Influencer culture is the new slash-and-burn territory for horror, providing many victims in movies today. It’s the perfect target—vain, desperate, and begging to be offed. Alexander Boyd Watson’s Demonetize takes that premise and runs it through a meat grinder.
A washed-up paranormal investigator, Martin (Sean Carrigan), is desperate to reclaim his glory days. He figures out that if ghosts really are drawn to the energy of smartphones and clout-chasing, the best bait in the world is a house full of insufferable social media influencers.
His plan? A Big Brother-style lockdown in the infamous Blackwood Estate. He rounds up a quintet of absolute bottom-feeders from the influencer sphere to live-stream a 24-hour challenge. The catch: they think it’s a staged reality show with a big monetary reward and the promise of social clicks, likes and clout. Martin locks them in, expecting a ratings bonanza. Instead, he gets a bloodbath.
Once the door locks and the cameras start rolling, the entities inside realize these people are full of the exact kind of hollow vanity they feed on. As the Wi-Fi signal begins to flicker and the influencers realize they’re actually dying, the social media facade drops. It turns into a claustrophobic, survival-of-the-fittest nightmare where the ghosts are just the beginning of their problems.
If you’ve ever sat there watching a TikTok influencer act like a fool and thought, “I really hope something terrible happens to them,” well, consider Demonetize your wish fulfillment for the year. Oh yeah — I loved seeing Doug Jones out of makeup as Hunter Zollinger, the slick, soulless agent behind the scenes. There have been plenty of streamer horror films as of late, but this one has a fun energy.
The GenreBlast Film Festival is a one-of-a-kind film experience created for both filmmakers and film lovers, celebrating genre filmmaking in an approachable environment. Described by Movie Maker Magazine as Summer Camp for Filmmakers, we screen the latest in independent, cult, niche and underground films that aren’t easily accessible. Other events include filmmaker Q&As, special guests, giveaways, after-parties, and an awards ceremony. The GenreBlast team is hard at work creating a destination event that will have the independent film industry talking about it all year long. GenreBlast is a festival for filmmakers, by filmmakers, that strives to become one of the best independent film festivals around. We celebrate the finest in true genre cinema, and we look for the best features, shorts, animation, music videos and screenplays you have to offer. For more info and tickets, visit the site.
