While I did watch the inaugural season of Wednesday with the fam when it first dropped on Netflix back in 2022, to be honest I found it somewhat…forgettable. But the three year gap in between seasons proved to be helpful here, as the writers truly hit the mark this time around.
At the onset of season two we once again find our titular character (portrayed once more by Jenna Oretga) returning to Nevermore, this time with a bit of “celebrity” status behind her, as well as younger brother Pugsley (Isaac Ordonez) now in tow. It’s immediately clear there’s trouble in paradise, as Wednesday has a stalker hell-bent on inflicting some damage.
As if this were not enough, Wednesday must now juggle an evil new headmaster (Steve Buscemi), zombies (Owen Painter), dangerous escapees that also transform into Hydes (Hunter Doohan), and the safety in question of her roomate, Endid (Emma Myers). Other series regulars such as Luis Guzman as Gomez Addams and Catherine Zeta-Jones – who by far wins the gold medal as sexist Morticia Addams thus far – also return.
Aimed mostly at teens/young audiences (think Riverdale meets Harry Potter), the formula works enough to hold the attention of nearly any and all age groups that are willing to give it the time of day. Not perfect, but a fun ride nonetheless.
Many moons ago, my Aunt Sharron took me to a video store (couldn’t tell you if it was a major rental chain such as Blockbuster, or simply a mom and pop type of place), where we picked up a “new release” for the night called Beetlejuice from Director Tim Burton, whose Pee Wee’s Big Adventure a few years earlier I was already a huge fan of.
I was in awe as I watched in the dimly lit room full of ’80s decor (I definitely recall there being plenty of furniture with wood paneling surrounding us), partially frightened, yet fully intrigued. There was no doubt about it, I was falling in love (and in more ways than one…Winona Ryder as goth goddess Lydia Deetz was actively stealing my heart as one of my very first, and very real crushes).
Fast forward more than three decades later, and Burton finally returns to the unique world that is Beetlejuice. Upon initially hearing this, I instantly knew I had to be there in the theater with the family as soon as possible, even if so many long-awaited sequels, reboots, etc…in recent memory have only tarnished once-great franchises (ahem, the Halloween “requels” are the first things to come to mind).
But much like the more recent Ghostbusters entries, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is the exception to the rule, even if there may be a hiccup or two along the way. All these years later we find Lydia (Ryder) has (most appropriately) become a ghost-hunting TV show host. When her stepmother Delia (Catherine O’Hara) informs her that her father Charles (played by the now-disgraced Jeffrey Jones in the first movie) has died in a horrific plane crash, she brings her daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega) and Producer boyfriend Rory (Justin Theroux) home to Winter River for the funeral.
It doesn’t take long before the “ghost with the most” himself, “Betelgeuse” – who is dealing with problems of his own in the afterlife when his ex-wife Delores (played by Monica Bellucci, who oozes on the screen with massive sex appeal) – rises from the grave seeking revenge on him – starts becoming a factor in their lives again.
Like the original, there’s twists and turns around nearly every corner, with just enough side/back stories thrown in without any of them becoming overwhelming. Willem Dafoe stands out as one of the films unsung heroes Wolf Jackson, a former action movie star who in the afterlife thinks he’s a legit detective, and even the often overly-exposed Oretga does an admirable job here.
The only real complaints are the way several other aspects are handled; the quick glossing over of the Maitland couple (played by Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis in the 1988 original), and the disappointing treatment of the Charles Deetz character is admittedly in pretty bad taste.
But I digress; like the first film, I found myself getting completely lost in the world Burton has created here. As a follow-up to a movie like Beetlejuice, it’s a perfectly suitable continuation; I’m not really sure what else audiences could really expect from such a film.
My first thought upon hearing about Scream VI was “Why give this one an actual number, yet just give last years “requel” the same exact name as the 1996 original (and wouldn’t that technically make this one just Scream 2 all over again?!)?” Yet that personal pet peeve of mine was really nothing in comparison to how low this franchise has actually sunk. Like many others, I had hoped the New York setting might help reinvigorate some life into this tired franchise; boy was that nothing more than wishful thinking though.
This outing finds sisters Sam and Tara Carpenter (Melissa Berrera and Jenna Ortega, respectively) from last year’s outing replanted and studying in the Big Apple, only to find (Uh-oh!) there’s another killer after them. Everything that unfolds from there is either cliche or predictable, made all the more worse by having to endure this mess with obnoxious supporting characters played by some of the most unlikable actors in the series to date. Neve Campbell was wise to step away from this mess, and Courteney Cox and Skeet Ulrich – the only two faces to return from the original – don’t do much to add to this mess.
The only bright spots are few and far between; the “intro kill” with a blind date setting features some inventiveness (and one very easy-on-the-eyes appearance from Samara Weaving), and the subway scene actually offers some intense moments before being yet just another let down (like the film itself).
Overall, the acting and dialogue are both atrocious, and everything meant to come as a “surprise” is merely eye-roll inducing. The far-fetched, preposterous ending is the final icing on the cake, so beyond believable it’s an insult to any reasonable intelligence. One of the characters actually sums it up best themselves after being stabbed when she utters, “Fuck this franchise.” I couldn’t agree more; after this entry, I’m officially done with the Scream films, too.
I went into the new Scream relaunch/reboot (requel?) admittedly not expecting much at all. But to my surprise, it was actually a much more enjoyable ride than I had imagined; far from a cinematic masterpiece by any means, but an improvement over its past two disastrous predecessors combined nonetheless (they couldn’t just seriously throw a “5” at the end of the title though?! Come on, stop taking yourself so seriously Hollywood).
In this round (which directly follows the events of 2011’s Scream 4), a new group of Woodsboro teens, many with their own unique connections to the original town killings, become the targets of yet another Ghostface killer (or killers?), with estranged sisters Sam (Melissa Barrera) and Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega) at the center of it all. When Sam and her new boyfriend Richie (Jack Quaid) enlist the help of former sheriff Dewey Riley (David Arquette), it quickly leads to more faces from the original reuniting and coming to the rescue, including Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) and Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox). Even Skeet Ulrich is somehow able to make a brief return as Billy Loomis, but I won’t elaborate any further to avoid spoiling anything.
Long time fans of the series should appreciate all the sly references to the original (as well as other Wes Craven films, including A Nightmare on Elm Street) thrown in, while younger generations should appreciate the more modernized take. The acting isn’t always the greatest, and the gore is at times excessively over the top and unnecessary, but again, this is far from Shakespeare here.
All in all, what directors Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin have assembled here is a fairly spot-on homage to Craven’s original work (“For Wes” is promptly displayed over the end credits), and at times I found myself so lost in the plot, I honestly felt like I was that kid sitting in the theater with my friends back in the ’90s all over again. This ship finally seems to be steering in the right direction again; let’s hope those calling the shots keep it that way.
