By Olivia Lang ’15 | Features Editor

Riding the wave of its popular predecessors, the fifth installment to the “Scary Movie” franchise, “Scary Movie 5,” offers little in the way of comedy to its viewers.

Based off the nature of the movie, it is obvious that it was not trying to appeal to viewers through stunning cinematography or an elegant, complex plot, so it would be unfair to dock the film points on those matters. With that being said, its reliance on simply slapstick humor, accompanied by its sub-par acting earned “Scary Movie 5” an esteemed spot on my “do not watch” list.

The plot borrowed and satirized the plots of recent horror films, which is the franchise’s claim to fame. The main sources from which “Scary Movie 5” borrowed were “Paranormal Activity 4,” “Mama,” “Evil Dead,” “Black Swan,” “The Help,” “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” “Inception” and “Fifty Shades of Grey.” However, this extensive list of creative sources for the movie may be the most impressive aspect of the otherwise underwhelming film.

For the first time since the “Scary Movie” franchise began in 2000, Anna Faris has not starred. While her acting was by no means Oscar worthy, she had the dumb-blonde act down like the back of her hand, and the audience loved her for that.

Former “Suite Life of Zack and Cody” star, Ashley Tisdale, is the leading lady in “Scary Movie 5.” Tisdale, as opposed to Faris, portrayed her character as intelligent, but naïve, which was a step in the wrong direction for the franchise.

Stepping into the main spotlight, Simon Rex is the main character in this installment, after having been smaller parts in the preceding films. What was missing in this film was a character whose comedic value was complementary to Rex’s, which was a spot Tisdale was not able to fill.

Genuine humor was few and far apart in “Scary Movie 5.” The movie attempted comedy in many guilty pleasure ways, like racism, sexism and violence, but none provoked much more than a chuckle. The movie took a countless number of difference paths to get viewers to laugh, but each one dead ended before reaching its destination.

Condolences lie with Charlie Sheen and Lindsay Lohan, because before agreeing to be in this movie, the two had not yet hit the troughs in their respective careers.

After analyzing the movie, it can be said that “Scary Movie 5” deserves an F. Its lackluster comedy and awful acting had me yearning to get back in line at the theatre to demand a refund.