The inspiration from the "weird" corner of YouTube is present from the first scene and remains throughout the entire movie, intercepted only by the short glimpses into the depressing lives of content creators.
How far would you go for the attention of your viewers? In which ways does this attention harm young and volatile? What poses a more serious threat - creepy guys watching you online or your own loneliness that pushed you into this mess?
While on a certain level, it does manage to successfully illustrate the vulnerability and mental health issues in teens, it completely fails as a horror movie.
The part of the problem is that it brings nothing new into YouTube horror lore. The final result completely relies on the overused tropes of YouTube's "dark" corner.
It would've worked better as drama about the mental health risks in teens oversharing on social media, but that would require much more serious exploration of the broader context.
How far would you go for the attention of your viewers? In which ways does this attention harm young and volatile? What poses a more serious threat - creepy guys watching you online or your own loneliness that pushed you into this mess?
While on a certain level, it does manage to successfully illustrate the vulnerability and mental health issues in teens, it completely fails as a horror movie.
The part of the problem is that it brings nothing new into YouTube horror lore. The final result completely relies on the overused tropes of YouTube's "dark" corner.
It would've worked better as drama about the mental health risks in teens oversharing on social media, but that would require much more serious exploration of the broader context.