Cyberbully

This short drama was promoted mainly off the attraction of Maisie Williams (she of Game of Thrones fame) and it was the reason I came to it. I wasn't sure quite what the plot was, beyond the title laying out the subject area, and it was a nice surprise to find that it was several things, and because of this, they all worked pretty well. On the face of it we have a drama where two characters communicate across a computer – one of whom we do not see, the other being the main character Casey. This starts slowly, and at first I was struggling with watching characters type to one another, but it got better once the text became voice chat, and the plot started to unfold.

Although it has issues that are not really resolved and did bug me a little, mostly the plot works. The elements where I felt I was just being asked to "go with it" were not always perfect, but it is the movement of the viewer within the plot that makes it engaging. Our sympathies change around slightly through the hour – not really twists and turns as such, but it does move well. This working allows the drama to do something else – which is to be a social message too, but to be one in a way that works and doesn't have people turning off because they feel like they are being preached at. It is a fine line at times, but mostly it manages to stay on the right side of it to produce a topical drama which stands as a cautionary tale that makes one thing about the issues.

The drama keeps it from being too heavy handed, and shifting the viewer round encourages thought – not only of the drama, but of the subjects, which in turn then helps the social message aspect hit home more effectively. I am old enough not to have had to deal with the internet while at school, but I do feel for those who are born into that because it is so easy to have anonymous people tear at you for the sake of it; people like to label others trolls, but as with this drama, often just the culture of cruel comments and sarcasm from "regular" people is just as damaging.

The cast is limited to a handful of people, with Williams being the only person really in it for longer than a few scenes – indeed I don't think she is ever really off the screen since the whole film is in real time and plays out entirely in her bedroom. She is excellent; delivering a lot with her face and really getting into her character – it is not easy to hold the film up in this way, particularly when you are alone and acting at a computer screen, but she does it very well and contributes to making the plot work by virtue of her character. Of the others it is worth mentioning Haruka Abe. Although she only has a few scenes in videos online, she convinces at being cheerful and likable, while also being naïve, but more importantly she sells the change in her pretty well without over playing it; it is a small role but an important one and she does it well.

Cyberbully isn't perfect as a drama, but it works better than I expected and moves the viewer around nicely as well as being reasonably gripping. The social aspect benefits from this, as it delivers a thoughtful cautionary tale and advice, but avoids being preachy or alienating – which is a difficult thing to do, so kudos to it for that.

See, indie movies fall under two categories: artsy, preachy, and empty or interesting, cool and fulfilling. Cyberbully is under the second category. See the reason is because this movie actually understands the issue its addressing unlike the other Cyberbullying movie that I can't stand, and not only that but the entire movie is set inside one room, with one actress: Maisie Williams, who gives a fantastic performance! Gripping, interesting, and an overall good film, and best of all shines a good light on its issue. Its a shame Ms Williams is not in more films because she is a great actress, especially here. In this movie, she talks to a computer program for most of it, and its a very impressive performance. So watch it, but you need to be mature to watch it, a boat ton of cursing lies ahead, but also a well written script.

This movie was like Locke and 12 Angry Men in the sense that it was filmed in one location throughout the entirety of the movie. The dialogue and performance was what sustained the brilliance of the chilling plot. The acting by Maisie Williams was very real and it just completely engaged me in the storyline from the first scene. The fact that the hacker's identity is made unclear makes the villain unique and very sinister. What I also like about it is that the location that takes place is very innocent because it takes place in a teenage girls room, however you are still left on edge for every second that goes on. As the story goes on the girls life begins to crumble and spiral into a disaster she cannot escape from. Brilliant, Exciting, Original and thrilling, all I can say is... Watch the movie!!!

Taking real life situations and stories, the creators of this one episode drama are geniuses in their work, using emotive languages and even pictures to show how shady the world of the internet can truly be. The main characters actor, Masie Williams, is showing off her true ability and proving, as if anyone would doubt, that she can do much more than just Game of Thrones, with an amazing performance were she superbly expresses the guilt that a person in her position would feel.. It instills a light sense of fear and thrill throughout as the danger is always present and intimidating. It achieves it's goal of also teaching the general public on what they shouldn't do online well. Cyberbully uses the interesting technique of staying in only one place the entire duration, this, as many movies before it have shown, can be tricky and risks getting boring if it isn't executed well, which this certainly was., managing to keep my early attention lasting until the very end. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a thought provoking drama.

An outstanding performance by Maisie Williams (I don't know her from Game of Thrones but if she's as good on that as she is here it must be worth watching).

She singlehandedly carries a one hour drama about cyber bullying drawn from real world examples.

It dramatically personifies the impact of trolling in teenage circles and turns Maisie's own trolling on its head through the use of a hacker who communicates directly with her in her bedroom and plays the role of a modern St Peter at the pearly gates holding a mirror up to her misdemeanours.

The film has many twists and turns and can never be predicted. It's a tough role for a young actor to carry off but she succeeds with flying colours.

The lessons are clear and powerful. That's why it should be shown in social education classes to demonstrate the extremes that trolling can get to.