The Big Picture · Discussion · Review · Rankings
March 17, 2023/ 78 min/ Sean Fennessey · Amanda Dobbins · Chris Ryan · Grace Fennessey
Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins welcome back Chris Ryan and a new guest, Sean's sister and film-major-in-training Grace Fennessey, to review 'Scream VI' and rank all six films in the franchise, after a Nancy Meyers Netflix rom-com falls apart over a $150 million kitchen budget.
11 films across 5 segments.
AI-generated This episode was transcribed and analyzed with AI models. The matches aren't perfect — expect the occasional misheard title or a link to the wrong film.
The newsa canceled Nancy Meyers movie and 'Your Place or Mine'
Netflix's Reese Witherspoon/Ashton Kutcher rom-com, savaged for its 'CGI Brooklyn Bridge,' a FaceTime-heavy setup that keeps its leads apart until the end despite living in the same story, and zero chemistry between the two leads; floated as a cautionary tale for why Netflix just walked away from a $150 million Nancy Meyers movie.
'Scream VI'the goriest entry yet, but a familiar reveal
The 'core four' (Sam, Tara, Chad, and Mindy) relocate to New York and face Ghostface again, with Courteney Cox's Gale and Hayden Panettiere's Kirby folded back into the story. The hosts call it the most violent entry yet, singling out the subway and fire-escape-ladder sequences as series highlights, but knock Dermot Mulroney's villain reveal as telegraphed from his first scene and needle the movie's shaky grip on New York geography, from Hudson-to-uptown walks to a stolen cop car making it downtown in no time. Consensus: thumbs up.
Radio Silence's other movie, and an elevated-horror detour
The Radio Silence duo's 2019 breakout, made before they inherited Scream, and where they first worked with Samara Weaving -- who cameos in 'Scream VI,' killed in its own opening sequence, as a nod to that earlier collaboration.
An 80-minute, VHS-shot experimental horror film on Shudder, told almost entirely from the perspective of two small children trapped in a house with no doors or windows; brought up as a break from the 'elevated horror' wave.
Also on the big screen
Grace caught the Irish drama in a theater and loved it; Sean jokingly floats it as a secret Scream prequel, with the lead girl growing up to become Sidney Prescott.
The Scream Movie Rankings'Scream' at No. 1 was unanimous; the other five split hard by host
Praised for the classroom sequel-theory scene, Kevin Williamson's 'fastball' meta writing, and Sarah Michelle Gellar's sorority-house kill; the hosts are cooler on its other kills.
Grace's sleeper favorite -- 'low-key one of my favorite Screams' -- for its opening and Emma Roberts's willingly hateable villain turn opposite Rory Culkin.
Warmly reviewed as a genuine surprise, anchored by Dewey's shocking death and strong Jack Quaid/Mikey Madison performances; Sean says he might like it more than most of the 'vintage' entries.
The most divisive entry: Chris's personal favorite behind the original, for Parker Posey, the Cotton Weary limo kill, and the Woodsboro-replica-set finale; Grace ranks it dead last, unable to get past the Sidney's-mother-ghost subplot and a forgettable killer reveal.
Also mentioned raised along the way
Nancy Meyers, in one-liners Something's Gotta GiveIt's ComplicatedThe Parent Trap
Career namedrops My Best Friend's WeddingZodiacMurder Mystery
New York, for comparison Die Hard with a VengeanceFriday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan
The cast, elsewhere Avatar: The Way of WaterElvis
In the news, in passing Beetlejuice BeetlejuiceSpider-Man: No Way HomeAvengers: Infinity WarAnt-Man and the Wasp: QuantumaniaM3GANPlaneJokerChallengers65
Old favorites and older paces Singin' in the RainThe Hunt for Red OctoberRocky
Not films filtered out: TV, games, ads
TV WednesdayOnly Murders in the Building
Podcasts What About Your Friends
YouTube Markiplier
Ads TremfayaBoar's HeadNas EnergyFanDuelCarvana
Unreleased/canceled Untitled Nancy Meyers Netflix rom-com (canceled)Quentin Tarantino's 'The Movie Critic' (unmade at time of taping)