Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Scream to Scream, Scene by Scene: SCENE 5 of Scream 3 (0:12:28-0:19:24)

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



SCENE 5 of Scream 3
Length: 6mins 54secs
Primary Characters: Roman Bridger (Scott Foley), John Milton (Lance Henrikson), "Studio Executive" (Roger Corman), (Detective?) Wallace (Josh Pais), Tyson Fox (Deon Richmond), Tom Prinze (Matt Keeslar), Sarah Darling (Jenny McCarthy), Angelina Tyler (Emily Mortimer), Gale Weathers, Jennifer Jolie (Parker Posey), Dewey Riley (David Arquette),
Pop Culture References:
  • Tori Spelling and David Schwimmer (Named as former Stab cast-members)
  • LL Cool J/William Shakespeare and Usher/Pinter (Weird combo's for black actors mentioned by Tyson)
  • Freddy Prinze Jr, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Aniston, Sarah Michelle Gellar, etc (All the Stab cast have names made up of other famous actors)
  • 60 Minutes 2 (Gale was a reporter for this show)
  • Brad Pitt (Jennifer Jolie used to date him)
  • Roger Corman (Cameo)
  • Jay & Silent Bob (Cameo)
  • Connie Chung (Jay and Silent Bob mention her)


There was a brief rumour during the production of Scream 4 that it was going to have the subtitle of "Return to Woodsboro", but I never believed that because Stab 3 had that name and that'd just be silly.


Why hello there big burly security man on the left. Clearly this extra should've been cast in Patrick Warburton's role as Jennifer Jolie's security guard.

"Violence in cinema's a big deal right now, Roman. This is not the kind of news this studio is after."
"So if we stop making scary movies all the psychos in the world will retire? Come on."

I love that they got Roger freakin' Corman for a cameo as a movie executive telling a director that he's worried about violent content. Oh the irony. Of course, Corman's line right there is an obvious reference to Scream 3's own behind the scenes dramas, which had the original idea of a "return to Woodsboro" being scrapped due to the media's recent fascination with violence in media after the Columbine school shootings. Roman's line, however, is almost a direct lift from Billy Loomis in the original Scream, which is just the first instance of Roman Bridger being lame. The second instance are his clothes. Gawd, he wears ugly clothes. But, then, this was 2000 and Scream 3's costume designer, Abigail Murray, was clearly on drugs so not entirely her fault I guess.

Lame.

"Detectives, there's no reason to presume Cotton's death had anything to do with this movie, is there?"
"He was making a movie called Stab; he was stabbed."

Oh Wallace!


From left to right we have Deon Richmond as Tyson Fox as Rick, the video store employee clearly a "Randy substitute/homage"; Jenny McCarthy as Sarah Darling as Candy, the hot chick who dies third who does indeed die third; Matt Keeslar as Tommy Prinze as Deputy Dewey, no longer played by David Schwimmer; Emily Mortimer as Angelina Tyler as Sidney Prescott, longer played by Tori Spelling. Phew, make sense?

"I'm starting to see why Tori Spelling and David Schwimmer didn't want to come back."

I guess you know your low-rent horror franchise is in bad shape when Tori Spelling and David Schwimmer think they have better stuff to do with their time! Oh hai there Emily Mortimer. I love that the Scream franchise really does have quite a few actors who went on to become quote unquote legitimate like here Emily Mortimer. Now's she's in films by Scorsese and Pixar. Of course, Mortimer as Angelina Tyler would have obviously been so much better if they'd gone through with the original plan of having her as the second killer Oh man, what a wasted opportunity! And it's quite obvious, too, that they were setting that storyline up to occur and then they just... ugh. Yet another misjudged aspect of Scream 3, unfortunately.




Speaking of misjudged... here is Gale Weathers in all of her Scream 3 glory. Awful hair and awful clothes just being vomitted up onto the screen. Perhaps they were trying to harken back to her fluorescent green ensemble seen in Scream, but this is just hideous. Her outfits get worse later on, trust me.

"Deja vu!"


I love the scene later on in Scream 3 where Sidney runs around the Hollywood replica set of her own Woodsboro house, but I really think they could've gone much further. So many of us Scream fans wanted either the opening or the big final reveal sequence to place at Casey or Stu's house! It would've been perfect, I reckon. Ah well.


We're going to have a lot of opportunities to discuss how freakin' awesome Parker Posey as Jennifer Jolie as Gale Weathers is in Scream 3 is ("YOU'RE OBSESSED WITH HER AND YOU'RE OBSESSED WITH HER DAUGHTER!") and how amazing the comedic chemistry is between Posey and Cox, but for now all I'll say is...

OMGPARKERPOSEYISSOFREAKIN'AWESOMEOFJENNIFERJOLIEOMG!!!!!!"

Seriously you guys, she is freakin' awesome! Love her. LOVE.


"Gale Weathers! I know we've never met, and I don't mind that you never return my calls, but I have to tell you after two movies I feel like I am in your mind."
"That would explain my constant headaches."


"Ya know, I'm sorry things didn't work out on 60 Minutes 2, but Total Entertainment, that's a pretty good fall back."

"Thank you. I'm sorry that things didn't work out with Brad Pitt, but being single, that's a pretty good fall back."

"Gives me more time for my work. After all Gale Weathers, you're such a complex character."

"And to be played by an actress of such depth and range!"

I worry that I'm merely going to recite for you every line of Posey's dialogue, but I promise from here on out I'm just going to quote the best of the best!

Of course, Posey is fantastic - between Scream 3 and Best in Show, I'm not sure what she deserved an Oscar nomination for most in 2000!? - and the dialogue delivery here by both Posey and Cox is immaculate, this really is the moment that the film went from being a horror movie with comedic tendencies to and out and out comedy that occasionally strays for some scary scenes with blood and stuff like that. Scream 3 would work best not in a triple play with the other two films of the trilogy, but as a double feature alongside Jonathan Lynn's Clue from 1985. Don't you agree?

Also: This whole Angelina/Brad/Jennifer stuff was AHEAD OF ITS TIME! That didn't happen for another few years, if I remember correctly.

"Gale, I think you'll really appreciate my character work in this one. Someone's helped me understand the real you. The ruthless ambition, your private self-loathing, and that lost, lonely little girl inside."

Parker Posey's performance in Scream renders me pretty much unable to form sentences other than OMGAWESOME! Of course, Posey's performance is a big ol' slab of satire on Hollywood's self-importance, but most importantly she is the breath of fresh air that none of the other new characters to the Scream universe could provide. I don't so much mind that they went down the more comedic route with this one, I'm just glad that they had the smarts to hire someone like Posey to really make the most of it.


"You're so right. Pop culture is the politics of the 21st century."

Oh if she only knew...


Meanwhile, Matt Keeslar in a cop uniform? This Matt Keeslar. Sure, why not?


This is one of those cute little moments that I just adore. Courtney's laugh here is so adorable that I want it on a loop. You know, Courtney may look terrible, but she is yet again quite strong in the role. Little bits and pieces like this just adding to the dimensions of Gale if you will.


"Listen, Sidney doesn't need you and your camera in her life."
"Do you see a camera?"
"Ahem."
"Right. You bought me this purse, didn't you?"
"Yeah."
"It's a habit. I walk out of the house, I turn it on..."

Teehee. I love the thought of Dewey buying Gale Weathers a spy purse!


It may look like I'm screencapping Jay and Silent Bob, but, trust me, if I could get away with it I wouldn't. Alas, that's Wes Craven's cameo right there in the hat. Ugh. I hate the Jay and Silent Bob cameo in Scream 3 except for...


I'd do that too!


Scream:
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, Scene 29, Scene 30, Scene 31 Scene 32, Scene 33, End Credits

Scream 2
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, Scene 29, Scene 30, End Credits

Scream 3
Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4

5 comments:

Row-bin said...

My brother used to work for the WWE (or still WWF at that time), and he told me that The Rock was supposed to play Jennifer Jolie's bodyguard but his bosses turned down the contract because they didnt want him to get killed onscreen.

Tony said...

The great thing about these movies is how they balance so many characters in oh so little time. And they do it so well too, as this scene proves so.

RJ said...

Parker Posey makes Scream 3 watchable. Without her, I'm not sure I would ever sit through it.

And I totally agree. Every time I watch it, I'm disappointed anew that they did not go through with making Emily Mortimer one of the killers.

jakey said...

"Scream 3 would work best not in a triple play with the other two films of the trilogy, but as a double feature with ... 'Clue'."

I haven't even seen "Clue" and I'm going to go ahead and agree with this. I just re-watched the film for the first time in years -- I'm a big fan of the first two but never warmed to the third one -- and I can appreciate it much more as a stand-alone Hollywood satire than as a "Scream" film.

And while Parker Posey didn't get enough attention for this part, her nomination for Best Comedic Performance at the MTV Movie Awards was a delightful surprise.

Tony said...

To Row-bin, the rumour during preproduction was Stone Cold Steve Austin. Not TAhe Rock. But still interesting to see how they turned it down, lol. Didn't want their wrestlers dying in a slasher movie. Would have been cool if it was Stone Cold too. Damn WWE.