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Way to Prep #3: Scream 4 (2011)

Reboots and relaunches are par for the course these days. Franchises aren’t the only thing getting the upgrade, though. Every few years a new genre emerges. In the 1980’s the slasher film was born. In the 1990’s, it was upgraded with wittier teenages and a touch of humor with the blockbuster release of Scream. Then slashers got so big and boring the only way to top them was to birth the torture porn genre. What happened when audiences became tired of torture? They brought back the slashers, with Halloween and Friday the 13th and Freddy Krueger all getting official relaunches by starting again from the scratch with the origin story. And just when the slasher genre got tired and Scream was there to liven things up, they were there again when the reboot sub-genre was burned out. The problem here is that reboots make sense for movies made prior to 1990’s computer technology. Enhanced graphics and visuals are a way to share old stories with new generations. Movies made in 2004 don’t need reboots.

Scream 3 and Scream 4 were released 11 years apart. Though the point of the film is to feature a much younger cast in addition to the old crew (thus creating a “next generation” vibe) the decade-long gap between releases wasn’t really enough. The title was also misleading. It should have mentioned a new generation, or been called Screamers or Screaming or something. It wasn’t a true sequel and felt like a relaunch, but the gap wasn’t long enough for a reboot. Jigsaw IS a sequel as the commercials indicate but the title suggests something new. Regardless, it’s only been seven years. The real irony here is that Scream 4 is a great movie but still failed at the box office. People need to miss the old days to go back and visit them.

Way to Prep #4: The Final Destination (2009)

We all know the premise of the Final Destination movies. A group of people avoid being part of a mass death (plane crash, car crash, etc.) but die later when Death itself finds them, often creating elaborate and amazing domino-effect murder schemes. The series began in 2000 (after Scream made witty teens cool again) and had two successful sequels. To kick things up a notch and take advantage of the new 3D technology, the fourth film added the extra dimension and did a play on the original title. It wasn’t a reboot but the 3D technology and title change helped it feel new. Saw already added 3D and they already rebooted the core concept of the franchise with the legacy business. Though The Final Destination was the biggest hit of the bunch, the fifth film was the lowest earner and ended the series. With the Saw series already having used up it’s “Free 3D Hit Pass”, the franchise is relying entirely on a new title to make an entire franchise seem worthwhile again. The difference is the Final Destination movies were always a ton of fun in addition to be creative with death, where as Saw is just… torture porn.

Way to Prep #5: Halloween: H20 (1998)

One thing you have to admire about the original slashers of the genre was their ability to constantly update and enhance the mythology within the series. Each film was a either sequel, reboot, relaunch, mash-up, or anything in-between. Heck, in the Friday the 13th series Jason doesn’t even take over as the killer until Part 2. When it comes to Michael Meyers, the true shakeup of the bunch was part three, Season of the Witch. It has nothing to do with anything related to the franchise, other than a complete misuse of the title. Though confusing, this bastard third part in the series made it easy for a fourth part to seem like a relaunch with the Return of Michael Meyers. Every few years Michael returns bigger and better than ever.

The effects of the Scream franchise were far and wide. After horror became cool again in 1996, Michael Meyers took note and decided to reboot again in 1998 with witty teen actors that were famous for being on TV (Dawson’s Creek star Michelle Williams to name one) and something far more terrifying… the return of the original scream queen, Jamie Lee Curtis. She was only ever in the first two parts of the series, part three was Meyers-less, and part four picked up with Jamie’s on-screen daughter. H20 was the seventh film in the series but capitalized on the return of the series star, 20 years of history and being freaking awesome. Jigsaw is only banking on a new title. Here’s hoping a lackluster October helps it scare up a few dollars at the box office.

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