Oh, the dangers of Facebook.
The movie Friend Request could have been a documentary about the online hazards lurking in this social media age, in which you add strangers, or people you barely know on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or any other social media platforms you can name.
I had thought this was the idea behind the movie, but according to director Simon Verhoeven, the idea came following the death of one of his distant acquaintances. Weeks later, Verhoeven noticed that his Facebook profile was still available online, unchanged. Verhoeven shuddered at the thought that he might suddenly receive a message from him. Friend Request was born at that moment.
The story starts off with a popular student, Laura, enjoying college life to the fullest and sharing everything with her over 800 friends on Facebook. One day, after accepting a friend request from Marina, a girl she met in a lecture, Laura’s life is turned upside down. One by one, Laura’s closest friends die cruel deaths. To break the deadly spell, Laura must solve the mystery behind Marina, who coincidentally is intricately tied to her Facebook profile.
The entire movie is pretty fast-paced and as the movie progresses I find myself checking off a list of horror movie stereotypes. Shower scene with girl wrapped in towel? Check. Lift scene where the light goes off? Check. Blonde hair walking out of her bedroom into dark corridor asking “anyone there”? Check.
The original score – which is an integral part of any horror movie in my opinion – by Gary Go and Martin Todsharow fell a little flat. To be fair though, there were a few scenes which were made much better, thanks to the creepy music that perfectly complimented the visuals of the movie.
Not sure if it was intentional or not, but the cast looks remarkably familiar, with the main lead Laura looking like a mash up of Hilary Duff and Emmy Rossum, while her computer whiz sidekick Kobe bears an uncanny resemblance to Colin Farrell. William Peter Moseley who plays main boyfriend looks so different from his role as Peter in Narnia I could barley recognise him. Amidst the chaos in the movie, William’s role is the classic calming influence, the port in the storm, which is why it’s particularly sad when this unfortunate event has to happen to him.
Friend Request packs enough scare factor to make for a good cheap thrill Friday night scare, although it lacks a strong plot overall to sit among the best horror movies I’ve watched this year. The saving grace for the movie is the plot twist initiated by Colin Farrell look-alike. You’ll have to watch to find out, but I can tell you that I thoroughly enjoyed myself with the good scare to last me for a week or so.
Friend Request opens in Singapore in cinemas 28 April 2016.
