“What’s Your Favorite Scary Movie?”

When the original Scream was released in December of 1996 I was just ten years old and there was NO WAY in this world my parents – my dad especially – would EVER let me see a movie like Scream at that age. It just wasn’t happening. My dad doesn’t think horror films are appropriate for children, so when Scream 2 came out the following Christmas, I had to lie about what movie I was seeing when my childhood best friend, Daniel, and I went to Petite Four Cinema in Collinsville to secretly go see it.

Let me tell you what, at the ripe age of eleven, I thought I was a real badass motherfucker going to see Scream 2 in theaters, but my lil’ ass got humbled real quick because that movie nearly scared me to death! Literally. The trauma Scream 2 gave a childhood Ben lasted for months! AND I DO MEAN MONTHS! I had nightmares into the summer about Ghostface (the costumed killer across the Scream franchise) hiding in my dark bedroom waiting to gut me a like a fish each night after I fell asleep.

In fact, there was one particular night that has been so ingrained in my mind that it’ll remain there till the end of my time. We were having a really spectacular thunderstorm and my childhood bedroom had two skylights on the peaked roof, so each time it lightninged, the entire room lit up. Well, on one such occasion, the lightning fooled me into believing that my robe hanging across the room was Ghostface standing against the wall. It was the single scariest moment of my young life. I legit laid there and started to cry thinking I was going to die right then and there from the knife of Ghostface. I’ll readily admit it now, my dad was correct for trying to keep a grade school me away from those movies.

Fast forward all these years later and I will still very much maintain that Scream 2 is my absolute favorite scary movie. It was my first real foray into horror and left such an impact on me that I hope and pray I’ll never feel fear like that again so as long as I live! It also made me a Scream fan for life! I’ve seen the original trilogy more times than I could count and I feel an emotional attachment to the fourth film in a way that I don’t honestly feel about any other movie in existence. It’s safe to say the blood of Ghostface’s multitude of victims runs rampant through my veins.

Back in 2010, I was on vacation in Ann Arbor, Michigan with my world-traveling friend, Nicole, and by the grace of God we just so happened to be there the very same time they were filming Scream 4 all across town! Needless to say, this was a real dream come true for me! When our hosts, Len and Brenda, who Nicole and I had met while vacationing in Costa Rica, learned that I was an avid Scream fan, they took us to ALL the locations being used in the film! I’ll never, EVER forget it! Len had found this very detailed website that showcased every place being used as a stand in for Woodsboro, California, the fictional town where Screams 1, 4, and now 5 all take place. We never saw them actually filming, nor unfortunately any of the cast, but just seeing the locations set up as a movie was created a very real emotional attachment for me to Scream 4. It’s impossible for me to watch it now without remembering being there when they were making this masterpiece in horror. I couldn’t be happier to share some of that movie making magic with you all here with these next handful of photos…

Just the other night I went and saw the new Scream with Melissa and Nancy (now for those of you counting, the newest film is the fifth in the franchise) and it was PHENOMENAL! I was quite literally on the edge of my seat from the get go – minus the two times I had to get up and go pee – but you better believe when I was in that seat I was sitting on pins and needles at who Ghostface was going to get next! There were several genuinely shocking kills in this new one that left my jaw on the floor. I don’t want to give too much away, but there were some daytime murders that left me absolutely shook! I NEVER saw them coming! This Ghostface was increasingly more savage than any of those who donned the killer getup in any of the past films. Also, I did NOT expect to cry as I never have before in any of the four, but this one had me sobbing TWICE! There was one particular character’s death that rocked me to my core and I kept tearing up the moment this individual died. THANK THE LORD I had the foresight to grab extra napkins at the concession counter because between Melissa and I we used every single last one of them! Also, the big reveal of who the killer was at the end BLEW MY MIND!

Now I fully realize this is January and there will be many, MANY more movies released this year, but DO NOT sleep on Scream! Pandemic or not, you NEED to get to your local movie theater and see this one because it honestly deserves the Oscar for Best Picture! It wrongfully won’t get it because The Academy is a mess, but that’s neither here nor there, Scream has EVERYTHING one would ever want from a scary movie: suspense, laughs, cries, excitement, and plenty of scares! I will most definitely be seeing it again!

We’ve established that my favorite scary movie is Scream 2 and while many want to argue with me that the first Scream is the best, I’ll admit that they’re not entirely wrong as it most definitely is an iconic classic that launched a generation-defining franchise, it just isn’t my favorite. There’s no scene nearly as frightening as the one where Sidney (the franchise’s forever final girl played by Neve Campbell) and her college roommate have to crawl out of the back of a cop car over a seemingly unconscious Ghostface’s body. That scene coupled with the six months of night terrors I received as a result of secretly seeing Scream 2 are why it will forever be my #1, but just like Ghostface before me, I now must ask you, what’s your favorite scary movie?

As always, THANK YOU so much for viewing! Please feel free to leave a comment below telling me what you favorite scary movie is or your thoughts on Scream! I LOVE reading and responding to them, so feel free to share! I’ll be right back with another all-new post, but until then, I wish you all, all the best!