CriticSociety- film reviews

Review

Scary Movie 4

Director

David Zucker

Year

2006

Rating

Reviewed by

José Ruiloba a.k.a. Morris

Review date

Wednesday, May 03, 2006

It’s been six years since the Scary Movie franchise was born. We’re already in the fourth entry and, given the amount of money they continue to make, it’s likely that this is nowhere near the end of the saga. Unfortunately, the level of quality is not consistent at all. I liked the first one, hated the second one, liked the third one and didn’t care at all for this latest installment. It’s one and one, so at least I can hope the next one will bring back the fun.

It’s pointless to try and come up with a premise because there really isn’t one. In a nutshell, Tom Ryan (Craig Bierko) has to save his children from an alien attack, while his next-door neighbor, Cindy Campbell (Anna Faris), has some trouble in her new job, where a house appears to be haunted by the spirit of a boy.

You could probably tell by now that the movie follows closely the plots of two successful movies: War of the Worlds and The Grudge. But it also manages to add some stuff from The Village and Saw. Those are the four movies that get the most exposition. The former adds Carmen Electra and Bill Pullman to the equation, while the latter has Shaquille O’Neal and Dr. Phil. None is very funny except for some bits here and there, which can pretty much sum up what I felt about the entire movie.

David Zucker, the director, is part of the team responsible for such hilarious movies such as Airplane! and Top Secret!. They are also responsible for Scary Movie 3, which was actually ok. So what happened? He sure knows what works and what doesn’t, so why is this movie so unfunny? Movies like this are always filled with so many jokes that even if some fail there are many others that fit the bill. In Scary Movie 4 it’s the exact opposite. I only laughed sporadically, and even when I did, the director did not show any restrain and killed the joke by not knowing when to stop.

So what did I like? Leslie Nielsen. He does a spot-on George W. Bush impersonation and is very funny. It says a lot about a movie when one of its funniest bits involves Leslie Nielsen’s butt. I also liked the interaction between Bierko and his daughter (passing for the character played by Dakota Fanning) and the gags about the tripods not evaporating clothes. The solenoid bits are also spot-on. Some of the stuff in the village is funny, such as when Electra takes off her garments or Pullman has to deal with a gay couple. And there’s the obligatory Michael Jackson spoof, which is actually amusing. But that’s it.

The movie ends with a parody of Tom Cruise visiting Oprah and the whole couch-jumping episode. The real thing was so ridiculous that by just re-enacting it the sequence would’ve been hilarious. But no, Zucker goes so over-the-top that it becomes painful to watch. And some not-spooky movies are also given the funny treatment, such as Brokeback Mountain, Million Dollar Baby and Hustle & Flow. The potential was huge when parodying those movies, but the results are so-so.

Anna Faris is back for the fourth installment and she’s just, well, the same. She’s a talented actress, but the material she’s given is terrible. Craig Bierko can also be very good at times, but he mostly comes off embarrassing. And Regina Hall is also back as Cindy’s horny best friend, a welcomed return. Otherwise everyone appears for only a couple of scenes, so no real impression is left.

“I never did like kids. Remind me to sign that abortion bill.”

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