When the original scream was released in December 1996, one of the many praises heaped on it was the fact that it had such strong characters. Every protagonist in that first movie was clearly defined and perfectly brought to life by the cast. Sidney was brave but conflicted, traumatized by what happened to her mother and the media frenzy that followed. Her friends consisted of Randy, a sweet annoying dork and movie buff, and Tatum, the wild kid who gave her brother a hard time but cared deeply about Sid, and Stu, the goofy spaz who could never be as cool as Sid's friend Billy. – the charismatic enigma.
Then there was Gale, an opportunistic killer with questionable morals who slowly develops a conscience, and deputy sheriff Dwight "Dewey" Riley, the scrawny, clumsy cop with a big heart. played by David ArquetteDewey is the heart at the center of the scream franchise. Tough and indestructible, he's like a puppy defending his family from big, scary invaders. Originally intended to die during the first movie (via CBR), the character proved way too nice to kill, and he's been a welcome, calming presence in six films. To honor him, we're highlighting some scenes that show why he's such a great character.
8 Small town husband
There was an 11-year gap between the events of Scream 3 And Scream 4. During that time, Dewey became the sheriff of Woodsboro and married Gale. When we meet him at the beginning of the film, there is a love triangle going on between Dewey, Gale, and Deputy Judy Hicks. At least that's what Deputy Hicks and Gale seem to think. Dewey, as always, remains loyal to the people he loves and only has eyes for Gale. However, we are getting a little insight into the cause of this breakup.
Sidney has written a book about her life titled From the darkness, which is why she's in Woodsboro for the events of that movie. She and Dewey have a heart-to-heart talk about what's going on with him and Gale. He explains that she gave up the life of a big time reporter to live in a small town with a small town husband, so it's hard for her. No one sees through Gale's walls and empathizes with her like Dewey. He remains optimistic and to prove it he quotes Sidney's book saying: “Just when you think it can't get any worse, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes they get better.” It shows no matter how bad things get, Dewey is always willing to hope for the best. It's a refreshing take on a grim series.
7 Nice stripes
After Billy Loomis and Stu Macher went on a rampage through the town of Woodsboro, California, tabloid reporter Gale Weathers wrote a book about it. The rights were grabbed by Hollywood and the movie Stiches was born. About the only person who was happy with the book was Gale himself. Dewey was particularly offended at her unflattering depiction of him, comparing him to Barney Fife from The Andy Griffith Show.
She tries to apologize, but he doesn't feel like it. Dewey gives her a piece of his head in the angriest way he can manage, which is kind of sweet and cute. He suggests his air of inexperience could be a tactic to lower people's expectations, but we know he's just trying to protect his ego here. At the end of his self-defense tirade, he leaves Gale, only to come back and compliment the streaks in her hair. It's a funny moment, yes, but it also reveals the depth of Dewey's character. He is angry, but still a little confused by this woman he has feelings for. That kind of characterization is rare for a horror movie.
6 Someone to care about
Dewey dies a hero Scream 5, doing the right thing until his last breath. It's a devastating moment for fans, but it also helps usher in a new era in the franchise. Even if he's not inside Scream 6that doesn't mean you can't still feel his presence.
During a scene where Gale gives Samantha advice on how to get through these horrible events, she tells her to care about one person and focus on that. When Sam asks what you do when you lose that person, Gale looks away and we hear composer Marco Beltrami's theme for Dewey (first introduced in Scream 2), letting us know that they are talking about Dewey himself. Even in this movie that works so hard to be the start of a new one scream era, they should take a moment to honor retired Sheriff Dwight Riley.
5 Getting grilled by Detective Kincaid
Scream 3 sees Dewey's character regress to a crazier state. His sweetness comes across as a bit forced this time, but it doesn't break the character. Happy, Scream 5 brings him back to that guardian angel status. So, most of the scenes that stand out here are comedic and don't offer many new sides to Dewey. Except for one scene in Detective Kincaid's office.
While someone has been killing people related to the Stiches movies in Los Angeles, Sidney has been hiding in the mountains. Believing she is the key to unlocking it all, the Los Angeles Police Department detective assigned to the case demands that Dewey call her and take her to the City of Angels. Dewey refuses, claiming he doesn't know where she is. At this point, he's not funny or crazy, he's a big brother taking care of his sister. He refuses to call Sidney until he has no other choice. Dewey may have a limp from being stabbed twice, but he still has a spine.
4 Our Surrogate Big Brother
Scream 2 is where our perception of Dewey as a wounded guardian angel begins. After losing his sister and being stabbed (literally) in the back, he has every right to leave police work and never speak to anyone from Woodsboro again. However, once someone dressed as Ghostface kills two people at the premiere of the movie adapted from the book based on the events of the original screamhe's there to check in on Sidney.
Upon his introduction to the film, he explores the area as Sidney runs over to hug him. It's an authentically sweet moment in a film overflowing with vulgarity and violence. He talks to Sidney about the dangers and promises to help. Afterwards, Sidney refers to him as "our surrogate big brother," which makes sense. Tatum and Sidney were best friends. With Tatum gone, it's only natural that he would adopt Sid as a sister and do anything to protect her. That's exactly what he does.
3 Dewey's a good guy
The nature of the scream movies requires you to question the motivations of everyone except Sidney and Dewey. They are two characters that we can rely on to always do the right thing, even if it takes them some time to figure that out. To further prove this fact, there is a scene in it Scream 2 where Gale lays down the gauntlet when Debbie Salt (actually murderer Nancy Loomis in disguise) dares to accuse Dewey. Gale makes it clear once and for all that "Dewey is a good guy." Not only does she mean he's not an asshole, she means he's good as in selfless and pure. Admitting this out loud is also the moment when Gale decides to suspend her own interests and solve this case.
2 I do
kill Dewey Scream 5 was a courageous and bold choice. For fans who remember what it was like to cope with Randy's murder, the idea of losing another beloved character seemed too much. However, the movie did a great job of keeping Dewey's lovable character, while at the same time getting older and getting a bit jaded, so audiences understood why he had to go.
Instead of a wounded guardian angel, Dewey is more of a grizzled gunfighter called out of retirement for one last showdown. While protecting a new generation of kids being hunted by copycat killers in a hospital, Dewey manages to get them safely to an elevator. Just before the doors close, he remembers that every time they forget to put one of these killers down permanently due to severe head trauma, they always get back up.
As he's about to leave, Sam asks questions about who would care in a moment like this, and Dewey, like the true hero that he is, just says, "I do." For more than two decades he has dealt with monsters who dress up as the man who killed his sister, and has never acted with selfishness or cruelty. When it's time to save his life or put himself in danger to make sure the killer is really dead, it's not even a question in his head. He would gladly sacrifice himself for the chance to save others.
1 Thumbs up
None of the moments on this list could exist without that last shot of Dewey being wheeled into the back of an ambulance at the end of the first time scream. As mentioned in the intro, Dewey was going to die in that movie. Realizing the mistake they'd be making if they actually killed off such a great character, director Wes Craven asked Arquette to give the audience some sort of sign that Dewey is okay. So as he's being whisked away, Dewey gives us a thumbs up so we're sure to see him again.
Comments
Post a Comment