Netflix Psychological Horror Movie Was Way Ahead Of Its Time
Life in the post-pandemic world has left us all with a fresh new set of eyes which make revisiting some movies and shows quite bizarre. I recently saw an episode of How I Met Your Mother in which Ted and Robin meet up in a Hong Kong airport during the year 2020, and was left cracking up at the fact that there were no surgical masks in sight. One 2014 film that also aged strangely due to the pandemic is Unfriended, which is currently streaming on Netflix.
Unfriended On Netflix
Unfriended is a psychological horror that takes place entirely over a group video call. While this premise would make perfect sense during the COVID-19 lockdowns of 2020 and beyond, its existing form, serving as a standard late-night call between a bunch of friends, falls entirely flat.
It’s also painfully obvious throughout the film that the writers and editors have no knowledge of how computers work, as they fail to implement basic keyboard and tabbing shortcuts, power functionalities, or monitor operations into the fabric of the movie.
An Online Nightmare
The narrative of Unfriended begins when a gang of high school seniors log on to Skype, opening up a call with a revolving door of classmates.
While the group is first besieged by basic high school drama, things take a serious and dour turn when a deceased classmate’s account joins the call.
The group is horrified at first, believing that someone has hacked into the account as a means to psychologically joke about the student’s death, though something clearly becomes amiss when they learn that the account can not be kicked from the chat.
Crazy Online Behavior
Before long, the account begins posting links and photo evidence that different members of the friend group had bullied the now-dead student before they took their own life, causing a rift within the group.
As users attempt to log off, the account starts exhibiting supernatural powers, causing the gang to ritualistically harm themselves in a twisted game of truth or dare.
By the time the credits roll on Unfriended, the kids’ lives are forever changed, as nearly the entire group succumb to the torment of the mysterious Skype account.
Trivializing The Situation
As stated, this premise would be perfect for a pandemic film, as the exterior setting could provide additional context as to why the students aren’t logging off, walking away from the computer, and seeking the assistance of an adult or law enforcement.
Instead of utilizing any kind of apocalyptic backstory, Unfriended takes place in a 2014 suburb in California, which really trivializes the entire presentation. While the movie definitely gets points for its unique visual and editing style, I can’t help but feel like the project was way ahead of its time in all the wrong ways.
Streaming Unfriended
Unfriended managed to wow a few critics, though audiences at large have shunned the film for its weak plot, cliche character arcs, and campy dialogue. Today, the film offers a middling 62 percent critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, with a much more critical 37 percent score from general audiences. If you’re interested in streaming Unfriended today, you can find the film on Netflix.
REVIEW SCORE
