soon, but he's hardly the same Kenny we all came to know and love, is he?)

Lastly, note how in that second last shot he points to an exit that Sidney can use at the back of the van? That's one of the many shots that could go unnoticed, but I really like it. Bless Kenny the Cameraman, just trying to earn a buck and as his last act on this Earth he helps poor Sidney Prescott out. You will be missed.

Intro, Scene 1 Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 6, Scene 7, Scene 8, Scene 9, Scene 10, Scene 11, Scene 12, Scene 13, Scene 14, Scene 15, Scene 16, Scene 17, Scene 18, Scene 19, Scene 20, Scene 21, Scene 22, Scene 23, Scene 24, Scene 25, Scene 26, Scene 27, Scene 28