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An error has ocurred. Please try againType A: Frightening movies which present the narrative entirely through new media technologies, such as social media and video from smartphones, laptops, etc.
Type B: Frightening movies that have plots driven by social media or new media technologies but are shot and presented with traditional cinematic styles.
The titles here are ranked from my favorite to least favorite Cyber Horror movies. Each has the type of cyber horror movie in the comments and the last few are movies I haven't seen yet, also notated in the comments.
Reviews
Do You Wanna Know a Secret? (2001)
Pretty Decent Straight-to-Video Slasher
Nobody on this site has reviewed this movie since it turned ten years old. As the hype over the Scream movies has passed, I feel like this movie has aged pretty well. While I saw this movie as a child and didn't realize its shortcomings, today I certainly don't pick up a video-rental caliber rip off of a 90's slasher and expect it to be impressive. I just hope for some suspense, corny characters that can keep me entertained and an unpredictable killer reveal. In my opinion, Do You Wanna Know a Secret? hit all of those notes and therefore is a passable movie.
The highlights: I actually liked that they kept most of the kills off screen. It helped this low budget movie stay believable and really helped amplify the impact of what we actually do see towards the end. This has been a sore spot for some other reviewers, but I like to believe that it was a stylistic choice more than a budgetary restriction. (I could be wrong about that, but it still works for me)
I was really surprised by the killer reveal. I won't spoil anything but I'll say that at the beginning of the final act I made a list of all the characters I thought would be the killer, and the person who really did it was half way down the list, with 3 or 4 characters I thought more likely. That means to me that the red herrings - while subtle - were effective, which is key in any slasher from the wave that came directly post-Scream.
The cinematography was exceptional for a straight-to-video release in 4:3. I have no complaints in this regard. The makeup was also very good. One scene that calls to the movie's title has stuck with me for years. I will simply never forget it. I also enjoyed the humor, and the gardener's brief appearance really made me laugh.
The sore spots: Let's be frank, this is nothing that you haven't seen before. From the college setting at the beginning to the party house, the locations are all standard and far from flashy. They aren't utilized in any ways that make them seem important and are just there to let the meta-slasher formula run its course.
In a post-Scream slasher, the best thing about the script is frequently meta references and in-jokes for horror fans. This movie stays pretty much clear of that content which was disappointing. The killer reveal was fresh, but the characters were very by-the-numbers and not in a spoofy way.
Oh, and yeah
the killer mask. It's pretty hilarious.
To sum things up, I didn't come to DYWKAS with the expectation of greatness or high quality. I was entertained and got what I wanted out of this, even with a 5-dollar price tag that could have gotten me 3-4 new releases from Redbox. I recommend it to any slasher fan who can go in with the same moderate expectations.
Wind Walkers (2015)
Better Than Expected
I'm trying to get around to watching all of the horror films that After Dark produced or distributed since their first Horrorfest. I've only watched a few so far, but Wind Walkers is the best one I've seen yet. It's not the most polished indie horror you'll ever see, and it's not very scary, but it has a good cast and tells a relatively original story.
I classify this as a PTSD horror movie. It's one of the films in a new wave of veteran stories whose subjects are young and were fighting in the Middle East in the last 10-20 years. The other most notable example I enjoyed was Pod, which I think is equal in quality to this film.
The main highlight of this movie for me was Glen Powell, who you may know as Chad Radwell from Scream Queens. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw him in the cast as I began watching and surely would have watched this sooner had I known of his involvement! He's especially hilarious but also holds his own in tense and suspenseful scenes. Another good point was the sense of mystery surrounding the Wind Walkers and how it propelled the film forward.
On the negative side, some special effects were less than believable, but overall they kept them subtle so it was a minimal distraction. Also, no spoilers, but some of the reveals in the second half of the film felt underwhelming and ended up being disappointing. There is also a pretty awful intro/outro bookend that features a Native elder obviously reading in front of the camera. It just felt completely out of place, and the filmmakers should have come up with a better way to integrate the information that he conveys into the main plot.
After Dark is prone to distributing some underwhelming movies. While Wind Walkers occasionally falls into this camp, most of the time I found it enjoyable and worth the watch.
Scream: Vacancy (2016)
Best Episode in a While!
OK, I just have to leave a quick "Wow" style review for this episode. I was really disappointed by the tone and direction of the first few episodes of season 2, but this one succeeds on so many levels. There is actual character development with Emma's father that explains a good amount left unanswered in season 1. Audrey continues to go down the rabbit hole and some of the new characters build relationships with the Lakewood Six that certainly has potential to add to the series down the line. And you get more of creepy Branson. Very excited that this season has 14 episodes instead of 10, as the first few were weak but the set up so far has given birth to great opportunities.
Oh yeah, and the kills have been way better this season. Good stuff, my favorite episode since Episode 6 of Season 1.
Stage Fright (2014)
Must see throwback slasher musical!
Today, we are five decades removed from the strong emergence of the slasher film as a staple sub-genre of horror in cinema. It's fair to assume that the pool of ideas had been running thin if one considers the abundance of remakes from classic franchises which already had more than a handful of sequels under their belts. Where does this leave us and the slasher film today, in 2014? It puts us in the theater, for a musical, in Stage Fright. Combining the behind the scenes process of what it takes to put on such a production within the narrative arc of the overarching movie which is also a musical, there are some clever dance and song numbers
that's really not what I was expecting to be complimenting this movie on before I watched it, but credit must be given where credit is due. Dancing and cleverness aside, this movie shines its brightest when it's at its darkest. A Kabuki mask-wearing hair metal-singing psycho is out to spoil the show, and in doing so he may very well be giving us a new slasher icon. The brilliance of this movie is how quickly and smoothly it brings the story between hilarity and tension, sometimes even merging the two. The musical aspects of the movie are excellently done. Each character or setting has a theme, which get intermingled and blended at appropriate times. Singing was really excellent where it needed to be, and intentionally sub-par or bad when called for as well. Best of all was the contrasting punch between the cheery musical score and the 80's power-chord heavy metal screaming that beefs up all the grisly gory shreddin' fun from our killer.
The Door (2013)
Absolutely Satisfying Supernatural/Psychological Thriller
I am a big horror movie fan. I've probably seen too many for my own good. That said, this one is one of the better that have been released in the last few years. It blends aspects of both supernatural and psychological thrillers. The family aspect of the film is underwhelming, and not as well done as other horror films such as The Possession, but the rest of the movie is what this flick is about. Telling the story of a late night paranormal radio host, the main character Charlie runs into some strange happenings when he gets a mysterious call and then a mysterious package from a young man who claims to be seeing shadow people. The rest of the movie builds from there until the end, which was more than satisfying. I would recommend this to any person who wants to get some good chills, see into the human psyche when dealing with fear, or get their girlfriend creeped out to get a bit closer! Awesome. Just bought it on blu ray.