The Fear Street trilogy was released over a three-week period in July 2021 and quickly became an unexpected success story for Netflix. The first instalment, Fear Street: 1994, amassed an impressive 284 million viewing minutes in its debut week. We have no real idea what the means in truth, but it sounds like quite a lot. All three films were met with a generally positive reception from critics, genre enthusiasts, and casual audiences alike.

 

The trilogy’s approach reflects the hallmarks of the modern slasher revival: a cast of engaging young talent, stylised violence, a nostalgic soundtrack, and a heavy dose of cultural throwbacks. It’s sort of the Strangerthingsification of the slasher movie if you will and the Fear Street films tapped into that in a big way. That said, the films didn’t quite resonate with us to the same extent they did with many viewers. They felt somewhat overlong, strayed significantly from the tone of R.L. Stine’s original novels, and often prioritised aesthetic nostalgia over narrative substance. Still, Netflix is ultimately driven by audience metrics, not what little old us think. A follow-up was not only expected - it was inevitable. In fact, four new films are now confirmed, the first of which, Fear Street: Prom Queen, premiered on the platform just last week.

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It’s 1988, and the senior class of Shadyside High School is preparing for what promises to be the most important night of their young lives: Prom. Lori Grainger (India Fowler) may be beautiful, but she’s far from popular. A quiet, introspective student, Lori prefers to keep to herself. Her closest companion, Megan (Suzanna Son), is a rebellious goth with a flair for mischief and not someone who is good at winning the favour of her peers. Adding to Lori’s social isolation is the shadow of tragedy: her father died under mysterious circumstances the previous year, and her mother remains the prime suspect in what many still believe was murder. The stigma clings to Lori like a second skin.

Despite the whispers and suspicion, Lori is determined to change her narrative. She makes the bold decision to run for Prom Queen, hoping the crown might offer some measure of redemption. But her ambition doesn’t sit well with Tiffany Falconer (Fina Strazza), the reigning queen bee of Shadyside High. Tiffany - popular, ruthless, and adored for all the wrong reasons - leads an elite clique known as The Wolfpack, and they make it their mission to destroy Lori’s campaign by any means necessary.

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Yet, just as the drama of high school politics hits its peak, something far darker begins to unfold. One by one, the Prom Queen candidates start to vanish. While the official story is that they’re “missing,” we know differently. And when prom night finally arrives, with hormonal teenagers packed into the gym like sardines, it becomes terrifyingly clear: someone has turned the dance into a blood-soaked trap and nobody is safe.

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Although Prom Queen is set in Shadyside, it shares little meaningful connection with the characters or overarching plotlines of the original Netflix Fear Street trilogy, directed by Leigh Janiak. Fans hoping for a continuation of those established story threads - particularly involving Sarah Fier, Nick Goode, and the supernatural lore surrounding them are likely to be left disappointed. This latest instalment shows no real interest in expanding on the mythology that helped define the trilogy. However, it’s worth acknowledging that the original Fear Street book series - spanning dozens of titles - largely consisted of self-contained narratives with minimal overlap. These stories functioned more like an anthology than a cohesive saga, and Prom Queen is, in that sense, more faithful to the structure and spirit of R.L. Stine’s source material.

But it’s fair to say that the initial reaction from fans of the trilogy has not been very positive. The characters aren’t as interesting. It’s lost its edge. There’s a lack of queer representation. The vibes aren’t the same. None of these observations are unfair and they are views held by lots of fans of the franchise. Ultimately, Prom Queen feels like a fairly generic, middle-of-the-road teen slasher that doesn’t bring anything particularly new or noteworthy to the table. Then again, one could argue that even the original trilogy, despite its cult following, didn’t rise much above its genre trappings.

As a standalone homage to 1980s high school horror fare like Prom Night (1980) and Fatal Games (1984), it is perfectly serviceable. But as a continuation of the Fear Street franchise, it lacks some of the innovation, energy, and narrative depth needed to make a lasting impact.

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It's not totally unlike its predecessors, however. Director Matt Palmer, who wrote and directed 2018’s ultra-tense thriller Calibre, gives us the glossy, bright sheen that we have come to expect. Prom Queen is not quite as potty mouthed as Janiak’s trilogy (which is a positive if you ask prudish old us) but it doesn’t hold back on the gore thankfully. Hands are chopped off, heads roll, skulls are axed, people are impaled. The film is also unabashedly committed to ticking off every retro-inspired checkbox. From its vivid neon colour palette and synth-driven score by The Newton Brothers to the numerous nods to classic 1980s horror films - Phantasm II, Zombi, and others - it wears its nostalgic influences proudly on its sleeve. The soundtrack doubles down on this, playing like a greatest hits compilation of the decade, featuring tracks like Gloria, Hungry Like the Wolf, Never Gonna Give You Up and Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), among many others.

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But does all this nostalgic flair make Prom Queen a better film? Not particularly. In fact, one could argue that the heavy emphasis on aesthetic and musical throwbacks serves to distract from the film’s weaker elements, like its underdeveloped plot and lack of compelling characters. Still, if the narrative falls short of capturing your attention, at least the soundtrack offers a reliably entertaining backdrop to the on-screen chaos.