Scream is an exception to the usual dreck that pervades the slasher genre. It's suspenseful and wickedly clever. Scream 2 is almost as good and just as smart. Scream made fun of other slasher movies by being aware of how they work. Scream 2 does this and also makes fun of sequels and the original Scream.

As with the first movie, Scream 2 threw me for a loop. Every time I thought I had predicted a future plot development, one of the characters would state it as an explicit possibility, noting that that was "always" what happened in movies like this. And then I didn't know whether Scream 2 would comply with the rules or do something different entirely.

I find it odd to be speaking so highly of not only a slasher movie but a slasher movie sequel. But Scream 2 kept me on the edge of my seat and made me laugh in all the right places. It deserves the praise.