One year ago today, a teenage girl named Laura (Heather Sossaman) committed suicide after being relentlessly bullied online by her so-called friends at school.
And tonight, a group of teens are chatting online when things start going very wrong.
It begins when Blaire (Shelley Hennig) and her boyfriend Mitch (Moses Storm) are chatting on Skype, flirting. Mitch is trying to convince Blaire to lose her virginity to him. She consents to sleep with him on prom night, when they are joined online by friends Jess (Renee Olstead), Ken (Jacob Wysocki), Adam (Will Peltz) and Val (Courtney Halverson).
But they are not alone in their chat. A mystery ‘guest’ is also chatting with them, and taking control of their computers and eventually their very lives; a guest that appears to be the spirit of Laura, who died one year earlier.
I’ll leave the plot there, because there is plenty more to discuss.
The entire film takes place on Blaire’s computer screen, with windows opening on the desktop for each of the friends, as well as Blaire’s Internet browsing, Youtube, Facebook, iMessage, and so on. I would struggle to think of another film that has been made in the same way; it is definitely innovative, and serves to draw the viewer into Blaire’s own fears and experiences of this horrific night.
Director Leo Gabriadze and screenwriter Nelson Greaves have created a truly unique film here, yet one that contains many typical horror movie tropes that will thrill audiences. Things like jump scares, increasing tension, and secrets that come out one by one over the duration of the film will certainly take you by surprise, at least on your first viewing.
I feel that the unique way this film has been made, however, sets it apart from other films in the genre, in a way that gives it an additional appeal, at least visually.
The cast performances are adequate for the genre as well. There is no real standout performance here, but the conversations seem real and true to life, but there is no sign of any of the cast stepping out of the typical horror-film teen characters that viewers have seen time and time again.
In fact, it is only the unique visual aspects of this film that make it in any way special. By the end of the film – even with its particular uniqueness – it just feels like any other B-grade horror, oftentimes going too far in one direction just for the sake of scaring the audience. There is definitely no subtlety here, and I think overall the film suffers for it.
In particular, the ending seems far too contrived for my liking. Sure, this film is worth a look for the well thought out visuals, but that’s about it.
Don’t put yourself out too much to see it, unless you are a true devotee of the genre. As I said earlier, it adds to the general horror zeitgeist with its visuals, but the plot and characters are nothing to crow about.
4 out of 10.
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