The emergence of the
culture in which anyone can gain celebrity by doing stupid things on
YouTube is a primary influence on the story Scream Queen Jessica
Cameron and co-writer Jonathan Scott Higgins have concocted for
Cameron's directorial debut.
The Truth or Daredevils
are six youngsters, led by Cameron's Jennifer, who have become an
internet sensation by filming their variation of the drunken college
game, only with a bizarre, violent twist. When their biggest fan
Derik (Kiser) finds out they had faked their latest and most
audacious video - the killing of hapless stooge Tony (Brandon Van
Vliet) in a reverse Russian roulette routine - he decides to forcibly
join the group and make the videos much more real. Gate crashing
their next meeting, he makes them all reveal their hidden truths
while making their fake dares genuinely deadly. They are made to
perform extremely graphic and appalling stunts on each other, each
more twisted than the last, while all the time Derik has an eye on
the video hits.
Truth or Dare is
an incredibly shocking film, for several reasons. There is an
abundance of torture carried out toward the group by the crazed fan
Derik, to the point in which the old expression 'the lucky ones died
first' is actually correct. This in itself is neither surprising nor
unexpected, but the level of abuse and humiliation levelled at the
women was quite uncomfortable. It's even more shocking when you
remember the lovely Ms Cameron co-wrote and directed the film
herself. Without wanting to give spoilers, there are some moments
that one would not expect a female filmmaker to want to put her
fellow gender through. However, by making the viewer experience this
discomfort proves what a powerhouse director Cameron has the
potential to be. It goes beyond mere exploitation - frankly, had a
male director put some of the atrocities seen here on the screen they
would be accused of being misogynistic.
The back stories of the
crew that are revealed during the 'truth' part of the game are as
shocking and disturbing as the tortuous 'dares'; which is not to say
they are unbelievable, but it does highlight the point that we can
never really be sure how well we know our friends. It's a credit to
the entire cast that these revelations don't come across as
hackneyed, and actually make us begin to care for a group who
essentially are unlikable college reprobates.
By tackling the growing
phenomena of those so desperate for fame on the internet and reality
TV programmes that they will literally draw blood and mutilate, the
film looks at how we perceive our online personas, and how easy it
could be for our own skeletons to be dragged from the closet. Are we
really only defined by our hit counts?
Truth or Dare is
a visceral, uncompromising and often gut-wrenching ride which may
struggle to sit well with a mainstream audience, but horror fans -
gorehounds particularly - should relish it, even if they may come
away feeling more than a little disturbed. The claustrophobic central
location - while obviously being an economical filming decision -
gives a hopeless feeling of confinement. Herself a shameless
self-promoter, Jessica Cameron has certainly made a strong and
powerful mark for her directing debut. It will be interesting to see
how she will top this in the future.
7 out of 10
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