Mixing a bit of the old with a bit of the new, 'Thrill me!' blends contemporary online trends with silly urban legends of yore to great effect.
The web has given us plenty of "creepypasta" fun in various corners, yet none of it seems to have the same pervasive accessibility or universal appeal as the modern folklore that found circulation before our online world proliferated. Unless you count the "clown in the woods" bizarrerie of a few years ago, when's the last time an urban legend really captured the public imagination the same way as, for example, The Mothman did?
Talk of a cursed VHS - rest in peace, Ye Olde Format - certainly fills that niche. And, goodness, who here hasn't gone out of their way to find something online that seems to be impossible to get a hold of? Who hasn't been totally enamored with an elusive movie, record, or collectible, while other products of the same ilk were more available but far less desirable?
Combine these twinges of nostalgia with the popularity of Twitch as a live-streaming platform, and let the children play: writer-director Andrew Bowser has created a smart, fun short that at once feels brand new yet very familiar. 'Cyberghoul' definitely sounds like the sort of '80s slasher that would be relegated to the recesses of pop culture ephemera, and the angle of the Twitch stream is done so very well, it feels like we're watching an actual VOD of a stream. The production here is top notch, with great attention paid to every little detail - audio and video glitches, feed cutting out, an active chat - to make it feel real.
Playing the part of the host comes very naturally to Bowser, who is no stranger to podcasts, and costar Olivia Taylor Dudley is a consummate professional, well-known to fans of 5SecondFilms, other web series, and more than a few TV series and films. They portray "Joshy" and "Morgan" with such readily apparent charisma and ease that it only lends to the credibility of the small tale told here.
Add in a handful of effects that look great and seem equally plausible - and the delightfully relatable, realistic, and adorable cameo of Bowser's cat - and it's hard not to love 'Thrill me!' Absolutely recommended!
