★★½☆☆
Alexander Boyd Watson’s Demonetize tries to capture influencer culture with an insightful lens on the influence it has over modern culture and what it has become.
While the film is a horror comedy about a group of people staying in a haunted house for a $100,000 cash prize if they can survive 12 hours overnight, the overall idea and concept are far from original. Scary Movie 2 already spoofed the premise of a group of twenty-somethings spending the night in a haunted house while the person orchestrating the event had ulterior motives.
Yet what makes this film stand out is the script, written by Janine Hogan, who also stars in the film alongside director Alexander Boyd Watson.
The film’s biggest asset is also its biggest weakness. Many of the characters directly poke fun at some of the biggest content creators and influencers while exposing the self-absorbed nature of influencer culture.
“The film’s biggest asset is also its biggest weakness.”
Once you take away the reference points to the household names the film is directly mocking, we’re left with a script that doesn’t hold up.
The characters are all two-dimensional and have no real character development, arc, or substance.
It feels as if the intention of the script was to create a satire of influencer culture while centering it within a horror comedy.
Ultimately, that doesn’t pan out because of the lack of depth and seriousness within the satire, stemming from a lack of crisp direction.
Alexander Boyd Watson directs the film in a goofy, over-the-top style, while the script feels as though it would have played better as a more straightforward dark comedy.
The script’s intent is geared toward mocking and highlighting the soullessness of influencers—not exposing them, but pointing out that content creation has become a rat race of doing literally anything for views and clicks instead of serving as an outlet for people’s special interests, hobbies, and performing arts.
“Content creation has become a rat race of doing literally anything for views and clicks.”
There are key moments throughout that offer a more grounded and engaging approach rather than embracing a slapstick, B-movie sensibility.
Instead, the film indicates a lack of clear vision and execution rather than a deliberate artistic decision to embrace B-movie filmmaking.
The cinematography feels unintentional, lacking consistency or purpose as it jumps between handheld and phone-style footage and more traditional camerawork.
Matthew James’s score follows suit with the cinematography and direction, feeling spotty and inconsistent while lacking the rhythm that is crucial to the execution of even B-movies.
The performances lack real conviction, causing the characters to come across as overly dramatic without intention.
Part of that falls on the direction. The performances are all over the place, feeling scattered and unmotivated.
”Demonetize pushes to be a B-movie stylistically, but the execution lacks the distinct artistic intent needed to make that approach work.”
Demonetize tries to craft a horror comedy that never quite lands. It pushes to be a B-movie stylistically, but the script doesn’t match that tone, and the overall execution lacks the distinct artistic intent needed to make that approach work.
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