Metacritic reviews

Wes Craven continues to explore (and blur) the lines between reelity and reality with his latest, and perhaps best, cinematic slice of horror.

Craven's other accomplishment here, besides resuscitating the genre, is the way he keeps things scary even when they're at their funniest. The grand finale, while thoroughly bloody and tense, has some genuinely hilarious shtick.

Compared with most of what passes for scary movies these days, this is golden: It's not stupid, it's not wussy and it pulls off a couple of pretty nasty jolts.

May not be the most scary or the grossest horror film you've ever seen, but it has one distinct feature: it actually talks up to the audience. By the conclusion, you won't be shaking in your seat, but you may enjoy the status of someone who has earned a Master's in Slashology.

Pretty run-of-the-mill stuff. [20 December 1996, Friday, p.J]

While Scream has its frights, it feels more like one of those solve-the-mystery jigsaw puzzles than a real movie.

Doesn't know when to stop with the jokes about other horror movies and settle down to tell a coherent story.

Tiresome, blood-filled comedy.

Though the material is more intelligent than the norm and has an unusual third-act twist, it also employs some very clunky stereotypes.

An artificial and hypocritical effort to escape the artistic limitations of teenage slasher flicks.