'Fear Street: Prom Queen' Review: Buckets of Blood and Volumes of Screams
- Shauna Bushe
- 14 hours ago
- 3 min read
By Shauna Bushe - May 23, 2025
A murderous return to Shadyside where winning might just be the death of you…
Netflix’s Fear Street: Prom Queen escorts us back to the Fear Street territory with a passionate homage to the high school slasher genre. The latest instalment delivers well timed jump scares, twists of fate and blends together the darkness of teenage life with gruesome horror in a deviant fashion. If you’re looking for a new addition to your horror watchlist, Fear Street: Prom Queen is sure to deliver all the chills, thrills and scares to satisfy any slasher fan.
What is 'Fear Street: Prom Queen' About?
Fear Street: Prom Queen is directly set within the same chilling universe as its predecessors, but with an entirely new storyline – utilizing high schools most sacred rite of passage, Prom Night, as its focus. The film follows a group of high school seniors as they prepare for what’s supposed to be the best night of their life, but as the big night approaches, there’s a masked killer lurking in shadows who plans to murder each unsuspecting senior until there is only one left fit to wear the crown.
At the centre is Lori Granger (India Fowler), a shy student who is relentlessly bullied by the more popular girl Tiffany Falconer (Fina Strazza). Secrets, jealousy and rival personalities play a tumultuous part in their relationship, adding heat and tension whenever they’re both at each other’s throats on screen.
If they’re not fighting over boys, it’s over who belongs in Shadyside and who doesn’t. The supporting cast also do a great job at adding a more in depth look at the cliques which you would find in every high school: you have the more underdog nerds, the testosterone charged jocks, the it girls, stoners and those dealing with hidden traumas. Their dynamic helps ground the films horror comedy style, into a more emotionally weighed environment.
A Bloody Love Letter to Classic Slashers
The plot also shares a lot of similarities to classic slasher tropes, making it fit right in. We see parallels of crazy motherhood (Friday the 13th), famous corridor chase scenes (Scream), a dance floor bloodbath (Carrie) and a deranged masked killer. It’s when these tropes are turned on their head that make its atmosphere more slapstick than horrifying.
Giving you a fulfilling and genuinely fun time at the movies. As predicted from previous Fear Street instalments Prom Queen doesn’t shy away from blood and gore. The kills are sudden, gruesome and sometimes even hilarious. Opting to make great use of its environment, bringing in to play the hallways and classrooms thus creating some unique and tense moments.
In spite of all the slasher-esque chaos, Fear Street: Prom Queen manages to also be a compelling chapter. Exploring the students’ emotional conflict, fractured friendships and hesitancy over the future. Nobody trusts one another, this then plants doubt on every single character you encounter. Giving each of them a motive to where the mask. And just when you think you’ve unmasked the culprit? It doesn’t stop there. The story twists and turns right up until the credits begin to roll.
Final Thoughts...
In closing, even though Fear Street: Prom Queen has a lot to appreciate from its Footloose dance off segment, the Fangoria easter egg, the smash hit 80’s soundtrack, the horror homages and funky retro styled wardrobe, it goes not with-out its faults. There are characters not been given enough time to make an impact and an ending that leaves quite a bit left unsaid. Nevertheless, if you overlook those minor matters, you’re still fed a fantastic number of imaginative killings, buckets of blood and volumes of screams, still making this entry one to enjoy.
Fear Street: Prom Queen is streaming now on Netflix
Want more Fear Street reviews? Check out Fear Street: 1994, 1978 & 1666. Also, take a look at all the content on our website Film Focus Online!
