Unfriended

Unfriended is an innovative and suspenseful horror film directed by Levan Gabriadze and produced by Timur Bekmambetov and Nelson Greaves. First premiered at the Fantasia Festival in July 2014, the film is a unique blend of modern technology and traditional horror elements.

The entire story revolves around a group of high school friends who find themselves terrorized by an unseen figure. The catch? This all takes place during a seemingly innocuous group Skype call. Starring Heather Sossaman, Matthew Bohrer, and Courtney Halverson among others, Unfriended brings to life an entirely new concept of cyber horror that's chillingly relatable.

Heather Sossaman plays the role of Laura Barns, a high school student who reportedly took her own life after a humiliating video of her appeared online. The film unfolds over the first anniversary of her death as her friends gather for a virtual conversation, capturing the essence of our digital age.

Matthew Bohrer, Courtney Halverson, along with their friends all smoothly fit into their roles, embodying the typical carefree high school life; but what starts as a typical night of online banter, soon descends into an eerie chaos. As the group chat progresses, so does the tension, driven by a mysterious online identity claiming to be the deceased Laura Barns.

What makes Unfriended unique is its fresh and inventive storytelling approach. Unlike traditional films, Unfriended happens entirely in the realm of a computer desktop. Characters communicate solely via Skype, leaving messages and posting pictures on Facebook, or switching to Google for intense, nervous web searches. This type of storytelling breaches the uncanny and distressingly real boundary of the screens we hide behind, making the friends' disbelief, shock, and fear all the more relatable.

The film's portrayal of the modern digital age resonates effectively with its target audience, highlighting not only the importance of online privacy and ethics but also the dark side of the internet. The quintessential embodiment of cyberbullying and its far-reaching impacts, Unfriended offers a strong social commentary, giving audiences food for thought beyond its horror factor.

Director Levan Gabriadze and screenwriter Nelson Greaves have effectively highlighted the anonymity and potential dangers of the internet, placing their characters in a familiar digital landscape that swiftly begins to feel hostile. The film also leverages the unique narrative structure to build suspense and terror through unexpected pop-ups, chilling digital glitches and distorted audio-visual elements.

Unfriended is seamlessly inclusive of all its characters and never loses track of its narrative by focusing on one protagonist. The film thrives on this group dynamic, subtly drawing out information about each character's twisted secrets and complex relationships, ultimately leading to a climax that is as shocking as it is tragically intriguing.

The movie isn't just about mysterious circumstances; it also delves into the implications of high-school culture, peer pressure, and the power of rumors. This deeper underlying commentary about the issues of contemporary teen life serve as a grim reminder of the perils faced by the youth in this technologically driven era, making Unfriended more than just a novel horror flick.

With Unfriended, Gabriadze successfully manages to elicit fear by using something as commonplace as a group video call, making the experience truly immersive. The marriage of everyday technology with malicious intent is genuinely unsettling, keeping viewers continually on edge.

To sum up, Unfriended is a unique take on the horror genre, serving as a spine-chilling rollercoaster ride that brings in elements of contemporary digital culture and social issues. Its inventive storytelling, matched with an in-depth exploration of today's internet culture and teenager life, makes this film a remarkably relatable and captivating watch.