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I assumed Dear David to be a serious horror movie, however it blew me away with it's horrible attempts at being scary! The script is unnatural and tonedeaf, this is not how the internet works and this is not how people talk. Every jumpscare flopped, there was no suspense or tension throughout, very disappointing for a HORROR MOVIE. Despite being produced by BuzzFeed, (a news company that writes about stuff that happens on the internet) it felt out of touch and was as if it was written by someone who doesn't use the internet often. Ontop of that, the story and script made no sense, despite being based off of something that (supposedly) actually happened. And, with as little spoilers as possible, the video game segment was the worst bit of this movie. If I had a single ounce of respect for this movie after any of the previous events, it was gone after the video game segment. All in all, this movie is atrocious, it isn't scary or funny, or even entertaining! Save your money and keep away.

The official trailers made this film look hilarious, so I was excited to see it. I love unintentional comedies and I know movies based on creepypasta are always doomed to fail (ex; the film "adaptation" of Marble Hornets). I was fully ready to turn my brain off and enjoy a 2-hour idiot extravaganza with this film.

Instead, Dear David commits the cardinal sin of bad cinema; It's intensely boring. It's wholly lackluster. The pacing is a complete slog, even on 2x speed. The film makes Adam Ellis look like a complete tool (I'd assume the real Adam Ellis is probably an ok guy since I don't know him personally, obviously). It has a handful of silly moments that did make me chuckle, but it's mostly just slow, pretentious, out of touch, and painfully inoffensive.

Avoid this one. It's not even ironically good.

I was so looking forward to the movie version of this story for quite awhile. Glad I waited to watch it on a 7 day free trial of Starz because I would have asked for my money back if I saw it at the movie theater! And I want my free trial back! Lol..The original story that Adam Ellis put on Twitter (X) 😂) was so much better and creepier than the Hollywood version. I found it by accident and was glued to the entire thread. Read it as it plays out on Twitter because it has so many creepy chills even though we know it's fictional. I even liked the original backstory of David better that the movie version. Just don't even bother with the movie it'll be a complete waste of time.

I have to say I'm a little surprised by all the hate I found on the page regarding Dear David.

It's a fun movie, attacking a nice subject, one that isn't overused, has some moral weigth to it and a great ending. I especially liked the fact that it reminded me of In the mouth of Madness, that great paranoia feel, not knowing what is real and what is fake. Thus I feel obliged to recommend this one, because it is a lot better than the latter over hyped horrors that appeared. It isn't afraid to be real, raw and take it to the next level with solid scenes that make your skin crawl, but just a little indeed.

Overall Dear David was a nice experience for me, so I am going to advise any horror fan to give it a go. It's definitely a nice add on to the list and it is worth a view. I think I would have enjoyed this on the big screen honestly, because it relies a lot on tension and not jump scares, thus if the mood and surroundings are good, I think the movie will look a lot better. Also, seeing Justing Long on the screen in a horror is always a bonus!

Cheers!

Dear David is another horror film (like Elevator Game) based on an internet meme.

In this case, an old Buzzfeed twitter thread about a man who claims he is being haunted/trolled by a sleep paralysis demon, in the form of a young boy, named David.

Both in waking life...and on the internet.

Having never been a Buzzfeed user- or internet trend follower- myself...this is the first I'm hearing of it.

So I'm of the viewer class who has gone into the movie without being privy to the trend it is based on.

Which makes the whole thing seem like it was funded by Buzzfeed, in an attempt to recapture the attention of the internet, in a way that could garner them the virality that the original story managed to perpetuate.

An elaborate marketing scheme designed to farm clicks...which is all it ever was in the first place, mind you.

And it almost worked.

As I was somewhat enticed to search for Buzzfeed...if only to see if it is actually still relevant.

However, it wasn't enticing enough to overcome my will not to care.

Which kind of gives you an idea about how the movie sits.

Storywise (on it's own), it just comes off as a mediocre psychological horror that is based on "the entity" experience (made famous by the much better, based-on-a-true-story, film, from 1985, of that name).

Only, with the male character, here, experiencing a male form of the entity...presumably, because he's gay.

As men normally experience a gray-haired crone, as opposed to the shadow-like male entity experienced by females.

That being said...that's not to say that this is overtly horrible...or by any means unwatchable.

Just that it's kind of mid, in comparison to it's much better predecessor.

Because the action bits in this don't hit as hard.

While the attempts at jump scaring you just aren't effective.

Though, to be fair...this film is much more psychological in nature.

Focusing on the fragile mental state of the main character- and his subsequent downward spiral- as opposed to a physical investigation into the paranormal nature of the unseen world from which this phenomenon originates.

So...it is of a somewhat different nature, despite being based on a somewhat similar experience, of a very real phenomenon (I'm well aware of because it happened to a friend of mine...and led to a police incident, which I ended up writing a song about).

Which is precisely why it can be exploited by company's like Buzzfeed, whose bottom line is based on creating the next viral sensation...not only to garner clicks...but keep itself relevant.

Which is, unfortunately, what this film feels like it's a desperate attempt to do, in the end.

4.5 out of 10.