Unfriended: Dark Web

A solid, thoroughly bleak sequel, Unfriended: Dark Web follows a group of friends as they assemble over Skype for a seemingly routine game night – with the evening taking a sinister turn after a mysterious, deadly hacker begins targeting the gang. First-time filmmaker Stephen Susco does a superb job of initially drawing the viewer into the sporadically engrossing proceedings, as Unfriended: Dark Web‘s first half is devoted to the affable exploits of the well-developed and increasingly sympathetic protagonists – with the movie benefiting substantially from the solid performances by, among others, Colin Woodell, Rebecca Rittenhouse, and Betty Gabriel. It’s clear, too, that the picture’s early success owes a lot to an undercurrent of promising (and palpable) malice, although it’s just as apparent that once the picture’s central conceit is revealed, Unfriended: Dark Web takes on a far more predictable (and almost conventional) feel that results in a palpable dissipation of tension (ie past a certain point, everything unfolds pretty much exactly as one might’ve anticipated). There’s nevertheless little doubt that the film, which is ultimately more thriller than horror, manages to hold the viewer rapt right through to the expectedly grim finale, thus securing the movie’s place as a seriously promising new franchise from the reliable folks at Blumhouse.

*** out of ****