Neve Campbell once again fills the role of Sidney Prescott, a woman finally doing OK after being terrorized three other times by the killer known as Ghostface.
She returns to her hometown 10 years later, and a new murder spree begins.
By today's horror standards, "Scream 4" is not as graphic as those grisly "Saw" movies, but it does earn its R rating with several stabbings, lots of blood and plenty of four-letter words.
The franchise again dabbles in the rules of horror films, and the characters seem to be living in one.
David Arquette is back - this time as the sheriff - and Courteney Cox puts her reporter's hat back on to get to the bottom of things. She's a lot of fun to watch.
Characters in horror films do stupid things, and this is no exception. At my screening, someone responding to the stupidity even yelled at a character, "What are you doing?"
The film's young stars add new intrigue and attitude, and the mystery behind who was doing all the killing had me stumped, which I appreciate.
But if slice-and-dice cinema creeps you out, opt out of "Scream 4."
You don't have to have seen the first three films to understand this one, but I think it helped that I had seen them all.
There are a few cameos in the movie, including a really good scene with Anna Paquin and Kristen Bell.
Marley Shelton as a cop plays against type and does it well, with just the right amount of weirdness.
There are over-the-top moments, and things that sometimes don't make sense, but it's a horror film, so reality sometimes takes a back seat.
Don't expect anything too different from the other three "Scream" films. There's a formula here, and fans probably expect that.
