Rating: 6 of 10
If RINGU was the reason you ditched an entire collection of old VHS movies or, at the very least, moved the TV outta your bedroom, and HOSTEL put you off international travel, THE DEN will most definitely make you think twice before using websites like Chatroulette or Skype ever again.
Synopsis: “After receiving a grant for her graduate thesis, Elizabeth Benton (Melanie Papalia) logs onto a video-chat site known as THE DEN, on a mission to explore the habits of its users. During one of her random video-chats, Elizabeth watches in horror as a teenage girl is gruesomely murdered in front of her webcam.
While the police dismiss it as a viral prank, Elizabeth believes what she saw is real and takes it upon herself to find the truth. Her life quickly spirals out of control as she gets pulled deeper into the darkest recesses of the internet. And eventually, Elizabeth finds herself trapped in a twisted game in which she and her loved ones are targeted for the same grisly fate as the first victim.” (source)
THE DEN taps into the fears many of us share, and the questions we ask ourselves, probably on a daily basis. Like, how safe is the Internet, really? (The double-edged sword of anonymity is equally terrifying.) THE DEN wasn’t perfect and, yes, found footage has become an overly used concept in horror movies. However, I don’t think THE DEN qualifies as “found footage” in the traditional sense. I can’t say more without giving away too much. But I will say this: even overused techniques, concepts, narratives, etc. can still be effective when done well.
Highly recommended if you enjoy gory techno-horror movies.
Check out THE DEN on IFC Midnight | on IMDb
(Watched on Netflix 10/4/2014)