Online, your memories – good and bad – last forever, and the teenagers turning on their computers for an innocent Skype call learn that in the worst way possible in the new thriller, ‘Unfriended’.
An excited yet nervous crowd of people filed into Brisbane’s Myer Center cinemas to experience the film before everyone else, in an exclusive preview screening.
The film is, from start to finish, a screen recording of a Mac computer, documenting one evening in real time, as a group of friends log into Skype for a casual chat.
It’s Blaire Lily’s computer that the audience sees throughout the film, as she opens and views a viral video of her friend committing suicide on the web.
Laura Barns took her life due to a barrage of online bullying, and Blaire and her friends are about to have some of their online secrets exposed.
Blaire begins receiving messages on Facebook from Laura’s account, and a faceless intruder joins the communal Skype session. The group of friends begin to question the newcomer, who claims they will all be hurt unless they partake in a game of 'never have I ever'.
The questions in the game all involve the events leading up to the suicide of Laura Barns, as each member of the Skype call is outed and their innermost secrets revealed to the group.
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The audience only sees what those in the video chat see, a mere webcam quality recording of each person. One by one, the friends are forced to harm themselves for their mistakes, as the faceless Skype account now suspected to be the deceased Laura, gets revenge for her death.
The film is the first of its kind, and an incredibly clever yet cheap way to bring a real life issue into the mainstream horror movie sector.
Aside from the events in the film being purely fictional, there is a strong message about the consequences of bullying. Thanks to the ability to be 'anonymous' on the web, it’s easier than ever to unleash havoc on innocent people. This film was, in one way or another, an eye opener.
It was refreshing to see a group of actors who were not only brand new to the big screen film scene, but also extremely talented. It made this reviewer see them as every day, normal teenagers.
A brilliantly inventive way to bring a real social issue to a mainstream film audience, with the on-edge, adrenaline-filled qualities of a well-done horror film.
Super spooky! Four and a half out of five chat windows.
'Unfriended' is in cinemas 30 April.
