Livescream

Of course I had never heard about this 2018 horror movie titled "Livescream" prior to stumbling upon it and sitting down to watch it. And I virtually didn't know what I was in for here, aside from it being a movie with some streaming-based storyline. And I have to say that it wasn't exactly a concept that had me worked up.

The movie was definitely not off to a good start. Why? Well, I have to say that making a movie about a guy livestreaming himself playing a game just doesn't qualify as entertainment to me. And I was on the verge of turning off the movie before it even got off to a running start. So writer and director Michelle Iannantuono didn't stand much of a chance with this movie.

I was not familiar with the cast ensemble, if one can actually call it that. It was simply just a single guy sitting at a computer and didn't do much of any acting. So yeah, laugh it up fuzzball.

I have to say that I find the streaming concept idiotic, and people sitting down to watch other people play games is even more idiotic. But hey, I suppose that kind of mindless entertainment is what the youth of today enjoy. Personally, I have to say that my life is just simply too short to sit down and watching other people play computer games and talking.

I made it a staggering 10 minutes into the dumpster fire that is "Livescream" and then I simply tossed the towel in the ring. This was a pathetic waste of time. It is nothing but a guy sitting and playing some horror game with lousy graphics and talking to himself and a make-believe audience.

My rating of writer and director Michelle Iannantuono's 2018 movie lands on a one out of ten stars. This is definitely one of the worst movies I've stumbled upon in a long, long time. Don't waste your time, money or effort on this heap of rubbish. And how this movie landed a 5.6 rating, while I was writing this review, simply is beyond my comprehension, but I suppose people that usually hang around watching livestreams took a break off of the livestreams to watch this dung heap.

I had the opportunity to screen Michelle Iannantuono's feature film debut LIVESCREAM at the Crimson Screen Film Festival and was blown away. It's an interesting concept for a film, taking the "found footage" concept into a new dimension of "real time events" unfolding as a livestream of videogame play. Gunnar Willis shines as the gamer who is forced to play a haunted game that kills off players and viewers. For this role, he learned 75 pages of dialogue and delivered the entirety as a monologue which was done in 3 takes. The most unique aspect of the experience is that as a viewer you are constantly scanning back and forth between the gameplay window, the videochat window, and the text window. It's pretty groundbreaking that there are VERY emotional moments in the film that are the result of simple text being typed into a chat window. Audience members at the screening were tearing up over one particular scene where a photograph puts a face to one of the faceless texters. It's WEIRD how much power a simple photograph of a person holds in the context of the film. I'm not a gamer and I was moved by LIVESCREAM. I suspect hardcore gamers that "get" all the references that were lost on me will enjoy this movie on an entirely different level.

This is a truly terrible attempt at what could've been a fun, engaging, highly unique experience. The main character is obnoxious, and any potential scares you get from this film will likely come from you being taken off guard by him blowing out his microphone with highly unpleasant, guttural screaming. The film is also an eye sore, with the game he plays being collectively made up of several mini games, all of different genres, and all equally as ugly, barebones, and monotonous to watch. It seemed as though the director/writer was trying to play off of audience nostalgia, assuming that many viewers would relate to the FNAF and Slender clones, as well as the one constructed in RPG Maker. But what made those games special at the time wasn't just simple childhood amusement, but the fact that they were highly original and unique for the time. Not only that, but most importantly, they weren't being played and commented on by someone that gives you a headache and has the personality of a theater kid reject. Lastly, the film makes a few attempts at emotion and pathos toward the end that are truly cringeworthy and embarrassing, ultimately making you wish the game took the main character out within the first five minutes instead. It's an awful film, but I may watch the sequel one day when I need something to laugh at, as it sounds even worse than this one.

Lots of over-the-top bad reviews here but my message is just stick with it and it turns into something quite good.

At first I almost gave up because the main character's reactions to what was happening around him didn't seem realistic (not his acting, which was very believable despite yelling a bit too much, this was mainly a writing issue)... and I couldn't see how the games shown would sustain my interest. However then it improved in pace and tension, and I got really into it. The text aspect was very well integrated too.

If you like films of a computer-screen genre (Searching, Unfriended, etc.) then give this a go. It's an intriguing concept, with lots of references for the gamers among you, some fine acting and a lovely punchline.

I actually really enjoyed this movie. It has that indie/micro budget charm. Also love the fact they had to make the game to go along with it. The ending was brutal. I would recommend if you're looking for a fun watch. They managed to do a lot of characterization in a short amount of time, even for those that weren't on screen. Personally, the negative reviews feel like people that don't appreciate micro budget/b movie horror.

There's not any gore so if you're squeamish you don't need to worry. There's not a ton of jumpscares, the ones that are there are mostly in the context of the game Scott is playing.