The upcoming Halloween season means more horror/thriller movies will be gracing our TV screens. We will see returns of our favorite Halloween characters such as Micheal Myers, Freddy Krueger and one of my personal favorites, Ghostface. “Scream” is one of my all time favorite thriller movies, as it has the perfect balance of horror and comedy. You may think my favorite part of the movie is when Sidney punches TV reporter Gale Weathers, or Randy’s comedic commentary (both tie for second).
But my favorite scene has got to be the iconic opening scene when Casey Becker (played by Drew Barrymore), receives a phone call while home alone that leads to her misfortune. This scene is iconic in every way as Drew Barrymore appears in the bleach blonde bob, matching her cream sweater and pale skin, perfectly achieving the girl next door look in every way.
Barrymore’s acting in this scene is seamless as she continues to run around in a panic state, truly perfecting a teenage girl crying for help. Barrymore refused to fake cry on set so, the director, Wes Craven, would remind her of a story she read in the newspaper about a boy setting a dog on fire to torture it. Each time she was reminded of this story she would immediately burst into tears and remain frantic throughout the scene.
This scene sets the tone for quite literally the rest of the franchise. I remember when I first watched the film and thought to myself, “Oh it’s Drew Barrymore, she’s obviously the lead of the movie,” until the first twelve minutes ended and we saw that clearly wasn’t the case. Though her character is a minor role, it continues to remain a staple amongst all thriller movies.
She’s home alone at night when she gets the famous phone call from Ghostface himself. She answers and is greeted by the haunting “Hello,” of Ghostface where at first he says he dialed the wrong number, and then once again dials the “wrong number.” He finally calls for the third time where they stay on the phone for the remainder of the night.
This is where Casey admits she is about to watch a scary movie and we are introduced to the iconic line, “What’s your favorite scary movie,” said by Ghostface in his at-first deep, smooth, sensual voice. At first it’s almost like he is flirting with Casey as he asks if she has a boyfriend. Casey admits that her favorite scary movie is “Halloween,” “You know the one with the guy in the white mask who stalks babysitters,” she says as she pulls a knife out of the knife holder, making it the perfect detail as it foreshadows what’s to come from ghostface.
As they talk we can see how the conversation continues to progress. Ghostface is, in a way, seducing her over the phone, almost providing a comfort for her as she walks around the old farmhouse alone. She plays along with it until he asks for her name and follows it with the line, “cause I wanna know who I’m looking at.” We see as Casey’s soft smile suddenly drops into a face of panic. One of my favorite details of the scene include the faint dog barking we hear, as a way to alert that someone is at her house.
Casey then locks all the doors in her house and hangs up the phone on Ghostface just after he demands her not to hang up on him. Either way if she hung up or not, I don’t think it would’ve changed the future. He of course calls back, and she picks up. She isn’t welcomed by that same flirtatious voice, but by a threatening, yelling, demanding voice, revealing his true intentions. Then, Casey is asked to play a little game and is tested by her horror movie knowledge.
True panic sets in when Ghostface reveals that he has her boyfriend. She looks out at the back patio and there he is tied to a chair, duct tape over his mouth. She then huddles behind the lit-up, blue, tv, and he continues to test her on her horror movie knowledge; if she gets it wrong, her boyfriend will die. And just to our surprise, she gets the question wrong, and goodbye goes her boyfriend. She’s asked a question again, this time depending on her life, which she unfortunately got wrong again.
This is where, not the man behind the mask is revealed, but the man behind the phone, the first time the audience sees who the killer is. She then runs outside and we see as her parents car is approaching the house, leaving us with some hope for her safety. As Casey frantically dials her parents phone number, Ghostface jumps out the house window, grabs her, she breaks free, chases her, puts a hand over her mouth and stabs her in the chest.
Ghostface drags her by foot to the tree. Her parents answer the phone, and we hear Casey’s last words: a faint cry for help to her mom. The phone hangs up and the parents see the house left in its traumatic state. The father tells the mother to “drive down to the Mackenzies,” which is the same instructions Laurie gives Tommy, when Micheal Myers causes a scene on Halloween.
Her mother lets out a bloodcurdling scream and the last we see of Casey is her body hung from the tree, making the scene all the more realistic, allowing for the audience to think, “What if that was my child?”
Overall, “Scream” remains one of my favorite movies to watch during spooky season and without this scene, we would never know the movie to be what it is today.