2015’s Unfriended was a film that was more interesting to discuss as an experiment than it was to watch. It wasn’t a particularly good movie, hell, it wasn’t even the first to tell its story on a computer screen since we had films like The Den, Open Windows, and Ratter coming out around the same time. However, it was a big financial success, which makes it all the more surprising that its screencast form of storytelling wasn’t the new big thing in the same way Paranormal Activity wasn’t the first found footage movie, yet it still ushered in a new boom in found footage movies. But with the upcoming Searching, which seemingly takes a more thriller approach to the format, and this sequel to Unfriended, perhaps this is the year where we find out if this is actually a fresh, new way of telling a story, or if it’s just a largely ineffective gimmick.
Unfriended: Dark Web is a standalone story with seemingly nothing to do with the original. It follows Matias (Colin Woodell), who is taking part in game night over Skype with his friends, Nari (Betty Gabriel), Serena (Rebecca Rittenhouse), Damon (Andrew Lees), AJ (Connor Del Rio), and Lexx (Savira Windyani). The problem is, he is using a stolen laptop, and when the owner appears to be a hacker of sorts, game night begins to take a dangerous turn.
The first immediate improvement over the first the lack of supernatural elements. In the first, a group of friends are haunted by the ghost of a bullied student, and it comes across exactly as silly as it sounds. Grounding the activity here to the world of hackers and dark web is a smart move from writer/director, Stephen Susco. It also helps that the characters are more likable this time around, though some characters do test your patience. We’re introduced to Matias showing off this app he created that can help him better communicate over video chat with Amaya (Stephanie Nogueras), his deaf girlfriend. The rapport between the friends is nowhere near as obnoxious as the teens of the first, everyone mostly acts like an adult caught up in a larger than life situation and acts accordingly. It makes the film much more compelling than one would initially expect.
The film even takes some opportunity to make some fun and tense moments. For example, one extended sequence involves the friends – who at this point know what’s going on – pretend to play cards against humanity while a hacker is online. Since the hacker is one the move, he doesn’t have access 100% of the time, so when he goes offline for a bit, everyone stops playing and tries to figure out what they need to do. There is some thought put into the way the characters handle the situation.
Now, I should say, if you are looking to have a fun time, you will probably find it, but you should be prepared because this movie is cruel, it’s bleak, and it’s mean with a capital M. Sure, horror movies being exceptionally harsh is not news, but with most mainstream horror, you either have characters you wish are killed, which can be by design or through sheer unlikability, or characters who were never meant to be invested in to begin with. Unfriended: Dark Web starts off getting you invested in Matias and Amaya’s relationship, and the other friends – some more than others – are likeable and offer no real reason for you to wish ill upon them. So, you really feel the weight of every death that happens. The film also doesn’t make a spectacle out of it. The deaths are sudden, they’re fast, their startlingly realistic in how they play out. It’s rather sickening, but I mean that in a good way. I admire the dedication to rid the audience of any semblance of catharsis or joy, which to see the film pull off, is weirdly a fun experience in and of itself.
All that said, I still don’t think it’s quite great. The glitch effect that was heavily utilized in the first is still used here, and while there may be some reality to hackers being able to alter video feeds, it’s just an eyesore on the big screen. The music is kept minimal, but it doesn’t stop the film from pulling the standard musical sting whenever a jump scare happens. Oh, and I don’t want to make any big declaration or anything, but – slight spoiler, maybe – this basically has the same ending as the 2014 film, The Den.
Unfriended: Dark Web is a really solid horror film that takes better advantage of its unique format than its predecessor. It has subtle touches that inform character through what is shown on screen, and by taking focus away from the supernatural and onto the dark web, it is able to tap into that fear of the unknown and all the anxieties that come with it in a way that is effectively horrifying. There are apparently two different endings to the film, and there’s no way to guarantee what version you get at any given showing. Having only seen one, and read about the other, all I can say is I got the good one. I’m still unsure as to why they would do that. But does the film make a better case for this storytelling format? Kind of. It’s probably the beat execution of it so far, but it still feels limited. If this and the upcoming Searching are a success, then I hope more filmmakers can get the chance to explore other possibilities with it.