Fear Street Prom Queen Review: A Night to Dismember

Fear Street: Prom Queen plays the ridiculousness of the slasher genre straight and ends up entertaining thanks to it, for better and for worse.

Since this film is a standalone entry in the series, I figured I could watch this without having the catch up on the franchise homework. Thus I was able to approach Fear Street: Prom Queen as just a new slasher movie, which had me genuinely excited. Slasher films are an entertaining mix of campy and awkward elements. From actors who look at least a decade above high school to over the top drama between students who haven’t yet learned that their school love and rivalries are nothing next to taxes, to characters that are written to be hateable and provide catharsis to the audience when they’re murdered, all these combine in a bloody, gory mess that I love more than I care to admit.

It’s a trope that ran its course during the 80s and 90s. In modern day, slasher films have lost their previous standing, often giving way to parodies of its tropes. So I was surprised that Fear Street: Prom Queen actually played things fairly straight with its slasher premise. It sets up its victims as clear one-dimensional victims then picks them off one by one, all the while typical movie high school drama ensues between Lori and Tiffany.

Speaking of which, I absolutely loved Tiffany as the mean girl. Strazza plays her like she’s auditioning for a bond villain; when she is whispering insults to Lori and hissing “do not cross me,” I could believe she was genuinely enjoying squeezing every drop of torment out of bullying Lori. Moreover, the fact that her character is trying so hard to be evil yet is such a clichéd bully makes her enjoyable and kind of adorable, and I mean that in the best way.

Tiffany speaks for how the entire film works. It’s clear from the music, the actors, and how the scenes play out that nobody is phoning it in. They are committed to the slasher script. And committing so hard to such a clichéd and predictable story gives the movie an earnestness that teeters between camp and cringe. It’s the cinematic equivalent of a deadpan comedian. Even while I am laughing at the absurdity of the 30-something looking high school jock threaten to make the DJ “sh*t teeth” if he plays Prince, I cannot tell if the film is in on the joke with me, and that makes things even more entertaining.

Of course, this does mean that once you’re done laughing with (or at) the film, you start to realize the drawbacks of having such a by-the-book slasher story. Because of that, while I can confidently say this movie is entertaining, it is certainly not scary. Since the victims are very clearly labeled as victims and wander off to obvious killboxes, you are already prepared for when the killer comes out and decides to paint the school red. Thus, there is no tension to its scenes, leaving only typical jumpscares behind.

In addition, while it plays the part of a slasher movie down to a tee, the film actually skimps on a pretty major part of what makes slashers fun, that being the kills. The killer’s design is indistinguishable from your standard Ghostface variant, and the kills, while sporting copious amounts of blood and guts, are not that creative, mainly coming down to just chopping or smashing. Maybe I am a terrible person for wanting to see these kids get entertainingly killed off, but again, that’s just an aspect of slashers.

The overall story and characters also end up feeling pretty thin and predictable because of its commitment to the classic slasher plot. Lori has a traumatic backstory involving her parents, but it’s not really capitalized outside of serving as fuel for Tiffany to deliciously monologue about. It doesn’t further character development, and in the end, when Lori emerges as a more competent, confident version of herself, it comes off as perfunctory, more as something she needs to show for being the “final girl” of this film.

Pragmatically speaking, the enjoyment I had from Fear Street: Prom Queen came down to my prior knowledge and guilty pleasure with slasher movies. Had it not been for those, then this would just have been a generic, forgettable horror film. Its entertainment value lies more in what it reminded me of rather than what it is.

Yet at the same time, I cannot deny that this was genuinely fun, even if a lot of it was at the movie’s expense. If you’re nostalgic towards the schlocky slashers of decades prior, Fear Street: Prom Queen may give you some fun memories to reminisce on. The film knows its audience, and I cannot help but respect that. Depending on which day you ask, I may alternate between saying this is a good film and a so-bad-it’s-good film. But for now, going off of my empty popcorn bowl, I’ll say it is good.

Fear Street: Prom Queen will be released globally on Netflix on May 23, 2025.