Dark Hearts

When an episode of Dark Hearts drops, randomly appears as available for your watching, be prepared to drops all obligations and commitments for the rest of your day/night because you will be glued to your iPad (or iPhone) trying to rescue Melissa Strouge from Limp-Pimp, Aunty Pale Girl, The Broccoli Stalker, the Mutant Sugar Beet, the Evil Dr. Carroway (is she a real doctor?) and The Busch-Man (the nut never falls far from the Busch). Neal Edelstein and Hooked Digital Media have put new twists on an old genre that will keep you up late at night and checking, frequently, under the bed while, unexplainably, becoming highly suspect of any and all ORANGE objects in your environment.

Smart themes, great storyline and just enough of that edge of your seat horror to whip your imagination into an adrenaline filled scare. Absolutely the best. I am Hooked! The use of chapters and social media outside of the app pulls you in - you can't help but check to see if there is a new chapter waiting for you! The music is subtly creepy and only adds to the overall mood. For horror fans, this will not disappoint you. The acting is excellent and the way the story is filmed is innovative and it pulls you in! This is one of the coolest uses of social media and film making since the Blair Witch efforts using story lines outside of the movie- even better this one doesn't make you sick from camera movement! Thank you to the HM team and the DH team that brought us such a great horror film and countless hours of entertainment.

Enjoyed watching the entire Dark Hearts series on my iPhone for a very intimate viewing experience. It felt like I was right there with the characters and enabled me to remain fully engaged in the story throughout.

The undisclosed release schedule really builds anticipation, in that you never know when you'll receive the next chapter. Enabling push notifications on your device ensures you're immediately notified and can watch that next chapter the second it's released!!

Often times, I don't have a span of two hours to sit down and watch an entire movie or even 45 minutes to watch a taped program. That's what makes this style of story-telling and delivery from Hooked Digital Media so appealing to me. The story comes to you in very compelling, yet shorter segments, which really suit my media viewing lifestyle.

Can't wait to see what's coming next...

Dark Hearts is the sequel MovApp (is this a thing?) to Haunting Melissa. They raised the bar to great heights with this one. It is clear they took all that they learned from making the first one as well as feedback from the very involved community and took their cinematic innovation to a whole new place.

From the first time you tap on the icon you'll know you're in for something totally new and unbelievably interactive. The menu system is full of intriguing visuals and audio that you'll be just as intensely captivated by as you are the movie itself.

The story is a mysterious and chilling tale that makes you question everything you see and hear and when you watch a chapter again you may find that the answer to "Did I just see that?" is yes....this time. The Dynamic Story Element concept they created fosters a viewing experience that is simply unparalleled. The mystery is so deeply rooted in not only the story but every frame of the video.

A purely masterful work of sound design accompanies the expertly directed episodes. The aural atmosphere complements each moment with complex layers of some pretty intense audio that has you listening just as close as you are watching.

Each chapter is released on a timeline specific to the user and after the first viewing you unlock access to that chapters discussion board which is filled with dedicated and sharp- eyed fans trading theories, questions, and sharing their own frightful experiences.

All in all, this is the future of filmmaking. Haunting Melissa caters wonderfully to the social media culture and marries filmmaking with personal technology in a way that keeps the viewer engaged with one movie for much longer than the usual 2 hour film. You'll be watching and talking about it for months!

The story is good, slow at times but does keep you "hooked" My problem is with the delivery method. You have to wait for the next episode, in general 24 hours. Ummmmm, I gave you money, could you loosen up a bit. They say for the suspense, yeah, don't need that.

Second, how much money do I have to give you? I've already given you 10 bucks. One of the heads, I think his name is Neal, said if they can get the funding there will be a third installment so share it!! Well it seems you've already filmed the whole thing, how many more installments left. Is this the new micro-purchase we can expect from the film industry? Really, I don't want to shell out 30 bucks to watch a movie on my phone.

In a way I find this very deceptive.

Story is an 8/10, the micro-transactions 3/10.