Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Review - Scream Queens

 

The latest show from Ryan Murphy - the man behind the most diverse roster of shows, from Popular to Nip/Tuck, The New Normal to Glee, and American Horror Story, which debuts AHS: Hotel next month - is FOX's Scream Queens, featuring an impressive cast, including one of the most famous screen SQs, Jamie Lee Curtis (Halloween), Emma Roberts (an AHS alum), Lea Michelle (a Glee alum), Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine), and Oliver Hudson (Nashville, Rules of Engagement), among many others. It's been promoted as a horror-comedy, but does the pilot slay the competition in this new TV season?

THE LOWDOWN
The girls of Kappa House, the most sought-after sorority at Hollace University, is dying for new pledges, but only the silver spooned elite are considered.  Not if Dean Cathy Munsch (Curtis) has anything to say about it.  She is determined to force Kappa to consider all campus girls, much to the chagrin of Kappa leader Chanel Oberlin (Roberts), who rules her house and sisters with a designer-dressed fist.  Both and all are about to get a rude awakening as a devil-clad killer begins wreaking havoc across campus. Created by Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan. (Synopsis details courtesy of Fox.com).

 

I'm glad Curtis still embraces and revisits the horror genre after all these years (loved that she did the original Halloween, then returned 20 years later in Halloween H20 to battle Michael Myers once last time).  And Roberts has made quite a career of playing the ultimate mean girl (eat your heart out, Regina George!). Both leading ladies come from acting pedigree (Curtis' parents are Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, Roberts' dad is Eric Roberts, and of course there's Aunt Julia), but it's nice how they've made names for themselves on their own.

Now, onto the show, which Fox premiered in a two-hour debut. Loved it! It's sharp-tongued, well-shot, moves at a great pace and features really great performances, establishing well-rounded characters from all classes. It feels like an amalgam of the creators' various shows, particularly Glee and AHS, but also feels like it drew inspiration from classics like Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Mean Girls and Heathers (less classic but still entertaining, Jawbreaker).

 

Roberts really has the uber-bitch persona down - she puts Cordelia Chase to shame.  And how the hell does she spout dialogue that fast?


Her minions (The Plastics, who?), including a nice bit of stunt casting in Grammy winner Arianna Grande, are vapid, glorious Stepford sisters.


I like that Michelle isn't playing another Rachel Berry but is now a neckbraced nerd. Everyone plays their parts to perfection, from the dredges of the pledges to ludicrous family members. There isn't much racial diversity in the cast but there is some, including Niecy Nash (Reno 911!), Nasim Pedrad (Saturday Night Live) and Keke Palmer (90210).  The girl destined to challenge Chanel the most is Grace Gardner, played by Skylar Samuels (The Nine Lives of Chloe King).  Should be a true battle royale as the season progresses.

 

Did I mention how I love the cinematography?  As expected, there's no lack of death in the premiere and to be sure they are both funny and jaw-dropping, with plenty of screaming girls to go around. Bloody good fun!

Bottom Line:  This killer new horror-comedy is a Scream.


Scream Queens airs Tuesdays at 9pm on FOX.




The girls of Kappa House are dying for new pledges. SCREAM QUEENS is a new killer comedy-horror series from award-winning executive producers Ryan Murphy (“Glee,” “American Horror Story”), Brad Falchuk (“Glee,” “American Horror Story”) and Ian Brennan (“Glee”).
Kappa House, the most sought-after sorority for pledges, is ruled with an iron fist (in a pink glove) by CHANEL OBERLIN (Emma Roberts, “American Horror Story: Freak Show,” “Scream 4”). But when anti-Kappa DEAN CATHY MUNSCH (Jamie Lee Curtis, “Halloween,” “A Fish Called Wanda,” “True Lies”) decrees that sorority pledging must be open to all students, and not just the school’s silver-spooned elite, all hell is about to break loose, as a devil-clad killer begins wreaking havoc across the campus.
An over-the-top, biting satire, SCREAM QUEENS is part black comedy, part slasher flick and a modern take on the classic whodunit, in which every character has a motive for murder…or could easily be the next victim.
SCREAM QUEENS has an all-star cast, including Emma Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis, Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award nominee Lea Michele (“Glee”), Academy Award nominee Abigail Breslin (“Little Miss Sunshine,” “Zombieland,” “August: Osage County”), Nasim Pedrad (“Mulaney,” “Saturday Night Live”), Oliver Hudson (“Nashville,” “Rules of Engagement”), Skyler Samuels (“American Horror Story: Coven”), Keke Palmer (“Akeela and the Bee,” “Masters of Sex”), newcomer Billie Lourd, Diego Boneta (“Rock of Ages”), Glen Powell (“The Expendables 3”), Lucien Laviscount (“Episodes”), Niecy Nash (“Getting On,” “The Soul Man”), pop superstar and actor Nick Jonas (“Kingdom”) and Grammy Award nominee and actress Ariana Grande.
- See more at: http://www.fox.com/scream-queens#sthash.z0pdpguU.dpuf
The girls of Kappa House are dying for new pledges. SCREAM QUEENS is a new killer comedy-horror series from award-winning executive producers Ryan Murphy (“Glee,” “American Horror Story”), Brad Falchuk (“Glee,” “American Horror Story”) and Ian Brennan (“Glee”).
Kappa House, the most sought-after sorority for pledges, is ruled with an iron fist (in a pink glove) by CHANEL OBERLIN (Emma Roberts, “American Horror Story: Freak Show,” “Scream 4”). But when anti-Kappa DEAN CATHY MUNSCH (Jamie Lee Curtis, “Halloween,” “A Fish Called Wanda,” “True Lies”) decrees that sorority pledging must be open to all students, and not just the school’s silver-spooned elite, all hell is about to break loose, as a devil-clad killer begins wreaking havoc across the campus.
An over-the-top, biting satire, SCREAM QUEENS is part black comedy, part slasher flick and a modern take on the classic whodunit, in which every character has a motive for murder…or could easily be the next victim.
SCREAM QUEENS has an all-star cast, including Emma Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis, Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award nominee Lea Michele (“Glee”), Academy Award nominee Abigail Breslin (“Little Miss Sunshine,” “Zombieland,” “August: Osage County”), Nasim Pedrad (“Mulaney,” “Saturday Night Live”), Oliver Hudson (“Nashville,” “Rules of Engagement”), Skyler Samuels (“American Horror Story: Coven”), Keke Palmer (“Akeela and the Bee,” “Masters of Sex”), newcomer Billie Lourd, Diego Boneta (“Rock of Ages”), Glen Powell (“The Expendables 3”), Lucien Laviscount (“Episodes”), Niecy Nash (“Getting On,” “The Soul Man”), pop superstar and actor Nick Jonas (“Kingdom”) and Grammy Award nominee and actress Ariana Grande.
- See more at: http://www.fox.com/scream-queens#sthash.YzKnqUEs.dp

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