Twenty-five years after the sleepy Californian town of Woodsboro first cowered at the mention of Ghostface, a maniac in the distinctive mask attacks high school student Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega) in her family home.

Older sister Sam (Melissa Barrera) races to her sibling’s hospital bedside with boyfriend Richie (Jack Quaid) in tow.

Tara’s circle of shocked friends, Amber (Mikey Madison), Liv (Sonia Ammar), Wes (Dylan Minnette) and twins Chad (Mason Gooding) and Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown), are potential suspects – and victims – as the town’s mortuary fills at an alarming rate.

Against their better judgment, seasoned survivor Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), morning TV reporter Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) and former sheriff Dewey Riley (David Arquette) are drawn into the community’s latest nightmare.

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Scream is a derivative but stylishly executed fifth chapter of the horror franchise, and the first outing of Ghostface since the death of director Wes Craven.

Returning cast Campbell, Cox and Arquette accomplish impressive emotional heavy lifting in limited screen time, while Ortega goes back and forth through the wringer in the hope she might survive beyond the unlisted telephone call of the opening sequence.

Co-directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett’s return to Woodsboro might be the first film in the series to reveal the killer’s identity in advance of an obligatory final reel unmasking.

Pick up on the clue and it’s possible to remain in step with screenwriters James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick and unknot chunks of the tangled plot.

n Available from March 30 online and April 11 on DVD.