Insights on accountability, personal growth, and honesty.




At first blush, it may seem silly to think that a movie like Scream has any depth or life lessons to draw from, but it would be a mistake to not dive into the little bits of wisdom it has to offer, so here we go.


Sam & Tara teach us that: You don’t get to choose who you come from, and you don’t have to let your past define you. Yes, you’re born as a reflection of your parent(s) but when your time comes, you die being a reflection of your own choices. You don’t have to be what your dark moments try to convince you that you are. You’ve just got to keep moving to outrun those wicked demons.


Amber is correct in that: you can’t re-create an original story without the legacy characters coming back for a final appearance. In the end, life goes back to where it all began. If you don’t like the chapter of the story you’re living, create a better sequel (or requel) to the current story of your life.


Dewey taught us that: the only thing that anchors us to the past is regret. In one particular scene, he displayed bravery by choosing to go back inside the hospital to finish his fight with Ghostface. Where he couldn’t save his sister in the original Scream, he wasn’t going to leave Sam’s sister open to the same fate. Trials and tribulations bring us together, but regret anchors us to the past. Only by choosing to face his fears head-on would he be free to live a life not hindered by those demons of the past following him around. Doubt and fear are the real enemies here.


Sometimes, it’s not only you who pays for your mistakes, it can be the people close to you. Towards the end, honesty brought Sam and Tara closer together, whereas it was secrets and lies that split them apart. “The truth will set you free, but first it will make you miserable.” — James A. Garfield.


While there are more lessons in the movie to draw from, those are the four that stuck out to me.


Always remember that you are the product not of the circumstances in which you find yourself, but your decisions in the face of your trials.