Deadstream (2022) Poster

(2022)

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6/10
I have mixed feelings on this one
SoumikBanerjee199630 October 2022
To tell you the truth, I don't know what to make of this whole facade! On one hand, I was pretty amused by the comedic punchlines as well as their clever use of horror-specific elements but on the other hand, the constant tonal shifts put me out of the experience not once but multiple times!

I didn't take a look at any of the trailers, I went in completely blind and this is probably the first time I happen to regret my choice. I am certain, anyone who had seen the promos had gone in expecting a horror parody, and there was me, who anticipated something absolutely on the opposite spectrum!

Now, I do not loathe it (although I do despise the lead protagonist who caused me a ton of headaches & annoyance); but I couldn't care for it either. I have mixed feelings, in the truest sense of the word!
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7/10
Pleasantly surprised!
lindholmhelen2 January 2023
I really enjoyed this and I usually think that found footage died with the Blair Witch. Well...maybe the first Paranormal Activity and Rec also. You get vibes from Evil Dead (which many others also has commented on) and first person shooter games. The make up is quite good regarding that the film makers probably had a small budget. And I kind of like Shawn - very good take on an obnoxious youtuber that does anything for likes! Well worth a watch! You can tell that the actors had fun with this one. Oh, and the comments from the live stream viewers are hilarious!

This may do for the director's career what Paranormal Activity did for Oren Peli.
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7/10
It's Dashcam but the main character isn't awful
brandonlewissmu8 October 2022
The problem with Dashcam was that the girl was maybe the most unlikable idiot I've ever seen in a film. The main character here is great. He plays the obnoxious viewer-chasing blogger but in a way you genuinely like him. Also, the story uses the livestream far better. It's almost like a Who Wants To Be A Millionaire lifeline. It's an asset to the story, not just an aspect.

Is it scary? Sort of. They build up the tension quite a few times. It will be heading towards nerve-racking but then they'll interject comedy and kind of let you off the hook. This isn't a criticism, though. It's a horror infused with comedic elements. My feeling is that it's exactly what the director wanted it to be. While I personally would have liked them to push farther with the scares, that wasn't their plan. Fair enough.

I definitely recommend it. Between this, Sissy, and V/H/S 99 (which I got to see a screener for), Shudder is on a roll.
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7/10
It is a funny parody on Blair Witch!!
subxerogravity24 October 2022
That's what I see from Deadstream. This was an amazingly funny movie. I was not sure what to expect when watching this movie. I can be very indifferent about movies that ingrate contemporary technology that influences the culture...like social media, but they picked the right dude to play the semi lone person in this movie. He had a strange balance of being funny with being scared but his being scared made me fear what was about to happen to him. I love his character and how he developed and you can clearly see what type of person he is which lends to both the comedy and the horror. It does lean one way more than the other for too long but I don't need to nick pick, it was good.
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7/10
A Fun Ride
venomtruth3 November 2022
Made me laugh thru out the 1st half of the movie - just outstanding. The 2nd half got slightly creepier and developed the only way it could. The ending was a let down and kind of showed the cheapness of the special effects etc. But this does not take away from the actor playing a difficult role of an obnoxious but hilariously funny Youtuber. Perfect for Halloween and for fits of laughter. Not really too scary but scary enough for some nervous smiles and a perfect fit for today's world. Again Kudos to the actor who played the protagonist. He captured the irritating, bumbling, kind of obnoxious person perfectly (humorously). And this I do not take for granted..
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7/10
A Good Time
tiskec7 October 2022
This movie is actually quite fun. It's a mixture of horror, jump scares and comedy. Shawn as the main character was funnier than hell. The way that he expresses his fear just had me rolling.

I half expected this movie to be dumb and low budget, but it actually wasn't. I'm usually not into cam or found footage movies, but this one was done really well. It was annoying like most found footage, where you couldn't see all that was going on. This movie nailed it though.

The evil ghost lady (no spoilers) kind of reminded me of Evil Dead, which was awesome. The make up looks just like, or very similar.

This move is really a lot of fun. I recommend watching this at least once. It put me in a better mood after I did. Like the title of my review, the movie really is a good time.
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6/10
A found footage haunted house horror comedy that actually works! Quite fun.
PutneyTrope18 October 2022
This is a found footage/haunted house film. It's also a comedy where the humor hits at multiple levels (something for everyone). It's a film firmly rooted in 2022, so it's destined to be a more of a time capsule curiosity rather than timeless. It had a decent set-up. Only two characters. Familiarity of the nature of YouTube streaming personalities is useful, but not required (There is a lot of humor to be read onscreen as you see a live stream chat and all the comments). The horror? It was actually quite fun! Practical effects that were charming. The setting was well-chosen and especially creepy. Listening to the lead character crack wise constantly didn't detract from some decent tension building. Had a few moments that I'd call gently chilling. Clever use of body cams in a survival horror situation. If you enjoyed the Evil Dead films - you'll feel quite comfortable with this one. The humor is all over the place and does approach zany Sam Raimi levels at times. Maintaining credible humor and horror at the same time can be difficult. The movie did start to falter a slight bit (you'll have the layout of the house memorized by film's end). Would have played better at an hour long, but any filler is forgivable. If you love haunted house investigations - I'd consider checking this out. This was pretty fun.
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9/10
Brilliant fun, and a near perfect film from newb filmmakers.
Top_Dawg_Critic17 October 2022
This comedy-horror film is a must-see fun ride, just in time for Halloween season. Husband and wife duo Joseph and Vanessa Winter co-wrote, co-produced, co-directed, etc, with Joseph also in the starring role, and this guy is legit hilarious.

Although nothing revolutionary in the comedy-horror genre, for a low budget B-film by newb filmmakers, this is about as good as it gets. Mixing traditional horror comedy scares with social media technology and critique, makes this little witty gem a wildly fun and surprisingly smart entry into a heavily saturated genre.

The pacing was perfect for the very comfortable 87 min runtime, of which every minute was a laugh, thrill, or scare. Even the special effects, rudimentary prosthetics and gore were on point.

This is one of those films you'll want to for sure watch every Halloween, if not more often, even if just to read the live social commentary by the character's online viewers. You'll be on the floor laughing at the variety of viewer comments and Shawn's reaction and replies. Mad props and applause to the Winter's for this little gem. Hopefully we get a part two soon. It's a well deserved 9/10 from me.
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7/10
Shawn McClane
robertcook2426 October 2022
Warning: Spoilers
Great found footage horror flick with some really funny bits.

Shawn summons his inner John McClane as he stumbles around a haunted house getting beaten down at every turn before finally dishing out an ass whooping of his own.

Shawn is rather unlikeable at the start but shows some growth as a person during the movie to the point where you actually start rooting for him. It was great fun to see him relapse in the closing moments of the movie at the house then punish him for it.

This movie has some surprises and genuine laugh out loud moments. Get some buddies round and some popcorn to watch this, you're guaranteed to have a blast.
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2/10
Bitterly disappointed by the hype
mike_sugrue11 October 2022
I really wanted to like this film and was signposted to it by numerous great reviews on Instagram and on IMBD.

All the promise of "if Sam Raimi knew about social media this is what he'd have made" is outrageous.

To be fair I liked the premise as a spin on the Haunted House trope and the lead is good although the screaming becomes a little tedious. This along with the clever devise of using remote cams (which were underused) it could have been a great indie movie.

However......it's less of an homage to Raimi but more of a rip off. The SFX (calling them "special" is probably being too kind) was absolutely woeful. Really, really bad. For what Raimi achieved 40 years ago it's an insult to compare the two given they both had minuscule budgets.

This movie touched on some great ideas that if they were fully developed could have been great. But it didn't, and it's not.

Having spent the year being so saturated with under par Horror movies this really is the bottom of the barrel. Please don't waste your time or believe the 8 or 9 out of 10 ratings. I always take ratings with a pinch of salt when it comes to Horror as it's a very subjective genre, but this is a bad, bad, bad film.
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8/10
New Generation Evil Dead
dizznmo16 October 2022
A fun ride! Definitely brought me back to the original crazy fun Evil Dead! Not sure if they meant to pay homage to Raimi but they definitely did! Would have given a 9 but while the ending made sense just not as awesome as the rest of the movie. Hard to top Bruce Campbell as Ash but this guy playing Shawn came pretty darn close! Dang, why so many characters IMBD? I feel like I have to write an essay. Anyways to the younger generation if you enjoyed this you gotta watch Evil Dead 1981 and Evil Dead 2 which was even more campy and over the top! To my fellow Generation Xer's, who might pass it up, check it out!
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7/10
7.5...a fun watch of the found footage genre
leehoe4416 October 2022
A social media influencer has a show called Wrath of Shawn on a YouTube like app called Livid and it's about himself facing his fears.. his next challenge will be staying overnight in a real haunted house,..yes, this approach has been done before but Deadstream succeeds in being a "funny stupid" time and I mean that in a good way mostly because of Shawn's wimpish portrayal of everything we hate in some of the influencer's that are actually out there, so that means he's pretty much annoying and yet you find yourself rooting for him..a decent horror comedy that has plenty of laughs and jump scares..a spoof of the Haunted House + Ghost Hunters tv show combos with a dash of the Evil Dead for good measure. Watch with a few friends over a couple of bottles of vino or "?"....whatever floats your boat...
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4/10
Too much like watching an annoying youtuber.
Kronenbourg1612 October 2022
I knew a bit about this movie before watching, and was dubious because I can't bear the loud and obnoxious, screamy, soy-bearded youtubers. I had hoped that this movie would show us a break-down of one of these people. Show the progression from fake screaming and sh-- talking to real terror..This would be the most interesting thing to make of the premise, but this movie doesn't achieve that. The fake screaming and insincerity just continues to escalate to farcical proportions, and then the movie overtly becomes a farce, and then it finishes.

It not that bad if you like super campy horror. But if you want anything with a modicum of real horror, or you're looking for more of an insightful examination of how one of these annoying youtubers might really break down under true terror, you won't find it here. The actor screams and talks like he's playing Silent Hill on Twitch for the whole film. Never once a glimmer or real tension in his eyes.
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7/10
A live steam version of Evil Dead.
lord-blade28 October 2022
Honestly, I was expecting more of the boring Blair Witch nothing. Another found footage movie with some noises and the odd jump scare, and not much else.

But this movie was a pleasant surprise. It basically follows a live stream jackass who is staying in a haunted house. The movie is serious and silly at the same time. The whole thing is done straight up, but as the main character is a cowardly ass, his reactions end up being comical half the time. It very much gives off Evil Dead vibes. An attempt at horror while knowing your limitations.

The special effects are kind of meh. But for a low budget film, they did surprising well. Obvious masks and prosthetics and such. But it worked decently.

The acting is all over the place, which makes sense. He's basically a random streamer who's self centered and cowardly and wants to be the center of attention. We've all seen countless like him.

The horror aspects actually work decently. There are a lot of great creepy moments where you're waiting for the jump. A couple of times there is one, other times there isn't, which leaves you all the more jumpy. And again, working with what they had, they did a decent job of it.

Overall, well worth a watch. Much better than most of these types of films.
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7/10
A well deserved 7 out of 10
The_Swedish_Reviewer14 December 2022
I had so much fun watching this movie, which by all means is not unique or ground-breaking. But there is so much unintentional comedy build into the story, I couldn't stop laughing. It's not really that scary and the monsters were, let's say low-budget. However, it doesn't matter as the finished product is so entertaining. I love how they make fun of influencers and wanna-be Youtube stars and it works perfectly. Definitely not Oscar material but who cares when Evil Dead meets Blair witch project together with urban explorers during a livestream. This is when low budget indie films are at their best.
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7/10
7.1/10. Recommended
athanasiosze18 October 2022
1) At last, a comedy/horror movie which is both scary and funny! This is a difficult combination. Usually, comedy/horror movies are not scary neither intense. This one scared me, at least at the first half. Second half is funnier, i agree with the reviewers who mentioned similarities with EVIL DEAD 2.

2) Leading actor is a very likeable character. I wish this movie to be a franchise, DEADSTREAM 2 etc. The directors/writers here know exactly what they want and how to achieve it. They should be rewarded with bigger budget in their next movie.

3) It's not a great movie, neither a groundbreaking one. But it's a comedy/horror movie, there are not many new areas to explore. I wouldn't even call it hilarious, however there are many funny moments here. And some twists you may see them coming, still nice and somewhat interesting though.
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7/10
Grave Encounters meets Evil Dead
jasonweiers9 October 2022
Warning: Spoilers
This movie was surprisingly entertaining. I did have somewhat high expectations as I found another Shudder original, "Host", to be an excellent scary movie. What makes it surprising is the movie went an entirely different direction than what would be expected.

The plot follows an internet personality who goes to a supposedly haunted house alone to live stream an overnight stay. I was expecting to mostly just see some spooky shadows and movements and some ghosts, a la "Hell House LLC" (also an excellent movie). And the first half of the movie did take this route.

As other reviewers have mentioned, the main character is...quite annoying. But that's the point, and that's what made me think of "Grave Encounters". Just as that film's characters were purposely unlikeable to mimic the bad personalities in certain "ghost hunter" shows, this character also mimics the cringe of many internet personalities. And that I found enjoyable.

The second half of the film took a sudden turn, when we began dealing with ghosts that were actually tangible beings. The added silliness of it really reminded me of "Evil Dead" (the original 1981 version). It was unexpected and definitely changed the tone of the film (and I sincerely wonder if the reviewers saying the plot was "predictable" actually watched the movie). I would say the first half was more scares/anticipation (a la Hell House LLC, Grave Encounters) and the second half more gore and silliness.

There were some parts that seemed a bit too drawn out and lost my attention a bit. I was surprised when I finished the movie that it was only an hour and a half long because, well, it did feel longer, which is why I gave it a slightly lower rating.

Overall, I recommend. 7.5.
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8/10
Top Tier Horror
rynrox7 October 2022
This had just the perfect mix of creepiness/horror, plus social commentary and humour (without the cringe factor). The main actor who also co-wrote and directed the movie does an incredible job of keeping your attention for so long.

There was a great combination of predictability vs. Surprise and the filming location was just perfect. Anyone who can make a movie this interesting without the budget of a Hollywood movie deserves some real recognition.

I'd love to see a movie like this get the same attention as some of the box office horror hits - total hidden gem! I am officially a forever fan.
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7/10
i Hate hunted house movies but this is good
buckeyefanohiostate6 October 2022
Like i said in the title im not a fan of hunted house moives the whole paranormal activity style movies have never been at the top of movies i enjoy. I liked the main guy which is really important seeing as theyre are not many other ppl in the movie lol!! I liked how they sprinkled in humor without overdoing it enough to make you laugh. The way they shot the movie with go Pro looking cams has been done a million times but i think that it helped this movie at times it helped build tension!! The back story was kidda over done but at this point its rare to see unique story part of a movie is bound to be a rehash haha!! The Ending isnt my favorite part of the movie but i see were they were going with it!! This movie is better then most the crap they try to put out there !!
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5/10
girly scream
SnoopyStyle31 October 2022
Disgraced YouTuber Shawn Ruddy tries to regain his audience and credibility by spending one night in a haunted house. He live-casts from inside the rundown old house when superfan Chrissy interrupts.

It's a low budget indie horror-comedy. I like the horror elements. I do wish that Joseph Winter doesn't continuously do his girly scream. It's meant to be funny, but I'm conflicted. I get the comedic effect of a big guy screaming like a little girl, but I do not like it. I find it frustratingly repetitive, and I don't like the annoying sound. Maybe, I'm not that conflicted. I want him to stop screaming.
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8/10
Found Ghost Hunting Footage
kosmasp21 September 2022
No pun intended - and before you shut off: yes I am wary when I read about a movie being or using the "found footage" genre or whatever you want to call it. The movie on hand here is quite fresh though and makes fun of the usual tropes. And achieves something that I would not think possible: making this fun and entertaining with just one lead character! Blair Witch send three people into the woods - this only needs one - an influencer, because he interacts with his followers. And some random people who just jump on his stream I reckon.

I imagine there are way more jokes in the comments that I was able to read - but even so, this may work as comedy in the beginning, but really knows when to push the switch (or smash button if you'll excuse the pun)! And go over to the horror movie tropes - and while it probably would not hold on to scrutiny - not if you really really think about it that is - it works superficially and for what it tries to say .. which is a bit of critique of social media and a social commentary too. While scaring you ... and having quite a few nods to horror movies of the past ... a love letter of sorts ... a haunted one, so not for the squeamish.
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7/10
Funny as hell, bloody as hell, and at some points, creepy as hell!
DeepRest14 October 2022
Warning: Spoilers
This was such a pleasant surprise for me. I went into this with low expectations, but this was way better than it should have been. I really liked the main character. Which is good, because he's 90% of the movie. Just the main character, surrounded by some very creepy and weird things. This movie was very creative in the creature designs, with each creature being creepier than the last.

This movie takes great inspiration from the Evil Dead franchise, but does so respectfully, and without taking itself too seriously. This is a fun horror comedy, and we don't get enough of those. Do yourself a favor and watch this movie.
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3/10
Not scary. Not funny. Dumb.
Pantera-996-8320719 October 2022
Baffled by the high score.

Like a 12 year old tried to remake a cross between Blair Witch and Evil Dead. Not funny, nor scary just dumb.

Raimi did this in '81 with far less money. 40 yrs on this is the best you can do?!

3 stars for effort. Actually could have worked if the idiot protagonist went from jokes to actual terror - but it was stupid all the way through.

Baffled by the high score.

Like a 12 year old tried to remake a cross between Blair Witch and Evil Dead. Not funny, nor scary just dumb.

Raimi did this in '81 with far less money. 40 yrs on this is the best you can do?!

3 stars for effort. Actually could have worked if the idiot protagonist went from jokes to actual terror - but it was stupid all the way through.
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7/10
Laugh and jump
moliver-8364730 October 2022
Warning: Spoilers
What a fresh find! I find it has an original twist on the plethora of " footage" and live cam horror movies. It's a great movie choice for a Halloween movie marathon. The movie is humorous with plenty of jump scares mixed with some gore. I jumped and hid under a blanket a few times. The streaming comments from his followers crack me up. Spoiler - the scene with something , like a baby, crawling under the blanket creeped me out ! Like I said plenty of creepiness mixed in with the laughs. Joseph Winter is hilarious. I read this is made by a first time filmmaker, well done. I'm glad I didn't pass it by. Well worth the watch.
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7/10
It's decent.
ravenousrena5 November 2023
People going into this looking for something scary, or something excessively funny, you will probably be disappointed, since rather than a horror-comedy, it feels more like a horror-themed satire on controversial content creators that cross the line... so unless you like videos made by obnoxious personalities, you'll likely find the main character unfunny and/or cringe, though even if you dislike those types, you might find some enjoyment out of the film.

Those kind of content creators, when they go too far, often have less than sincere apology videos when their channel gets blocked or they're in danger of getting 'canceled'. Then they end up desperate to 'redeem' themselves to the public, and might even attempt to change the narrative of their career... which is the route the main character goes to get back in his viewers good graces.

The influence of Evil Dead (specifically Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness), seems pretty apparent with the make-up and effects, as well as the goofy confrontations between the protagonist and the various entities he encounters and the behavior of the antagonist.

I actually found the 'stream' to be the more humorous part of the movie, just because it felt authentic to the actual chat in a stream. From trolls, to skeptics, to the innocent sounding people who wholeheartedly believe in the creator and encourage them or want to help them so they do research or make suggestions.

I'm not too fond of people like the main character; however, I found him kind of interesting, since he more-or-less felt authentic in regards to the role he was trying to portray, and I thought he did a decent job acting, flip-flopping from his streamer persona to acting more like an average guy in a bad situation.

A lot of people are either calling this movie awful, or acting like it's a masterpiece. It's neither. It's by no means unique, and it can often be cliché, though I assume the director did that purposely to make the film more 'ironic', though using clichés ironically is also nothing groundbreaking.

I thought the movie was a decent watch, and I believe it can be fun if you are into the whole streaming angle of the film, and you curb your expectations.
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