Directed by: Tara
Subkoff
Starring: Chloe
Savigny, Timothy Hutton, Sadie Seelert, Haley Murphy, Bridget McGarry, Blue
Lindeburg, Mina Sundwall, and Emma Adler
Genre: Horror,
Slasher, Thriller
Rated: Not Rated
Six preteen girls having a slumber party are in for a night
of horror as an unknown killer begins to pick them off one by one.
This film tried desperately to make a social commentary
regarding our dependence on our phones and social media, as well as to make a
point about the negative effects of cyberbullying. The girls the film centers
around are hooked on this interactive mode of social media that is something of
a cross between Candy Crush and Instagram. They snap pictures of each other and
post them online with tags that range from cute to cuttingly mean. For
instance, one girl, Kat, takes a picture of three of the others and tags it
"#fatuglybitches," and one of Georgie, the overweight member of the group,
tagging her as a fat pig, or something similar. However, these are the only
instances of actual cyberbullying, the rest of the time, the girls are just
bullies with no creativity when they cannot be glued to their phones. Apparently
this addiction to social media and one's cell phone is an epidemic that affects
the adults in the lives of these girls also, as more than one girl states that she
feels invisible to her parents as they would rather be on their phones than
spend time with her.
I wanted to like this film but there is so much wrong with
it that I found that impossible. I've been looking for a horror movie that
tackles the problem of cyberbullying head on and actually does a decent job of
making the viewer think twice before posting something cruel online, but have had no success. I also couldn't bring myself to really sympathize with any
of the central characters. I understand we are supposed to identify with and root
for Sam, but she put me off in the beginning of the film with the rude way she
spoke to her obviously loving, involved mother. Maybe after her ordeal she'll
learn to appreciate the kind of mother she has, but nothing can be certain as
she didn't really show much growth throughout the film. She did, however,
half-heartedly try to stand up for the other girls when they were being
bullied, and she did risk her own life to try and help girls who really didn't
deserve it, so her character gets a few points of redemption on that front. The
only other character that wasn't a complete waste was Francesca, who, while
still a jerk, knew when enough was enough. Lastly, Ava wasn't too bad either,
but she disappears pretty early on once the slasher aspects of the film kick
in, so we don't really get to know her.
The three remaining girls I have absolutely no sympathy for.
I tried to feel bad for Georgie when the other girls picked on her for her
weight. As a supporter of the Healthy at Any Size movement and a believer that
beauty comes in all shapes and sizes, I refuse to judge someone by their
weight, and find people who do judge for that reason disgusting and shallow.
What these girls said to Georgie, constantly barraging her with snide remarks
about her weight, telling her to stop eating when she eats for comfort, ridiculing any ideas she has about getting exercise, and telling her to kill
herself, was uncalled for and hurtful. I did want to slap the hell out of the
girls when they were saying those things to her. However, Georgie is not a
sympathetic person, because instead of standing up and walking away from these
girls who say such hurtful things to her, she turns around and joins them when
they switch their attention to another girl in the group. Georgie also hurls
homophobic slurs at Francesca, which automatically turns me against her. I
don't care if you're overweight, I do care if you're an ignorant asshole
individual.
The last two brats we have on the roster are Sofia and Kat,
both spoiled, self-absorbed, entitled rich bitches girls who think they
can do and say whatever they want. Sofia is the Queen Bee of the group and all
the other girls fawn over her, regardless of the fact that she's a cruel little
troll who will turn on any of her so-called friends in a second. Kat is even
crueler than Sofia, as she is willing to take it far past a little underhanded
bullying and tell someone straight to their face to kill themselves. This
comment is too cruel, even for Sofia, and she actually finds herself kicked out
of the house.
I've said it in prior reviews and I will say it again, I
cannot find a horror movie scary if I do not care about the characters. As
aforementioned, the young girls are entitled little trolls, but the parents
aren't any more likable. Sofia's father is cheating on her mother, Alex, in the
opening scene, while Alex tries to get in the pants of the workmen at her home.
Alex also drives drunk and leaves six obviously unbalanced preteen girls home
alone. (Yes, I stayed home alone at twelve, but I wasn't a psychotic little
turd either.) Dr. White, Kat's father, seems too busy for her until it may be
too late, then he goes off the deep end and barges into Sofia's house to
terrorize the remaining seventh grade girls.
There were things I absolutely didn't understand, such as
Sam's supposed psychic abilities/sensitivities - an aspect of her character
that adds absolutely nothing to the story. What was the point of her having
these "sensitivities"? They don't help her in any way, and actually
detract from the plot. I also don't understand the desperate need the underling
girls had to be friends with girls like Sofia and Kat. I guess these two must
be the most popular in their grade, but what's the point in being popular when
you don't have any real friends you can count on? I guess when you're twelve
that spotlight looks awfully inviting, no matter how much you have to suffer to
be in it. Lastly, this is a film centered around preteen girls, was it really
necessary for the opening scene to involve a woman writhing in orgasm in the
front seat of a car? Also, what purpose does it serve to have her walking
around in the middle of winter wearing nothing but a skimpy negligee under a
trench coat?
I think the one thing I hated the most aside from the girls
themselves was the Candy Crush/Instagram social media program the girls were
addicted to - as it came up as part of the actual film, transitioning scenes,
introducing the idiotic characters, and depicting their photos that they post
online. The fast-pacing and bright colors hurt my eyes, and I found it
distracting from the actual storyline rather than helping it along. I also
hated the emojis popping up randomly, as I also found them distracting. Other
viewers seem to disagree, but, as someone who doesn't really use many emojis in
my daily life, I'd rather not have them overtaking my horror films. It's not
cute, it's not creative, it's juvenile and irritating.
There is very little to no suspense, the kills are rapid,
and the gore effects merely decent. The death on the tennis court had potential, but
was cut way too short despite the tension that was building up. The attempted
drowning in the pool was the only scene that had a tangible amount of tension.
The rest fell flat. Lastly, the killer was extremely predictable and but hardly
believable.
The only aspect of the movie that I did like was the setting
- the house is huge, modern, and boxy which I hate, however the vast amount of
windows does add to the tension. I liked the way the art seems to pulse or
move in a creepy fashion, and I loved that there was a constant dusting of snow
falling from the sky. Also, the filmmaker didn't get it wrong when she depicted
slumber party activities of young girls - dressing up, goofing off with the
camera, swimming in the pool if your friend is lucky/rich enough to have one,
dancing silly, watching movies and playing games like sharing secrets are all
part of the slumber party package - though my friends and I were chowing down
on junk food while these scrawny runts are "on a diet, Mom! God, how can
you be so stupid?!"
Overall, another lame attempt at capturing the negative effects
of bullying/cyber bullying, which is a shame, as this is a great, powerful
concept to explore. The characters are obnoxious, spoiled little twits in dire
need of a swat upset the head, and the game/social media almost being a
character ruins a lot of the potential for me. The gore effects were decent, kills rapid, and
killer predictable. Avoid this one.
3.5/10
