|
"So, what's your favorite scary movie?" Not exactly a
question you want to hear when you're stuck home alone in the
middle of nowhere, is it? Beginning with one of the scariest sequences
of any horror movie in history, Scream revitalized the
long-dormant genre of the slasher movie, launched the careers
of many talented newcomers including screenwriter Kevin Williamson
and Party Of Five's Neve Campbell, as well as marking the
return of low-riding horrormeister Wes Craven.
The plot plays like your standard slasher movie template. Young
virgin with a bit of a troubled past is suddenly stalked by someone
who may or may not be responsible for her mother's murder one
year previous. We get the usual assortment of horny teenagers,
concerned but oblivious parents, well-armed but ineffectual police
force, a noisy tabloid reporter, the potential-suspect boyfriend,
and, of course, the star psycho with a great mask and really
long knife. And oh, yeah, there is lots and lots of blood, too...
Nothing revolutionary, huh? But what set Scream apart,
however, from the countless slasher flicks that preceded it was
what has been called its "postmodern self-reflexivity." The
characters in Scream, you see, are quite well aware of
the horror-film conventions they have just found themselves entrapped
in. Lambasting on the very same contrivances and idiocies they
partake in (going upstairs when they should be running out the
door, always separating from the main group to become easy kill-fodder,
etc.), the film functions as both straight horror show and truly
entertaining social/pro-filmic commentary.
Strangely, though, the film, for all its postmodern ironies and
hipness, hasn't really been given enough credit in its own right.
This film truly works. Despite the humor, it is scary when
it should be scary, the characters are believable and not derisive,
and the film never crosses the line and makes so much fun of itself
that it is reduced to a campy in-joke. More importantly, I'd argue
that (although I won't give it away) the motivation for the killer(s)
is actually a bit more profound than it has been given credit
for. The film isn't just a fun postmodern romp but a film about
postmodernism, and the subsequent dangers inherent in a life of
moral relativism. When one looks at the world as just one big
scary movie, self-accountability and morality become irrelevant,
and the actions one is capable when operating inside such a paradigm
are truly, well, dangerous...
By mixing elements of the slasher genre and the whodunit with
a dollop of postmodern self-reflexivity and old-fashioned stark
bloody terror, the film became the sleeper hit of 1996, raking
in over $100 million in domestic box office alone and becoming
a big rental and pay-per-view hit (and the oh-so-cute young cast
didn't hurt). Although many balked that Buena Vista/Miramax/Dimension
would again release this film on DVD in a $39.95 Collector's Edition
only a year after the first $29.95 DVD was released, Scream is
simply the biggest hit in Dimension's history, so it apparently
makes sense for them to use it as the inaugural title in their
new Collector's Series line of DVDs.
Video: How Does The Disc Look?
Both versions contain only a 2.35:1 non-anamorphic widescreen
presentation of the film, and the same transfer, in fact, despite
the $10 premium Dimension is asking for the Collector's Series
edition. On the bright side, the film element used is super, black
level is exemplary and the colors well saturated and stable, but
again the film really could have benefited from the increased
resolution of an anamorphic transfer, with the overall the picture
seeming a tad too contrasted and 'shimmery' at times. There is
less artifacting then on the original edition of Scream, and overall
it is a fine transfer, just incomprehensible that it is still
not anamorphic on the second go-around. In a direct A/B comparison
between the two DVDs, this new edition may be just a tad bit darker,
but in all honesty I can't tell much visual difference between
the two discs at all.
Audio: How Does the Disc Sound?
The 5.1 Dolby Digital soundtrack is a clear winner, though again
both are exactly the same. A very nice, immersive sound field
is created, with music and effects working the surrounds quite
well, bass response is deep, dialogue intelligible and well-mixed.
Mr. Craven has recently begun to focus on the using sounds very
effectively (and frighteningly) in his most recent works, and
Scream is no exception. There are noticeable discrete effects
and even some nice, moody deployment of the score across the entire
soundstage. There are quite a few scary, tense moments that wouldn't
have been nearly so effective without such a stellar sound mix.
An English 2.0 Dolby surround option is included on the movie-only
edition, and there are no alternate language or subtitle tracks
at all. English Captions encoded as a subtitle stream and true
English Closed Captions are provided on both releases.
Supplements: What Goodies Are There?
As the first Dimension Collector's Series title, I guess I'm
am supposed to be impressed with extras offered on this new edition
of Scream. However, I'm not, simply because there is nothing all
that special on this disc that can't be found on plenty of other,
lower-priced DVDs that don't even bother to call themselves "special
editions." Let's just say this won't be giving a New Line
Platinum Edition or a Universal Special Edition title a run for
their money.
First, the biggest omission is the lack of the full Director's
Cut that has been available on laserdisc now for a couple of years.
Apparently, Buena Vista, who distributes Miramax/Dimension DVD
titles, has a policy against releasing any unrated titles whose
additional footage would have garnered it an NC-17. (Of course,
they did release a Pretty Woman director's cut recently, but feel-good
comedies about prostitution are okay, as the extra footage included
there was "non-offensive.") So, on a Collector's Series DVD,
which I'd assume should be the definitive version for fans, we
don't even get the Director's Cut. Whatever.
Beyond that major complaint, screen-specific audio commentary
with director Wes Craven and screenwriter Kevin Williamson is
also included, which laughably makes reference to the cut footage
not included. That is because it is the same commentary that was
included on the Director's Cut laserdisc, retimed to matched the
shortened running time! To tell the truth, I actually didn't even
bother to listen to it, as I've already heard it twice already
on both the laserdisc and the previous "movie-only" DVD!
Go figure...the major extra on this new special edition was already
on the last cheaper version. Strange.
In addition, there are some nice other tidbits on the collector's
edition as well. There are the usual theatrical trailers
(the original DVD only has one) and TV spots, cast biographies
and film facts/production notes, which are all very nice
but certainly no great shakes, and nothing you can't find on the
average Universal or Warner $24.95 or $19.95 DVD.
To be fair, there are some other new supplements for the collector's
edition, including additional behind-the-scenes footage
(via a rather brief montage), an entertaining Q&A with
the cast and some special effects photos and footage (which
is ironic, sense Buena Vista won't allow the Director's Cut, but
will happily let a blood-soaked spatter gallery through!). But
while this stuff is nice and all, in all honesty it really isn't
worth the extra $10, and seems like something made for one of
those cheesy HBO "behind-the-scenes" infomercials.
DVD-ROM Exclusives: What do you get when you pop the disc
in your PC?
No ROM extras are included.
Parting Thoughts
So, alas, even on the second try, the definitive DVD version
of Scream remains elusive. Sporting the same video and audio quality
as before, some nice if relatively minor behind-the-scenes stuff
and basic "extras" like cast bios and production notes, there
is nothing really of value to the Scream fan here you can't get
by buying the cheaper DVD or LD versions. The lack of a Director's
Cut is the main criminal, and a tired commentary track doesn't
help (and they even used the same menu screens for both!). I'd
recommend renting the collector's edition one night if you really
are a big fan of the film, just to see the extra supplements that
provide maybe 30 minutes of view time at best, and save the bucks
and go for the cheap version. But, if you can get the collector's
edition at a good discount, go for it.
|
