Scream

Main Plot

"Scream," directed by Wes Craven, revitalizes the slasher genre with a unique blend of horror and satire. Set in the quiet town of Woodsboro, the film begins with a terrifying sequence where a high school student becomes the victim of a brutal murder by a masked assailant known as Ghostface. This sets off a series of chilling events that grip the community with fear and suspicion. The story centers around Sidney Prescott, a young woman who becomes the main target of the killer. As the body count rises, Sidney and her friends must navigate a dangerous game of cat and mouse with the killer who is not only familiar with horror film conventions but uses them to orchestrate his attacks. The local police and a sensationalist TV reporter become involved, adding to the chaos and suspicion. As secrets from the past surface, Sidney must confront the truth about her connections to the murders. The film cleverly critiques and adheres to the tropes of slasher films, engaging the audience in a suspenseful and meta-textual narrative.

Characters

• Neve Campbell plays Sidney Prescott, a high school student targeted by a series of brutal murders linked to her past.
• Courteney Cox plays Gale Weathers, a tenacious reporter investigating the series of brutal murders in her town, ultimately aiding in uncovering the identity of the killer.
• David Arquette plays Dewey Riley, a police officer who helps protect Sidney Prescott from the series' recurring masked killers.

Ending Explained

In the climactic conclusion of Wes Craven's 1996 film "Scream," the true identities of the killers are revealed as Billy Loomis and Stu Macher, who have been terrorizing Sidney Prescott and her friends throughout the movie. The setting for the finale is a party at Stu's house. As the horror unfolds, Sidney is chased and attacked, leading to the revelation that Billy and Stu have orchestrated the murders as a twisted homage to horror movies, planning to frame Sidney's father for their crimes. Billy, motivated by revenge against Sidney's mother whom he blames for his family's dissolution, and Stu, primarily influenced by peer pressure and the thrill of the kill, confess their plan to Sidney in a dramatic and tense scene. They reveal how they intend to survive the massacre, staging themselves as heroes who narrowly escaped death. However, Sidney manages to turn the tables on them. Using their own horror movie knowledge against them, she fights back, ultimately killing them both, first Stu then Billy, and thus ending their killing spree. The film concludes with the arrival of the police as dawn breaks, symbolizing a new beginning for Sidney, who has survived the ordeal and conquered her attackers.