Teenager Blaire and her friends find themselves terrorized and tormented by what seems to be the ghost of a girl they cyberbullied into committing suicide. A very simple premise for a simple movie.
Same old found footage… I didn't even know Unfriended was getting a sequel until last week, then I was even more shocked when I saw that it's being released tomorrow. When I saw the trailer for Unfriended: Dark Web it reminded me of my initial thoughts of the first movie. So because of this, I decided to go back and watch Unfriended and see if my thoughts had changed. I can happily say that my opinion still stands strong, I think Unfriended is a unique type of found footage horror that is extremely innovative with its ideas.
Or maybe not… The entire movie is shot through webcams, I felt that this was just going to be a gimmick but I was pleasantly surprised. It gives a great claustrophobic feel to the movie as it all feels enclosed in. Thankfully, this idea never gets old and slowly becomes more unpleasant to watch. The constant close-ups just help to add to this unpleasant feel. At the heart of it, this is a movie about cyberbullying and how social media can impact people's lives. Unfriended works well because it chooses to take place entirely online, unlike movies such as Feardotcom that constantly switched between online and the real world which makes the online stuff feel like a slapped on gimmick.
Cliches galore: Sadly, the movies jumpscares are extremely cliche and predictable. I won't go into spoiler territory, but the ending is the most disappointing part of the whole movie. It felt rushed and a last minute decision. There are many unintentionally funny scenes, I sometimes liked how the ghost interacted with the characters. Such as in the scene where a sexual betrayal is revealed and the ghost goes on to the girls Spotify and starts to play a song about lying. I really enjoyed that aspect of the movie, the ghost still has a humorous side even if she wants them to feel every ounce of bullying that she felt. The movies issue is simply its script, although it has some innovative ideas it is extremely by the numbers. You can even tell the order in which each character will bite the dust.
Unfriended is a unique experience that I rarely ever encounter in Horror, especially in a mainstream movie. Technically, this is a found footage movie but it does enough to separate itself from an overbearing subgenre. Most of the acting is well done and the idea of the whole film being shot through a single laptop is innovative. The movie is very cliche but that doesn't stop it from being any less entertaining.
