Horror flick review: Smiley - 2012

Smiley

Director: Michael J. Gallagher

2012

Horror

The urban legend says that a masked killer will appear behind the person you’re chatting with over the internet if you type “I did it for the Lulz” three times. Ashley is about to find out just how real the legend are when she witness one of the murders. She gets obsessed with Smiley, as the masked killer is called, and investigates what’s really going on. The more she discovers the more terrified she gets. Is it really true?

This is the movie you get if you mix Candyman with A Nightmare on Elm Street and then top the cocktail with some of Wes Cravens Scream. It’s not all bad but the part before the opening credits which I suppose is there to make us ask for more, is very weak and not very interesting at all. I feel that the acting is quite bad in this teaser but thankfully it gets better later on.

I expected a slasher of some sort and that’s partly what it is too. But since the urban legend revolves around an internet phenomenon the killer is only visible through the video chat. For the victims he kills he’s real enough though. The kills are quite boring but there is something about the movie that is actually quite scary. It’s something I can’t really put my finger on but as one of the main aspect of the movie also is mental illness or at least the human psyche it does a lot for me. I like it when you can’t really tell what in the imagination of the main character and what is actually real.

This is where A Nightmare on Elm Street comes into the picture. Obviously there’s no Freddy Krueger but Smiley seems to exist only in fantasy too, just like Freddy. But when the dreamer awakes there are still some evidence of the dream – like torn cloths and such things. It’s not as prominent as in A Nightmare on Elm Street of course but it gives a nice touch.

It’s quite entertaining but what really makes the trick is the involvement of the twists of Scream. This is not very prominent either but still makes the movie a success. The twists and turns that comes when the film is about to end might not come as a total surprise but is still not what you’re expecting. It’s a straight forward film with a twist or two towards the end but they do make a difference! Oh, and the Candyman part is obviously that you need to repeat “I did it for the lulz” a certain number of times. But I guess that isn’t uncommon for an urban legend anyway.

7/10