Scary Movie 4 (2006) - Directed by David Zucker
Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual humor throughout, some comic violence and language.

It's been 3 years since the last installment of the Scary Movie franchise, and the horror genre has been relatively untouched by embarrassing spoofing. But with David Zucker's latest addition to the series, such recent hits as War of the Worlds and Saw get their comeuppance.

In Scary Movie 4, an alien race of well-dressed mannequins with a knack for crude torture invade the Earth with TriPods (walking iPods of death). Now Cindy Campbell (Anna Faris), following the direction of a ghost-child she encounters in a house she's keeping, must find the only man on Earth that can stop the invasion.

The story is a bit of a stretch and changes pace often, though of course spoofs like this don't rely much on plot. In fact, its seemingly random form of story telling only adds to the overall goofiness of the movie. Though when compared to other Zucker films, Scary Movie 4 doesn't quite match up.

I think what really hurts Scary Movie 4 the most is the lack of recent horror movies that are good enough to deserve spoofing. The story relies most heavily on War of the Worlds and Saw for material, but other movies like The Village and The Grudge are also referenced to a lesser extent. Then to fill in the gaps, Scary Movie 4 falls back on some low-brow potty-humor, kids getting hit with things, and cameos by the likes of Bill Pullman and Michael Madsen among others.

Although not consistently funny, there are a few good laughs to be had. A favorite in my mind is a flashback to a boxing match in which everyone seems to break their neck. Though more than a few of the jokes fall flat on their face. The much publicized Oprah scene comes to mind. It may have been funny the first time I saw it, but it has been so over-used in the previews that the whole scene was totally expected and entirely un-funny. Likewise, a very untimely Mike Tyson ear-biting joke makes you wonder if it were the 90's again.

Worth Your Time? All in all, Scary Movie 4 is a solid, though inconsistent, addition to the franchise.

Memorable Line: Michael Madsen's take on Tim Robbins' War of the World line, "This isn't a war. This is like humans fighting maggots. Or dragons fighting wolves. Or humans on dragons throwing wolves at maggots."

Rating: 3.5 / 5