The OG crew is back but unfortunately so are the franchise's worst habits…

 

Scary Movie isn't a total disaster, it had some genuinely funny moments scattered throughout. Most of the call backs to the previous entries in the franchise were great and landed with a sense of nostalgia that reminded me why the series had such a strong following to begin with. When it works, it really works. 

 

The biggest let down is that for every joke that lands, several more fall flat. The film tries to reference recent films, mostly horrors, like Sinners, Smile, Weapons, M3GAN and many others but they mostly just feel like a checklist rather than actual comedy. Recognition does not equal a punchline and Scary Movie struggles to tell the difference. 

 

The first half of the movie is the stronger section managing to keep things somewhat entertaining. By the time it reaches the later parts it loses the plot both literally and figuratively. Suffocating under the weight of jokes that don't justify the screen time. 

 

There's possibly a version of this film that works really well and we get glimpses of it here. Scary Movie shows that parody is harder to pull off than it looks. If you're a fan of the franchise you might get a kick out of this movie, otherwise it's an interesting watch.

The Scary Movie OG crew is back but unfortunately so are the franchise's worst habits…