Tremors: A Cold Day in Hell (2018)

Previously it was South Africa that had a worm problem, now it's the snowy Canadian arctic. While digging for core samples in the ice, scientists encounter the giant menaces. Meanwhile, back in Perfection, current manager of Chang's market, Burt Gummer (Michael Gross), is having problems with the IRS.
For reasons that I won't go into, the team must capture a live specimen, which means a bait and trap scenario. But story aside, the direction is annoying and the framing sucks. It's fun seeing Burt, even when he's a shadow of his former self, but yet again Jamie Kennedy is wasteful - he's not even a good foil.
Of the new cast, Valerie (Jamie-Lee Money), the daughter of characters from the first film, is the most memorable. Alas, while better than its immediate predecessor, it's only worth seeking out if you're a big fan of the series.

2½ seismic spikes out of 5

Tremors 5: Bloodlines (2015)

The lovable gun enthusiast and Graboid hunter Burt Gummer is once again enlisted to tangle with the pesky beasts; this time on an all new playing field. The playful tone from the previous films is more than well represented with the accompanying comedic actor Jamie Kennedy playing Burt's overzealous cameraman. Each Tremors sequel has always attempted to breath new life(forms) into the story and this one is no different. The cryptid designs don't really fit into the series' evolution, but they are still quite effective. For the most part the CGI sfx are acceptable for a b-movie, but there are certainly a few groan-inducing shots. While only a fan of the first Tremors, for me the film's antics grew tiresome at the 40-minute mark. The subsequent action failed to keep things interesting.

2 reality shows out of 5

STILL SCREAMING: THE ULTIMATE SCARY MOVIE RETROSPECTIVE [2011]

Celebrated horror journalist Ryan Turek's documentary, Still Screaming, pays tribute to the first three films in Wes Craven's popular Scream franchise.
It opens with a pointless and sloppily "first kill" scene that makes Scream 3's opening kill look inventive and then, gets into the juicy stuff that's filled with trivia and behind-the-scenes looks with interviews from cast & crew members and other popular folks in the genre.  As a dedicated fan to the series there was plenty I was already aware of but it gave just enough new tasty tidbits to keep me interested till the end.  Unlike most film documentaries of this type, it wisely doesn't just praise it's subjects but also is quite honest about a lot of the franchise's mistakes it made.  It's not going to win over any fans with this execution but will certainly make the nostalgic fan eager for a revisit to Woodsboro.

3 Scary Movies out of 5

SCREAM 3 [1999]

When the scriptwriter of your trilogy doesn't have the time to do the final instalment, you wait till he does have the time. Don't get some schmuck to pen it instead...and that's exactly what happened here.
Scream 3 has some promising elements but in the end it's just plain bad. It loses that perfect balance of horror and satire and comes off as an episode of Scooby-Doo or Abbot & Costello (mansion filled with secret passageways and trapdoors included). Even the new characters are boring and snotty. You just can't wait for them to bite the biscuit.
Such a shame. It left such a bitter taste in my mouth for 12 years.

2 Jay & Silent Bob's? out of 5

SCREAM 2 [1997]

Who'd want to make a sequel? Sequels suck.
Unless you know how to avoid all the obligatory rules and take it step above all that. Scream 2 manages to pull out some brutal punches and makes sure it doesn't fall under the curse of sequel suckage.
With all the survivors from the original returning plus a slew of brand new faces to slice n' dice, (Liev Schreiber and Timothy Olyphant being the new highlights), Scream 2 is just as much fun as the first one.
It does run about 5 minutes too long and has a few slow moments, but the gorier and more vicious murders make up for it. A worthy follow-up.

3½ Robert Rodriguez & Danny Elfman cameos out of 5

SCREAM [1996]

The 60's had Psycho, the 70's had Halloween, the 80's had A Nightmare on Elm Street and the '90's had Scream.
It single-handlely revived the teen slasher flick genre to a whole new generation of blood thirsty teens. While dissecting and poking fun at the rules and faults of all the horror films we've grown up with, it also pays tribute and breaks & follows all those elements as well.
Scriptwriter Kevin Williamson mastered the art of writing teen dialogue and actually makes it sound like real teens and not what Hollywood had portrayed them as before. A highly entertaining & talented cast elevates Scream above the usual slasher flick fare and establishes it's spot as one of the best horror films made.

4 excellent Norman Bates quotes out of 5