Greetings, and welcome back to October Horror Fest! Today is the day, ladies and gentlemen. It’s the day that I’m almost positive we all knew was coming, and it’s the day that I am the most excited for. Even though my sleep schedule is being DESTROYED for my third time reviewing a movie in this franchise, it’s worth it every step of the way. Tonight, we venture back into the most infamous franchise Horror Fest has in its history, a franchise with only two articles across the past two years, but a franchise that (when its articles are combined), has a whopping 19 PAGES of content. It’s the franchise that is one of the biggest events of Horror Fest, and it is the franchise that changed horror itself. I would recommend checking out the Day 25 and Day 20 specials from the previous two years, because we’re about to find out if I crack the ten page mark. Stick with me, my friends, as we dive back into the world of Woodsboro, the Stab movies, and, of course, Ghostface. Without further ado, sit back, relax, turn off the lights, grab some Candy and Popcorn, and let’s review…

Scream (2022)

(First, some quick Scream housekeeping! Yes, Scream is one of the biggest “events” that Horror Fest has every year, and that is mostly due to its length. The first article was eight pages, and the second was eleven. Of course, they both held the title of the Longest Horror Fest Article when they were published. I AM going to try to break that record one final time for the final chapter, but I won’t push too hard for it. I know it’s a pain for BOTH of us (me writing and you reading) to get an eleven+ page article. Secondly, welcome back to Scream! I decided to skip three and four (I know I know I’m sorry), as they weren’t the greatest quality movies. I have, of course, already watched them without covering them in previous years. When a reference is made to either of the two, I will of course explain it. Scream 5 (in my opinion) is one of the best in the franchise, and ironically just like what is explained in the movie itself, I chose it because it has new characters AND ties back to what was already covered on Horror Fest. Enough of me yapping (although that’s what you’re going to get for the next however long this article is), get that popcorn and get ready for Ghostface!)

The year is 2021, exactly twenty five years after the original Scream, and the original killings by our boys Billy and Stu. The night is quiet and dark, and our opening scene (like any good Scream movie must have), commences. We start our horrific tale looking at a small house, as a landline phone rings. However, the young girl in the house (played by Jenna Ortega btw and holy CRAP can she act, like we all know she can but holy she really flaunts her talent in this) hangs up on the mysterious caller, and continues typing away on her own phone. Her name is Tara Carpenter (we don’t get this information for a few minutes but I’m just giving it now, and yes her last name is a reference to John Carpenter), and she is texting her friend Amber. She continues to text, telling her friend that she should come over for a party. However, after she takes a puff of her inhaler, the phone rings once more. Amber asks if “Wes” is still bugging her (Wes is named after the legendary Wes Craven, and was a character literally made just to honor him. Wes died in 2015, and was the creator of both Scream and Nightmare on Elm Street), so Tara goes to pick up the phone and hopefully get Wes to stop calling. However, when she picks up the phone, we hear a VERY familiar voice…

The man on the phone (GHOSTFACE VOICE) introduces himself as Charlie, and says he is a part of a group with Tara’s mother. Tara asks what she says about her, and Charlie says that she says that Tara LOVES scary movies, and the mother and daughter have that in common. APPARENTLY, she says that she is proud of making a fan out of her daughter. Charlie takes a deep breath, and says to Tara that her mother was wondering one question about her. His voice becomes menacing, as he says a line that we all know too, too well. “What’s your favorite scary movie?” (at this point I was freaking out). Tara responds by saying The Babadook (good choice Tara), as Charlie responds by asking if the movie is too “fancy”. Tara says that it is “elevated horror”, and Charlie doesn’t seem to understand. Tara says that elevated horror is still scary, but has deeper themes and complex emotions, and that it isn’t a movie with just wall to wall jump scares (okay Tara I wasn’t familiar with your game). Charlie says that it sounds boring, and then asks (of course), if Tara has ever seen Stab. Tara says she isn’t the most aware of the movies, and Charlie makes fun of her for this, as our girl Tara is in Woodsboro.

He proceeds to ask about the original stab, and Tara says it is SUPER 90s. After this, (okay here we go FINALLY) Charlie asks if Tara remembers the opening scene of the original stab. She does, of course, as it is the opening scene where the girl got killed. Charlie says that the girl answers a wrong number, and begins talking with the killer, who makes her play a name. Charlie (let’s refer to him by a different name, shall we?). GHOSTFACE then asks Tara one simple question, “would you like to play a game?” Ghostface calls Tara by her name, as Tara hands up the phone in fear. Tara locks her doors with her phone, as she looks around. The phone rings once more, as Tara is VERY freaked out. However, she receives a text from “Amber”. It says that she should answer the phone, and Ghostface texts back, saying “This isn’t Amber”. He says that she needs to answer the phone or else Amber dies. Now back on the phone with Ghostface, he sends a video of Amber in her room. Ghostface then reveals his game, which is Stab movie trivia. If Tara gets a question wrong, Amber dies. If she calls the cops, Amber dies. Tara begins FREAKING OUT, as she says she doesn’t know the Stab franchise, and wants to be asked about It Follows or Hereditary (REAL). But, Ghostface goes ahead anyway. He asks a “warm up question”, saying who is the main protagonist of Stab. Tara correctly says Sidney, but it isn’t enough. Question 1 asks who wrote the book that inspired Stab, and Tara goes two for two by answering correctly with Gale Weathers!! The next question asks who played Casey in Stab 1, and Tara LOCKS IN and searches up the stab cast, getting the right answer.

Final question, and ALMOST at the end of the opening scene (see how I said this is going to be a long one?). Ghostface asks who the killer was in Stab, and Tara says Billy Loomis. However, this IS in fact wrong. It was Billy AND Stu, and Tara entered into full panic mode. Tara grabs a knife and bolts to the front door, BUT GHOSTFACE IS ALREADY THERE. He gets a good slash on Tara’s stomach, as she slams the door (Tara actually fights back really well!). She locks her doors with her phone, but they UNLOCK. She then continues to try and lock them (spoof on modern technology horror films btw god I LOVEEEE Scream). Tara then gets another call, and by this point our poor girl is bloodied, sobbing, and terrified. Picking it up, Ghostface asks a “bonus question”, asking if Tara thinks he got into the house before she could rearm the house. However, her question is answered for her as Ghostface JUMPSCARES her from behind, stabbing her in the stomach. She continues to fight back, but this is Ghostface we’re talking about. He gets in some MAJOR damage on her foot, breaking it and continuing to stab her. She tries to crawl away, but Ghostface gets back up, and continues his pursuit. As police sirens are heard, and flashing lights are seen, Ghostface picks up his bloody knife, and SLASHES, bringing us into our title card!!!! (three pages in, 10 minutes in. Oh boy.)

Our camera focuses on a girl in Modesto, California. This is Sam Carpenter (we also find this out later but like before I’m trying to get the info out asap), and she is Tara’s sister! Her boyfriend, Richie, exits their work after her, and the two joke around in classic Scream fashion. However, the second Sam starts to relax, she receives a text from Wes, saying that something happened to Tara. She, of course, picks up, and Wes says to Sam that Tara was stabbed. TARA IS STILL ALIVE! She made it through surgery and is resting, and we learn that the sisters aren’t on the best terms, even though they are sisters. Even through this, Sam says she will be there for her sister, after Wes reveals the attacker was someone in a Ghostface mask. Sam, of course, gets ready to leave, but Richie leaves with her! (This guy is a good boyfriend). As Sam drives off, WE CUT TO WOODSBORO HIGH! And it is GOOD to be back! We meet our teenage group from the movie, which is Tara’s close knit friend group. We’ve got Wes (who has a crush on Tara), Amber (who we already met), the twin siblings of Chad (played by the guy who played Jay in heart eyes!) and Mindy Meeks-Martin (yes, that last name should be familiar to you all), and last but not least, Liv, who is Chad’s girlfriend. They are joking around in very typical Scream fashion, talking about killings and everything that is going on. ESPECIALLY a new Ghostface being in the town. Off in the distance, Liv spots a guy who she had a fling with last summer, and someone who worked with both her and Tara. However, he leaves shortly after (important). And, another important thing, we notice that Liv is a pretty bad friend, and that Wes’s mother is a cop.

We then cut to our duo of Richie and Sam driving to the hospital, where Richie says he never saw any of the Stab movies. Richie also says that the events that happened in the past remind him of Halloween (YES RICHIE). Sam says that every decade or so, some lunatic wears the mask and kills a bunch of teenagers, and the last time it happened was in 2011 (Scream 4). Richie makes a Jason Voorhees joke, as Sam says she has no idea why a Ghostface would target Tara. Sam gets to the hospital, and has a reunion with her sister, while all her friends clear out of the room (they don’t like Sam much, especially not Amber). Sam comforts her sister, as we cut to the friend group at a bar. Some of the friends do love Sam, but Amber tells her story on why she doesn’t. Apparently, when Tara was eight and Sam was thirteen, their father left, and immediately after that, Sam started acting out, getting in trouble with the law and her family at the same time. The second Sam turned eighteen, she left, and disappeared from Tara’s life. After the friends bicker back and forth, which ends with Mindy saying not to trust anyone (also that Liv would be too boring to be a killer), Vince Schneider appears, who was the creepy guy from Woodsboro High earlier. He then gets into a verbal argument with Chad, and both parties are kicked out of the bar. We then cut outside, where Vince is using the bathroom. He finishes his business, until the CAR LIGHTS from behind him turn on. From the car, “Red Right Hand” begins to play through the radio, which is the song from one of the opening scenes at Woodsboro High from the original film. UGH I love Scream.

We see a flash of a dark cloak, and the second after Vince turns the music off, it turns back on. Faster than Vince can move, GHOSTFACE APPEARS, stabbing him in the neck quickly. Vince dies on the pavement, as Ghostface does his iconic knife wipe to clean off the blood. WOOOOOO. We cut back to the hospital, where Sam goes to find something to eat, after Richie stays in the room watching Stab on Netflix. Sam looks into a mirror after taking some pills, ONLY TO SEE THE BLOODIED BODY OF BILLY LOOMIS. WHATT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!??!?! Billy begins to talk to Sam, as he says that Sam can’t run from who she is. Billy asks when Sam is going to tell Tara why all of this is happening, but once she gets a phone call, he disappears. The call is, of course, from Ghostface. Ghostface says he knows Sam’s secret, and that he almost killed Tara just to get Sam back to Woodsboro. Sam says for Ghostface to come and get her, and in one of my favorite moments of the movie, he replies by saying “WITH PLEASURE.” As he FLIES INTO the room from a closed door. Ghostface and Sam engage in a huge fight, and she is able to run. However, when a cop enters the room, Ghostface is gone.

The group are back in the hospital room, where Deputy Judy Hicks (Wes’ mother) is questioning the group. She is actually from Scream 4! She was a good cop who had a HUGE crush on our boy Dewey and HATED Gale. Now, she rose the ranks in the Woodsboro P.D. Sam asks for more cops to be put in the room, as Sam and Judy argue outside. After the argument, Sam enters back into the room with Tara, and it is time, my friends, for quite possibly the biggest bombshell of the entire movie to be dropped. Sam says that when she was thirteen, she went into the attic of their childhood home, and read some diaries from her mother from when she was in high school. But, it wasn’t what Sam was expecting. While their mother was dating their father, she was in love with another man, and he got her pregnant. Sam’s mother told her father that the baby was his, and that’s why he proposed when they were so young. Sam went and screamed at her mother, and her father was standing right behind her. He had absolutely no idea. He left the family that night, and Sam blames herself. Her mother never forgave Sam, and made her promise not to tell Tara. Due to this, Sam left and got distant, and essentially destroyed her life when she was young. She couldn’t be around Tara because she blamed herself for destroying their family. But, there was one other reason, a bigger reason that anything. Sam’s father is Billy Loomis…

Tara rightly loses it, and tells her sister to leave, which she does. Richie was (of course) listening in on the entire conversation from behind the door, and tells Sam that he won’t leave her, and that they will fight Ghostface together. Richie asks what the first move is, and Sam says that they need to talk to an expert. (And also, before this movie goes more off the rails than it already is, OH MY GOD. BILLY LOOMIS?!?!? This means that Sam’s mother cheated on their father, AND that Billy cheated on Sid all the way back then. I LOVE SCREAM.) The camera pans in on a trailer park, and we see a box with the name “Tatum” engraved on it. We continue panning around, AS WE SEE DEWEY!!!!!! HE’S BACK MY FRIENDS, AND WOW IS IT GOOD TO SEE HIM! Yes, Deputy Dewey is back in the Scream world, and we learn some VERY important things. In the timeline between Scream 3 and 4, Dewey and Gale got married. However, due to something unforeseen, the couple divorced. We see Dewey watching Gale on the morning news, as Sam and Richie show up to his house. Of course, Dewey doesn’t want any part in this, but Dewey “welcomes” them in after Sam says she and her sister were attacked, and she is Loomis’ daughter. Dewey sits with our duo, as he goes IN on Richie. Dewey asks all sorts of questions, such as if he’s obsessed with Stab, how long they’ve been dating, and if he can trust him.

Dewey begins to channel some of his inner Randy, as he explains his rules for surviving a Stab movie. The most important, of course, is never to trust the love interest. In the third act, they always show their true colors, and he says that Richie was mysteriously missing when Sam was attacked (Dewey is NAILING it right now). The second rule is that the killer’s motive is always related to something from the past. Finally, the third and most important rule, the killer is always a part of the friend group. Sam asks Dewey to help them, but Dewey says how many times he’s been stabbed, and how much he is OUT of the Ghostface business. But, Sam says that if she is in danger, Dewey is as well. Dewey takes a good second to consider it, before kicking our duo out of the house. We cut BACK to our man Dewey, as Gale says the following on the news, “the pros and cons of reuniting with old friends”. After I heard this, I KNEW what was coming. Dewey gets up, grabs his phone, and takes a deep sigh. We cut to a woman pushing a stroller on a path, as her phone rings. I think we all know who this woman is. The woman picks up, turns her face sideways, and we see SIDNEY PRESCOTT. YESSSSSSSSSSSSSS WOOOOOOOO (LETS GO.) Sid and Dewey begin to talk (god I’m so happy I can say those words), as we learn a little bit of what’s going on with Sid. She has I believe three daughters, and a husband named Mark. She’s actually learned to RELAX, and has a good life. But, of course, she’s still Sidney Prescott. Sid asks if Dewey has talked to Gale, and he says he hasn’t. But, Dewey interrupts the small talk. He says that it is happening again. Ghostface is back. Dewey says that something about this one feels different. Dewey says that Sid needs to be careful, and asks if she has a gun, which of COURSE she does. Dewey says he is telling Gale next, and Dewey tells Sid NOT to come to Woodsboro. Sid says that she isn’t stepping foot in the town ever again. Sid says she is glad that the new victims have Dewey to protect them, and she begs him to be careful. Dewey hangs up with Sid, and then texts Gale. VERY seriously saying that Ghostface is back, and not to come to Woodsboro. Dewey then sends another amazing text saying “Hope you’re doing well :)” IMMEDIATELY after saying a killer is on the loose. Dewey walks over to his box, and looks at his badge, and his gun.

We cut back to Sam and Richie, as Dewey shows up at the house, with the exact same music playing from his first on screen appearance in the first film. The trio is at Chad and Mindy’s home, where we find out that RANDY MEEKS was their uncle! That explains where their love of movies and the tropes of how to survive horror movies come from. In the house already is the entire friend group, (and Dewey of course). Sam confesses to everyone that she is Billy’s daughter, and that one of the friends in the group is the killer. We ALSO learn that Vince was STU’S NEPHEW! Even “random” killings have a motive. Wes says that maybe Dewey is the killer because he got stabbed a bunch, got dumped, and crawled into a bottle. Dewey responds by saying that he may be the killer because “that cut deep”. (Poor Dewey). Mindy then locks in and channels her uncle, saying how Stab 8 was the worst movie they have ever seen (Stab 8 I believe is a commentary on Scream 4 and all modern horror films). Mindy says that the killer is writing their own version of Stab 8, which is a “requel”. It’s not a sequel, but it isn’t a reboot. It has NEW characters, but they are supported by and related to legacy characters (she is 100% right here). Mindy also says that Sam is the star of this movie, because she is related to Billy. Mindy says that since Chad and her are both the nephews of Randy, so they are probably next. Wes then says that his mom is a character in one of the Stabs, but Mindy says that no one cares about the inferior sequels (HUGE dig at Scream 4 I love it). Mindy says that Sam being the killer makes 100% sense for a requel, and she drives away from everyone, even as Richie says that the first rule of horror films is not to split up.

As she drives away, BILLY appears once more in her rearview mirror. He talks to his daughter, as he says that a killer is on the loose threatening her and her sister, and Billy says that she CANNOT run away from who she truly is, which is the only way to survive. He now SCREAMS, saying that the only way to deal with this is to find out who the killer is, AND CUT SOME ******* THROATS!!! Sam ALMOST crashes into oncoming traffic, as Billy finally disappears. (GOD I love this dynamic so much). We cut to Judy in her house, as she is VERY paranoid about everything going on, but she leaves Wes at the house to go get sushi, telling her kid to take a shower. Wes gets into the shower, as our man leaves his phone outside of it. GREAT. While driving, Judy sees camera crews outside. But, she is interrupted when she gets a call from Ghostface. Ghostface asks “what’s your favorite scary movie?”, as Ghostface reveals that he is ABOUT TO KILL WES. Judy, of course, tries to call Wes, but our man is too distracted. Judy then calls all units to her house, as Judy asks how she even knows Ghostface is near Wes. We then get one of the GREATEST references in the movie. Ghostface asks Judy if she has ever seen Psycho, as our music does a slight leitmotif and nod to the Psycho soundtrack, as we get the EXACT same shot of the EXACT same showerhead while Wes is showering, a beautiful nod to the shower kill in Psycho. Judy begins to break down, begging Ghostface not to hurt Wes while driving as fast as she can. Judy FINALLY makes it to the house, running to the door, AS GHOSTFACE APPEARS. He jumps out from behind a pillar next to the door, and BRUTUALLY kills Judy, staring at her dead and bloodied body. RIP. We then cut to Wes, as he walks around the house, and we get like five different hilarious and amazing fakeouts with the music becoming suspenseful, like Ghostface could be around any corner. FINALLY, when we least expect it, he shows up, STABBING WES THROUGH THE THROAT. He slides down the door, as we literally see the knife in his throat, as the iconic Ghostface mask gets splashes of blood on it. Rest in peace Wes, (and more important, Rest in Peace Wes Craven. Thank you for creating so many of the things I love.)

Sam arrives at the house, and although she tries to get into the house, she is told by the officers that Wes is gone. However, to distract us from the pain of what just happened, WE SEE A VAN DOOR OPEN, and a woman clad in red jumps out. She walks towards Sam, AND IT IS GALE WEATHERS. Gale actually jokes around with Sam, being the person we know she is. Gale says Judy didn’t like her much, as Gale sees Dewey in the background. She runs towards him, as she accidentally says she is “Gale Riley” to Sam. The pair have an emotional reunion, and as Gale says that her producers obviously wanted her to cover the story, she is 90% there for Dewey. We then get some HUGE insights on what happened. We learn that Gale was the one who ended things, and that Dewey is retired because the Woodsboro P.D. asked him to step down. Gale says that the couple moved to New York City, but Dewey couldn’t handle it. He left in the middle of the night like a “coward”. Gale of course says that he is NOT a coward, and that he was just meant to be in Woodsboro. He tells Gale to promise him to leave as soon as she can.

We then cut to Richie, and get a TREASURE TROVE of references. Our man is watching an in-universe version of DEAD MEAT (horror kill count show on YouTube), where the hosts are critiquing Stab 8. We see a sleeveless, buff, Metallic Mask Ghostface with a FLAMETHROWER on screen (okay yeah I see why people hated Stab 8), and that the title was called “STAB” and not Stab 8 (a dig at this movie itself). Richie says that Stab 8 sucks as Sam calls him, but this man is too invested in Stab. Sam says that Wes and his mother were killed, as Richie says “you can do that?” after Sam says the sheriff was killed. BUT, Sam notices the SAME COP from the hospital who was supposed to be watching Tara. TARA IS ALONE. Sam hops in her car, as Dewey hops in with her, after taking one long look at Gale. We cut to Tara, as she hears noises outside of her hospital bed, and we get the AMAZING detail of her heart rate monitor getting increasingly more frantic as she gets more nervous. Tara then makes the AGONIZING feat of getting out of her bed and into a wheelchair, as her hands bleed while she wheels herself. She leaves her phone in the room (GREAT), as the agonized girl wheels herself down the hallway, ONLY TO FIND A COP WITH HIS THROAT SLIT. Tara recoils in fear, as she SPEEDS through traffic. Tara tries to get the officer’s gun, but it is missing (GREAT AGAIN). The terrified Tara gets into another room, STILL in incredible pain, as she tries to call Sam on a rotary phone. The door flies open, and IT’S RICHIE. Tara DECKS him with the phone, as he says that Sam told him to get to the hospital. But, before anything else can happen, GHOSTFACE appears, slicing Richie and knocking him out.

Tara causes an IV drip to be knocked onto Ghostface, as she agonizingly tries to wheel away. Richie’s phone rings, and Ghostface turns on his voice changer, as he picks up the phone. Ghostface decides to play a game. He tells Sam that she has to CHOOSE who dies, as he causes Tara to fall from her chair. Sam becomes INCREASINGLY frantic, as Ghostface says that Sam is too weak for this franchise. BUT, Sam says she was just stalling for time, AS THE ELEVATOR DOOR OPENS. DEWEY AND SAM APPEAR! Dewey fires at Ghostface, as Sam gets Tara and Dewey gets Richie. BUT, Ghostface appears, and tackles Dewey! BUT, this is Dewey we’re talking about. He says “not today”, as he puts up an INCREDIBLE fight against Ghostface, unloading three bullets into his chest. LETS GO. He grabs Richie, and the trio pile into the elevator. However, one man remains. Dewey says that they have to shoot Ghostface in the head, because they always come back (William Afton). Sam asks who cares, and Dewey, being our amazing Dewey, says he does. He turns back around, and puts a new round of bullets into his gun. He walks over to Ghostface, BUT IS INTERRUPTED from shooting, as Gale calls him. Ghostface takes the opportunity, STABBING DEWEY IN THE BACK AND STOMACH WITH TWO KNIVES. Ghostface says “YES, TODAY”, as blood POURS onto the ground. Dewey writhes in pain, but he sees Gale’s name and face calling him. He smiles, as Ghostface says “it’s an honor”. He pulls out the two knives, AND KICKS DEWEY TO THE FLOOR. Dewey’s dead body drops onto the hospital floor, as Ghostface stares down at his work. (Okay, let’s talk. I was HEARTBROKEN. I honestly can’t describe it. And yes, this movie has been out for a long time. I knew that this happened. But I did NOT know the way in which it happened. After the movie came out, the ENTIRE Scream fanbase exploded. Some called this literally the worst move the franchise could have done, even Dewey’s actor himself HATED what happened, and was depressed by his character’s death. And, honestly, he has every right to be. Dewey IS dead, and isn’t coming back this time. Regardless of how anyone feels, I still love this movie, but this scene really hurt. Rest in Peace to the best Deputy EVER.)

We cut to Gale arriving at the scene, seeing Dewey’s bodybag being taken away. Sam rushes out of the building along with Richie, holding Gale back as she begins to break down. (This is so sad.) We see Gale sitting in depression on the couch in the hospital (ALL OF US FEEL YOU GALE), as Sam sees Gale, and tells her that she’s sorry. Sam says that even though she didn’t know Dewey well, he helped her. Gale says that’s what he did, and that she should have stopped him. BUT, Sam says if Gale did, Tara would have been dead. Sam goes to talk to a newly awoken Tara, as a woman walks into the hospital. It is, of course, Sid. The two friends embrace, as Sid says she came as soon as she heard. BOTH of these girls should NOT be in Woodsboro, but Sid reveals that her family is safe for the time being, and she is here to make sure they stay that way. They sit down, as we cut to Tara and Sam. Sam apologizes for everything, and Tara says that she doesn’t blame Sam for what happened. She only blames Sam for leaving her as well, and Sam says it will never happen again. Sam reveals that she was scared of being near Tara when she was young, as she was terrified she would end up just like her father. To protect Tara from herself. But, Tara, of course, says that Sam could never be Billy Loomis. The sisters say they love each other, and we get a much needed moment of happiness. Sam says that they are about to do what nobody does in these situations, which is to get OUT of Woodsboro (THANK GOD FINALLY).

When the trio of Richie, Sam, and Tara go to leave the hospital, Sid intervenes. Sid and Sam begin to talk, as Sid says she has been through it all, even offering to talk to Sam about anything (I love Sid guys I love Sid so much). Sam apologizes, but says that she is leaving. Sid says she tried to run as well, but it never worked. Gale says it always goes back to the original, and Gale says that SIDNEY PRESCOTT is literally THE original. Sid says that Ghostface will never stop hunting Sam, and Sid asks for Sam to help her and Gale KILL Ghostface. Richie pulls the car around, as Sam stubbornly says that they are leaving, and it is the only way to protect Tara. Sid relents, and the trio leaves. But, Sid reveals that she did the most Sidney Prescott thing imaginable. She put a tracker on Sam’s car. YES. Sid says it is something that Gale Weathers would have done, and Gale says that it’s a fair point. We cut back to the trio, as we see the “LEAVING WOODSBORO” sign. Tara panics though, saying she forgot her inhaler, and an extra one is at Amber’s house. Richie does NOT want to go there, but he is forced to. Amber and the rest of the friend groups are in a MASSIVE drinking party, which was supposed to be a memorial for Wes. After Mindy and Amber have a VERY intense standoff in the basement, where they both play the “you’re the killer!” card, we see Chad and Liv making out on the couch. Liv asks to “go upstairs”, because of course she can. BUT, this is the #1 rule of horror fest. CHAD ABIDES BY THE RULE, saying he isn’t sure that his girlfriend isn’t the killer, and that he wants to stay downstairs with all the people (SMART MAN). Liv, of course, promptly walks out on him.

We cut to Gale and Sid driving, as Gale says that if she never wrote the book on Sid’s mother, nothing would have happened. BUT, Sid shuts this down, saying that Billy Loomis is the one that started everything. Tonight, they will get rid of the books, and the movies, and Ghostface. We cut back to the party, where we get VERY meta as Mindy watches the original Stab, IRONICALLY the scene where Randy is explaining the rules of horror movies. Chad asks why his sister is watching a movie about their uncle being stabbed, and she says it calms her down. Chad takes a weapon and walks outside, where Liv asks to share her location with him, so he can go find her and apologize. Of course, like the rest of you, I found this very suspect. Chad continues walking through the dark, but the SECOND he gives up his chase, Ghostface appears, stabbing him in the leg. He fights back, but isn’t able to get very far with his injured leg. He hides behind a shed, where he sees Ghostface’s location approaching, before he chucks his phone into the forest. Chad takes a deep breath, and tries to hobble away, as in one of the SCARIEST MOMENTS in the movie, Ghostface JUMPS OUT from the shed, and runs FULL FORCE towards Chad, getting in some VERY aggressive stabs. However, Ghostface runs when a car arrives. However, this car completely misses the injured Chad, and of course, it’s the Carpenter sisters and Richie. The entire party heads into the house.

Tara walks in, and is cheered on by the guests. Tara goes to find her inhaler, as Amber tells everyone to GET OUT. However, they of course don’t abide by this. Richie then begins to speak, turning on the lights and saying the house is a HUGE murder target, and gets everyone out. The group begins to walk through the house, as we see Mindy making out with her crush on the couch. Randy is on the T.V., explaining to NEVER say “i’ll be right back” in the original Stab. Mindy is now alone, as Richie appears. Richie asks if Mindy has any extra beer, and she says there is some in the basement. He asks for her to come with him, and she immediately says no to this. Richie says “I’ll be right back”, which both of them laugh at. Mindy says that he’s dead, as Liv appears on the couch. She is FED UP, and Mindy asks where her brother is. Liv says she didn’t see him, and Mindy says she is revising her suspect list. Liv then gets VERY threatening with Mindy, as Liv says the “expert” always dies in horror movies, and that she was “too boring” to be the killer. We cut back to Sid and Gale, as Sid finds out the trio stopped. Gale asks if it’s at a gas station, but her question is answered when Sid curses. She shows their location to Gale, and she does the same. Sid then CALLS SAM, and Sam picks up. Sid then drops this. Sid says she has to get out of the house RIGHT NOW, as we realize that “Amber’s house” looks too familiar… Sid says that Sam is standing in STU MACHER’S HOUSE, the famous place where, as we all know, Sam’s father and Stu killed everyone. Sid said that someone planned to get her there, and that Sam needs to LEAVE. The music picks up, as we get an AMAZING shot of the house, Sam standing in the open doorway.

We then get THE MOST meta scene in the entire movie. Mindy watches the scene in Stab where her uncle is saying “turn around”, as Ghostface approaches. However, as this is happening, GHOSTFACES APPROACHES BEHIND MINDY, stabbing her. Sam runs in, and fights off Ghostface enough for him to leave. MIndy is really hurt, and passes out. (We all know how meta this is, but let me just dive deep into it really quick. Mindy was watching Stab, which is of course a spoof on the original events of Scream, where her uncle was screaming at Jamie (his name) referring to Laurie Strode to turn around as Michael approached. Mindy is now watching a spoof of that moment as the EXACT SAME THING happens to her. I’m pretty sure this reference is like five or six layers deep, it’s actually insane.)

The ENTIRE friend group gets into the room, as Amber asks what Sam did. Liv says that she isn’t the killer, but Liv’s hands are coated in blood, as she found Chad. Liv says that she isn’t the killer, and Amber says that she knows, PULLING OUT DEWEY’S GUN AND SHOOTING LIV IN THE HEAD. HOLY. WELL, HI GHOSTFACE! She says “Welcome to Act Three”, as EVERYONE RUNS. Sam ends up in the basement with Richie, as Richie says there are always two killers. SAM PULLS A KNIFE ON RICHIE, but Richie stays calm, and says that he thinks that Tara is the real killer. Sam runs back upstairs, leaving Richie. Gale and Sid finally arrive at the house, and Sid pulls out two mint guns. Screams are heard, and Gale says it sounds right. The girls march towards the house, as Amber appears, crying and screaming for help. Sid asks what Gale thinks, and she says it’s a trap. Amber then drops the act, SHOOTING GALE. Sid shoots back, and dives down. Gale is okay, but she is out of commission for now. She tells Sid to go inside, and finish it. For Dewey. Sid gets up, and we get an INCREDIBLE shot of Sid’s silhouette staring at the original monster. The house where it all happened. Sid enters, and we get the exact same music stings from the first film. Sid screams for anyone to show themselves, and she SHOOTS AT DOORS. Sid is NOT messing around this time, as we hear footsteps upstairs.

We cut to upstairs, where we see Sam, still with the knife, approaching a closet. She opens it, and TARA IS THERE! Tara is completely tied up with tape, and as Sam goes to cut her free, she stops, staring at her sister. We cut downstairs, as Sid of course gets a call from Ghostface. He says that he isn’t Amber, and that he is the other one!!! Sid says she’s seen this movie before, and Ghostface says he got Sid back to Woodsboro. Sid says he needs new material, saying how derivative it is to use the exact same house. Ghostface says Sid forgot the first rule of surviving a Stab movie, which is to never answer the phone. Sid HANGS UP, saying she’s bored, as Ghostface says “WAIT.” Sid shoots through a door, and RICHIE gets shot! He was hiding in the closet, as AMBER APPEARS in the Ghostface outfit. Richie says “HOLY *** IT’S GHOSTFACE”, as Sid sends both herself and Ghostface TUMBLING across the balcony and down the stairs. Sam grabs the gun, as Richie walks up to her. He hugs his girlfriend, AND STABS HER. That’s right, our two killers are RICHIE AND AMBER. Richie says he was the one who wanted to kill Sam, and he twists the knife in her stomach. Amber walks over to Sid, and holds her at gunpoint. Richie reveals he had Tara’s inhaler the entire time, and pulls out his voice changer, saying “it really was the best choice for the movie”. Sam screams at him, as our motives are finally revealed. Richie PULLS THE KNIFE OUT, as our two girls are brought into the iconic kitchen. The same kitchen where Sid confronted Billy and Stu twenty-five years earlier.

MOTIVES HERE WE GO! Richie says that no one has made a good Stab movie since the first one, and that their goal is to provide some new material. Richie walks over to Sid, and says he was a huge fan. He then begins LOOSING it, saying that studios never take the true fans seriously, and that fandom CANNOT be toxic. It’s only love. The entire motive of Richie and Amber’s plan was to provide new material for a NEW Stab movie, one that brings the franchise back to form, one that is based on actual events. As Richie says this, the injured Gale is brought into the kitchen. Sam asks why they would do all of this just to make her the hero of their movie. But, Richie shoots this down, saying that our girl Sam isn’t the hero. She’s the villain. She’s the daughter of Billy Loomis who sees visions of her father, a father that Sid killed. SAM did all of this just to bring Sid back to Woodsboro. Amber says that the biggest problem with Stab is that there is no Michael Myers or Jason Voorhees. There isn’t a villain that KEEPS COMING BACK. BUT, the illegitimate daughter of the original Ghostface, THAT is a villain. Amber reveals that it was VERY easy to find out Sam’s secret, and that Amber and Richie found each other on the Stab subreddit. When Amber’s parents bought Stu’s house, she was OBSESSED with making her own “movie”, and she and Richie teamed up. Richie channels his inner Billy, saying that it wasn’t that hard to do the deed with Sam, and to find her in Modesto. Sam says “**** you”, the EXACT same words in the EXACT same way that Sid said them in the original, and in perhaps my favorite quote from this absolute goldmine, Richie says “Well, now you’re just quoting the original.”

Amber says that their movie wouldn’t work with just Sam, and that they had to bring back the “legacy” characters. In her own words, “you can’t have a bonafide Halloween without Jamie Lee!”. She says that Dewey HAD to die to show that their movie has STAKES, and isn’t just another sequel. Amber says that anyone can die in a requel, as Sid RUSHES for a knife on the table. BUT, SHE GETS STABBED, and falls to the floor. Richie says he is sorry to Sid, and that she can’t be allowed to live, especially after surviving as much as she has. Richie says that this time, the FANS will be the ones who win. Gale tells Sid to stay with her, as Richie says that they should have listened to Dewey, and that he nailed it in one (he did.) But, upstairs, Amber says that Tara is GONE. Sam says she DID untie her sister, and that Richie isn’t as persuasive as he thought. The phone begins to ring, as Amber looks for Tara. TARA THEN APPEARS, BEATING AMBER WITH HER CRUTCH. LET’S GO! Sam then jumps onto Richie, and engages him in a fight, then running to help her sister. Richie runs through the house in the EXACT WAY Stu and Billy did, AS SID GETS UP LIKE SHE ALWAYS DOES, and Sid and Gale get into a two versus one against Amber. Amber says it wasn’t her fault, and Sid says “Let me guess, the movies made you do it?”. Amber continues her acting, until Gale says she killed her best friend. Amber says he died like a coward, and Gale FULLY punches Amber, as the two girls engage in hand to hand combat. (I LOVE THIS MOVIE AND THIS FRANCHISE. HAVE I SAID THAT?)

Amber is able to get the upper hand, as she is able to temporarily get both Gale and Sid off of her. We cut to Richie, as he follows a blood trail upstairs. Back with Amber, she begins to choke Gale, saying that SHE was the last thing Dewey saw before he died as well, and she can’t believe she gets to kill both of them. But, there’s one thing Amber forgot. She is fighting GALE WEATHERS AND SIDNEY PRESCOTT. Amber says “it’s time to pass the torch”, and Gale says “it’s all yours”, HEADBUTTING Amber. She falls onto the stove, lighting it behind her. Our girls stand up, and Sid gives Gale the honors. Gale shoots THREE SHOTS INTO AMBER, as she falls back onto the stove, lighting ablaze. SId comes in with one of her brilliant one-liners, saying “Enjoy that torch”.

Upstairs, Sam APPEARS from a closet, tackling Richie. His knife falls, as he tells Sam to stop messing up his ending. The injured Sam crawls away, as Richie pulls out his gun. They both go CRASHING down the stairs, as Richie gets up first, holding the gun. However, Sam looks around, and sees her father in the mirror once more, looking down at the floor and nodding to Sam. Sam looks, and sees a knife. Billy Loomis looks once more at his daughter, and smiles, nodding his head. Richie says that Sam is the villain, and the villain dies at the end. It’s the rule. However, Sam asks to introduce a new rule. “Never **** with the daughter of a serial killer”. SHE PULLS OUT THE KNIFE, stabbing Richie through the mouth. She gets up, and channeling her father, BRUTALLY stabs Richie over and over again. Richie tells her to stop, and says “What about my ending?”. Sam lifts up his head, and says, “here it comes”. SHE SLITS HIS THROAT, and does the classic Ghostface knife wipe WITH HER BARE HAND. WHAT. AN. ENDING. Sid and Gale walk into the room, as Sam drops the knife. Sid says to be careful, as they always come back. Sam takes Sid’s gun, and shoots Richie multiple times. But, the second the girls begin to relax, A HORRIBLY burned and disfigured Amber runs into the room with a knife, ONLY TO BE SHOT IN THE HEAD BY TARA. She says “I still prefer the Babadook”, as the two sisters hug. It’s over.

We cut outside, as Mindy is still alive! She is wheeled away, as she gives a thumbs up to CHAD! He is also alive, and is being treated. Tara is being treated as well, as she asks to go to a different hospital this time. Sam takes a momentary leave from her sister, and walks to Sid and Gale. Sam thanks both of our girls, as Sam asks if Sid is going to be okay. Sid says she’ll survive. She always does. Sam says she was right about not running away. Sid apologizes, as Gale says she’ll be okay in a few days. Gale, though, says she knows what she’ll be writing about this time. It will not be on the murders, as she wants Amber and Richie to die in anonymity. She says that she’s going to write about a good man who used to be sheriff in Woodsboro once. Sid says she’d like to read that story. We then begin to get one final talk between our two final girls, (by this point I was getting emotional). Sam asks Sid if she is going to be okay, and Sid smiles at her, saying one word. “Eventually”. Sam walks away, as she looks into a car’s mirror, and sees her father standing with her. Our music is solemn and slow, as Billy Loomis nods, and smiles once more. Sam walks back to Tara, getting into the ambulance with her, saying that she won’t be going anywhere without her. Sam says she will hold Tara’s hand all the way there, as the ambulance doors are closed. Our camera takes one more look at the police outside of the house, as a new reporter says that twenty-five years ago, almost to the day, in this very house, a tragic story ended. Tonight, a new story came to a close. The camera pans up, looking at the sunrise. In a shot exactly like the ending to the original movie, literally almost the exact same shot, our music slows, as we fade to black…

A message appears on screen, “For Wes”. We hear birds chirping, as birdwatching was one of the legendary Wes Craven’s favorite activities. As for what happens next in the five seconds before the credits, let me quote myself from Horror Fest 2023, in the original article on the original Scream. “Ghostface then slashes us into the credits, coming back for one final scare.”

THERE. WE. HAVE. IT. Guys, I know this one took a while, but oh my god. As I’m sure you can ALL tell, we have absolutely ANNIHILATED the longest article record, coming in at 13 pages (a very fitting number) and some 8,400+ words. I’m honestly pretty emotional about this one. As you all know, Scream is one of the icons of Horror Fest, and it’s finally time to put Ghostface to rest for the Final Chapter. I’m so, so lucky to be able to share this with you all. Thank you always for sticking with me, and thank you for journeying with me on the Final Chapter this far. We still have a couple days left, dear readers, so be ready. The Final Chapter hasn’t reached its conclusion yet… To send us off, let me quote myself from last year, and of course, from the Scream 2 article. “With that, my friends, I bid you adieu. But, it’s almost time. The leaves are falling, the sky is darkening, the pumpkins are lit. Halloween is almost here.” And, of course, remember dear readers, ALWAYS remember, NEVER trust the movies. Don’t trust anyone, and never forget the past. Because you never know if you may one day be the star… of your own requel…