Release Date: October 6, 2022
Run time: 1 hour, 27 minutes
How scary can Deadstream possibly be? This movie is basically Logan Paul in Aokigahara Forest but this time, it’s live. Actually, that in itself is pretty scary.
On the chopping block is Shawn Ruddy, a disgraced astrophysicist- wait, that’s a different movie. A disgraced internet personality, Shawn Ruddy is attempting to rise from the ashes of cancel culture. How does he plan to do this? By live-streaming his overnight stay in a haunted house.
What he finds, however, is that he’s not alone. Cue spooky music. This is a plot that’s been done in the found footage genre hundreds of times over. Staying the night in a haunted building is so popular it even spawned several popular tv shows. Yet, it seems to always work.
Deadstream stands out by throwing Gen Z a bone and giving them a found footage documentary that is up their alley. We’re even given the live comments for that extra touch of TikTok.
In my opinion, a good scary movie needs to be grounded in reality first. Before ever showing their cards, the directors need us to feel like the main character is familiar. Giving us a main character who is also an internet celebrity gives us a believable cause for his behavior.
Of course Shawn would be messing around in an abandoned, haunted house! He’s desperate for some likes!
Needless to say, I loved it. Now, I could be biased because this was filmed in my home state of Utah (I humbly request one of those Shawn Ruddy t-shirts), but this was so much fun for a found footage movie.
Deadstream is directed by both Vanessa and her husband, Joseph Winter, who plays the part of Shawn. Both contributed to V/H/S/ 99 with the skit, To Hell and Back.
You can tell each have been exposed to a lot of Mr. Beast videos. There’s so much accuracy when creating the atmosphere in the vlogs. All details accounted for, down to the wildly annoying inflections in Shawn’s voice has he speaks to his audience.
I just love a good found footage movie that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Deadstream manages to pack in enough good scares to make it worthwhile. In my opinion, it’s worth at least one watch.
6/10
Rated on LetterBoxd
HORRORPENDIUM 