Sounds Like Teen Spirit: A Review of 'Screams from the Tower'
Two closeted buddies begin to find themselves as young adults via a radio show in Cory Wexler Grant's '90s coming-of-age valentine to senior year
April 14, 2026
If you’re a fan of John Hughes movies but wish Ducky and Brian had been queer, Cory Wexler Grant’s affecting, occasionally perplexing, ‘90s coming-of-age dramedy Screams from the Tower might be some kind of wonderful way for you to spend a couple of hours.
In spite of some shortcomings, it has what so many bigger-budget films lack — heart. The film is so obviously a passion project its sincerity wins the day.
Available on VOD as of today, Grant’s indie — weirdly titled in that you might mistake it for a horror flick — follows the friendship of oddball teens Julien (Richie Fusco) and Cary (David Bloom), whose fondest wish is to win the chance to host a radio show at their high school.
The first half of the film is packed with the boys effortlessly riffing on live radio, expressing themselves in a way that plays far better on the airwaves that it ever has in the halls.
Their friendship chemistry is a marvel, so much so that Grant forgets to inject any real obstacles. While Fusco projects the correct androgynous loner air to suggest he may be queer, the boys’ sexual orientations don’t really come up for a very long time, and an effort to address OCD via Julien feels tacked on.
It can feel at times that the film has no plot or point, but on the other hand, think of it as an antidote to all the high-concept films with no character development, which is something Screams from the Tower has (at least for its leads) in spades.
Eventually, there is some drama when Cary feels the need to quit the show, mostly at the behest of his parents. They want him to aim higher in life than aspiring to be a bit of a shock jock. Go figure.
At this point, the radio show becomes more and more about Julien, who even takes to voicing a made-up female cohort to keep things going.
Throughout, the guys have support from their crew of diverse freaks and geeks, none of whom really makes a lasting mark. Some of them seem to be acting in a different, more broadly comic movie than the one Fusco anchors.
The film is inarguably dominated by Fusco and Bloom — aside from the sparkling Madison Tevlin, who as Suzy is a bubbly girl with Down syndrome who Julien unkindly uses to achieve his dreams. (Don’t worry, he pays for it.)
Aside from its emotional resonance, the film benefits from a remarkably realistic period vibe. True enough, it feels as much ‘80s as ‘90s at times (Julien’s Madonna shirts are duly noted), but it also takes care to include historically accurate weirdness — the lunch lady, described as “big and Black,” keeps cooing over how cute underage Julien is, Julien’s on-air jokes are occasionally offensive (to us, not to anyone in the movie) and the movie’s villains aren’t afraid to drop F-bombs when attacking their enemies as gay, gay, gay.
All of this tracks.
Ultimately, Fusco’s star-making performance, alongside David Bloom’s radiant sensitivity, is what makes Screams from the Tower sing. It’s utterly believable that these boys existed 30 years ago, that one came out with a bang while the other simply couldn’t, that they achieved their dreams for a spell … and that they might even still be tight today.
A recommended retro ride back into our shared insecurities and shared teen ambitions. ⚡️