MANILA, Philippines — “Scary Movie” has returned, somehow, with the Wayans family back in the fold to take a stab at the numerous horror movies that’s been released in the last decade, and then some.
Much like the original film from 2000, this new entry ties closely to the “Scream” and “I Know What You Did Last Summer” franchises which recently got rebooted themselves.
Anna Faris and Regina Hall are back after skipping the forgettable fifth movie from 2013, and so are Marlon and Shawn Wayans for the first time since the second film 25 years ago.
There is not much of a plot to spoil given that the film just tries to parody recent Hollywood horror projects. Just a few of them include “Sinners,” “The Substance,” “Weapons,” “Get Out,” “Smile,” “M3GAN” and “Ma,” albeit some of them ever so briefly.
Given the prominence of intellectual property projects and adjacent reboots in the last few years, it’s not much of a surprise that “Scary Movie” finally joins the fray, especially when horror has seen some great releases recently.
However this attempt to reclaim the parody franchise and stamp it once more with signature Wayans humor comes off as scattered, with numerous jokes ending in diminishing returns.
Granted, it is gladdening to see Faris, Hall, and the two Wayans (who bring in even more of their family this time around) together again, but nostalgia barely scrapes the surface of what parodies can be today.
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A recent good example is last year’s “Naked Gun” with Liam Neeson managing to do justice to what the late Leslie Nielsen — an icon of other parody films like “Airplane,” “Superhero Movie,” “Spy Hard,” and even the two middle entries of “Scary Movie” — left behind.
The Wayans can only hope to reach that level of comedy, falling short of their goal of “cancelling cancel culture” with jokes that just don’t hit anymore, regardless of where the world is now.
A handful of funny moments and a barrage of guest roles including franchise returnees are trumped by the overall direction, and it could have really used more screentime for Faris and Hall.
Of the newcomers it is Olivia Rose Keegan as the daughter of Faris’ character who steps up to the plate, though it can’t be denied that the “core four” remain the faces of this franchise.
There are a number of horror films that the new “Scary Movie” didn’t parody like “The Conjuring,” “A Quiet Place,” “The Black Phone,” “Malignant,” or any of Ari Aster and Ti West’s works so the door is still open for the Wayans if they can keep a hold of the franchise.
It’s nice to see the gang back together, but the public is aware they are capable of so much more, even of making pure stupidity enjoyable from beginning to end.
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