Scream: Collector's Series
review by Justin Meyers
Rated R
Running Time: 104 Minutes
Starring Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, David Arquette,
Skeet Ulrich, Drew Barrymore
Studio: Disney
Written by Kevin Williamson
Directed by Wes Craven
Retail Price: 39.99
Features: Theatrical Trailers, Audio Commentary with
Wes Craven and Kevin Williamson, Production Featurette,
Behind the Scenes Footage, Interviews, TV Spots, Film Facts,
Cast and Crew Bios
Specs: 2.35:1 Non-Anamorphic Widescreen, 5.1 Dolby
Digital English, English Captions, Chapter Search
The smash hit that transformed the horror genre into a
phenomenon, Scream also launched the careers of some of
today's brightest stars! After a series of mysterious
deaths, an offbeat group of friends get caught in a lively
mix of thrills and chills.
With hot stars Drew Barrymore, Courtney Cox, Neve
Cambell, Skeet Ulrich, and David Arquette. Now you can
experience this edge-of-your-seat thriller like never before
with the Dimension Collector's Series on DVD.
Scream is the best movie in the Scream Trilogy. Written
cleverly by Kevin Williamson. It has witty dialogue, black
humor, and unimaginable death scenes. This is one scary film
and it broke the mold for all other horror movies. There are
some scenes that you will jump and keep you on the edge of
your seat. The score mostly brings this on. The music is a
key to the brilliance of this movie.
Wes Craven is one of the, if not the best horror
directors ever. He has made this movie one of the best
horror movies of the 90's. With his camera style and
Williamson's script, this production could not have gone
wrong. You can tell by the Audio Commentary that they loved
this movie, and really enjoyed making it.
I enjoy watching this movie over and over again. It is an
entertaining movie and it's fun to watch people jump in some
of the scenes even though they've seen it before. Courtney
Cox really steals the show, as a news reporter trying to get
her story. Neve Cambell is a great victim/heroine that you
can associate with. There is some great acting for a horror
movie that usually only has corny lines and bad actors. It
is the best slasher movie I have ever seen. With the
who-dunnit twists, this is not only a horror movie but a
mystery too, with a shocking ending.
The picture of Scream is really terrific. It's not
anamorphic, but it is in 2.35:1 Widescreen and is pretty
flawless. The shadows and darks are vibrant and clear. The
colors and flesh tones are crisp and natural. The blood in
the film, which the color red is a highlight of this movie,
is right on and looks realistic. For an example of the blood
go to time 1:26:12. This is one quality video here. It
actually makes the film scarier. You can see everything.
It is expected that the sound play a huge part in horror
movies. On this DVD, it's no different, as the Dolby Digital
5.1 sounds excellent. The musical score is brilliant by a
very talented man named Marco Beltrami; it leads you up to
something that will or will not happen. The sound of the
phone is quite impressive. It has the reality it needs to
scare you. The opening title sequence is the best part to
try out your sound system. You can hear screams and
heartbeats as the logo title races from your front to the
rear speakers. The voices are centered but when certain
action takes place it follows from left to right. The sound
on this DVD is superb!
This Collector's Series from Dimension really has some
great extras for you. The audio commentary is the best part
of this DVD. It features Director Wes Craven and writer
Kevin Williamson. It tells you everything you would want to
know about the production of the movie. From casting, to how
the writer came up with the ideas for the script. This is
one of the best commentaries I've listened to.
There is a production featurette. It is pretty good. It
was included on the VHS version. It has some behind the
scene information and interviews with the cast and crew.
There are behind the scenes footage of the opening scene
and the end chase scene. I thought these were great to see.
I really enjoyed watching from behind the camera.
There is a Q & A with the cast and crew. It has a
bunch of the cast and crew answering "What's your favorite
scary movie" and "Why are people so fascinated by horror
films." It is great to see some of the cast and crew and to
hear what they think of these questions.
To finish off these great extra's there is a special
effects photo gallery, 2 theatrical trailers, 7 TV spots,
cast and crew profiles, and film facts.
This is one grand DVD. Dimension has put a lot of time
and effort on this DVD, and it shows. This is one of the
best transfers of video and audio I have seen and it has a
lot of extras. The only thing lacking is the menus, which
are static of the box cover. If you have to pick a movie of
the Scream Trilogy, pick this DVD. I must warn you though,
there is a Scream Trilogy Box set that comes out soon. It
will have a new anamorphic transfer, but as far as I know it
will only be available in the set with the new Collector's
Series of Scream 2. You will enjoy this film and DVD, pick
it up as soon as you can!
 (5/5, NOT included in
final score)
 (4.5/5)
 (4/5)
(4.5/5)
(4.5/5, NOT an average)
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