Parents' Guide to

Scream 4

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Ghostface killer returns for more bloody slayings.

Movie R 2011 103 minutes
Scream 4 Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

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age 15+

Based on 23 parent reviews

Joshua Wayne LaRue
Joshua Wayne LaRue Adult
May 21, 2019
age 14+

There was only one reason to make this movie and this wasn't it....

The movie itself is a good slasher flick and goes back to the roots of the series but the only reason this movie should have ever been written should have been to turn the narrative over on its head. It should have been Sidney who was the killer in this movie with perhaps Gale as the co-killer, with Sidney killing cuz she finally snapped and perhaps Gale teaming with her because she needs something to kick start her dead career and also cuz she has snapped from going through so much.....this movie needed to make one of the original main characters one of the killers plain and simple.
1 person found this helpful.
Daniellehall50
Daniellehall50 Adult
February 15, 2022
age 17+
See all 23 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) returns to the small town of Woodsboro on the last stop of her successful book tour. She reconnects with Dewey (David Arquette), now the sheriff, and his wife, Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox), who has given up reporting to write fiction. But no sooner does Sidney arrive in town than the Ghostface killings begin again. Before long she discovers that her entire family -- including cousin Jill (Emma Roberts) and aunt Kate (Mary McDonnell), as well as Jill's friends -- are in trouble. Worse, this time the rules regarding sequels, remakes, reboots, and webcams are far too complicated and no longer apply. Will this finally be the end of Sidney?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (23):
Kids say (90):

Director Wes Craven more or less phoned in Scream 3, but here, he and screenwriter Kevin Williamson appear refreshed and ready to attack the franchise with renewed vigor. With Williamson's clever, grinning screenplay and Craven's sharp, crisp direction, the movie juggles many postmodern themes, including the issue of many horror sequels, remakes, and reboots, as well as the explosion of social media and the Internet.

But these many themes never become unwieldy; rather, the movie constantly stays on its toes. Just as something begins to smell fishy, the movie points it out before anyone else can. It's alternately funny and tense just when it needs to be. And even though the younger characters barely resonate, the older ones bring their histories to this new movie and build on them dramatically. It's just too bad that Sid and the others don't have a relationship with old Ghostface, who's brought to life by a new character in each film; that could have been an interesting take.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the film's intense violence and blood. Is it necessary to get the movie's point across? How does it compare to other horror movies you've seen? What's the impact of these kinds of images?

  • Is the movie scary? Does it concentrate more on fright, suspense/mystery, or clever references? What would make the movie scarier -- or less scary?

  • How does the movie depict teen drinking? Are there realistic consequences?

  • How does the movie portray use of social media like Facebook? How has media's influence on teens changed since the original Scream movies came out?

Movie Details

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