Here are 5 techno-horror themed films you may have never heard of
TV & Movies
Speaker 1: Okay. Since you clicked this video, we are going to assume you are already aware of movies like lawnmower, man gremlins, maybe video drum, the classic techno horror films. We all seem to be aware of whether or not you're a fan of the genre, but today we wanna shed some light on a few in the format. You may not have heard of, we're not handing out ratings or in any specific order, by the way, because some of these transcend the concept of good or bad. Let's just call this an experience. Oh, and no [00:00:30] spoilers. Let's get to it
Speaker 1: First up. Let's talk about stay alive. See right out of the gate. This is equal parts. Awesome and equal parts. Terrible. A perfect example of the schlocky hokey teen horror sub genre of the early two thousands. The basic [00:01:00] premise. Some kids get a hold of a forbidden video game. Bad stuff comes out. Okay. Expanding a little bit more. It's got a real scream or slasher vibe meets dungeon and dragons with heavy doses of 13 ghosts and house on haunted hill. Adam Goldberg's in it. Sophia Bush. Oh, Hey, Jimmy Simpson. And was that Malcolm? It's not soul shatteringly scary, but it's got some jumps and gnarly imagery not to mention a fuel well earned laps, but honestly there's a good time to be had here. [00:01:30] If you can take a healthy dose of cringe and cheese, decent production design as well, except for the actual game itself, which looks like a cheap PS one knockoff. Oh, also what is up with these headsets high to include the nail gun? Um, Frankie Munez, dope Chrome laptop. Oh, and.
Speaker 2: That's sheaving. I'm not done yet.
Speaker 1: All right off to play Fortnite and onto the next one,
Speaker 1: [00:02:00] Existence a film by David Kronenberg and there is no mistaking that this one flew a little more under the radar than the classic video drum, but they're cut from the same cloth in a lot of ways. Moderately received back in 1999, spinning more into a cult classic, especially in the last few years with the increasing popular laity of virtual reality entertainment. Why? Because lo and behold, that's the basis of [00:02:30] this film except it's Kronenberg. So they want to, they want to do other stuff with it, but at the same time, there's a solid meta commentary on technical dependency using the VR slash gaming for must of escapism, ju law and Jennifer, Jason Lee, go on a road trip to fix their brand new video game console, which is actually more like a parasite made from Phish guts that plugs into your spine and sends you on existential dream quests, [00:03:00] not for the squeamish, nor for those sensitive to sexual undertones peak nineties, nasty horror. What you see is what you get, oh, and kids under 20, this is where Rick and Morty came from.
Speaker 1: Okay. So next up is host, even though I, as well as a lot of us are at peak zoom fatigue. And the last thing [00:03:30] I want to think about is watching a movie that reminds me about a life behind a screen. This was surprisingly well made. Actually I had fairly low expectations going again. It seemed like a rip off of paranormal activity that was just shot through a webcam, which let's be honest. Those paranormal movies have been done to death. No pun intended anyways, while the setting is obviously a product of the pandemic, the in-screen results are legit and familiar, and I want to applaud their creativity here. It feels more like a single take clay [00:04:00] with seamless cuts, utilizing the actual zoom interface and even plays on some of the glitches and bandwidth bugs that we are all way too familiar with. It's just a group of friends being haunted by something and you and the audience are just someone on the other end of a video call who is completely helpless. The situation you are seemingly witnessing firsthand. It has effective storytelling. And even though it's a bit predictable and cliche parts, the scares work well and leave a lot of intrigue without [00:04:30] putting the horror aspects all out on front street. Plus it's only like an hour long and you can get a free trial of shutter through Amazon to watch it, check it out.
Speaker 1: So staying in the same vein up next is searching. This was solid. You know what? I backpedal on what I said earlier about ratings. This was great unforgettable performance by John Cho, who [00:05:00] was playing a dad whose daughter has gone missing the utter confusion and fear. He is able to convey in the limited scope of how once again, the entire movie is seen through various forms of webcam. The fear is so real. The movie does a great job putting you right there beside him has his life falls apart. He tries to make sense of it, but the help of Deborah messing, there is no supernatural in this one, but more of a who done it, murder mystery, but very, very creatively uses the elements of online [00:05:30] sleuthing from photo lurking to avatar anonymity, hidden transactions. And it's all executed really authentically, which was kind of refreshing compared to what you usually see. I'm looking at you N C I S
Speaker 2: I'm getting hat, oh, this is not good.
Speaker 1: In the pen ultimate slot. We have the black sheep of the bunch, and that is pulse. And just to clarify, since there are a few movies called pulse out there, we're talking about the [00:06:00] one from 2001. Now this one was likely a miss for many, since it's from Japan and only available with subtitles, but it's definitely worth a shot. It's gotten an incredibly chilling atmosphere, a fascinating story split into two defined perspectives and hinges on the premise of dimension hopping and traditional hauntings. Plus, it's got some of the creepiest imagery on the list.
Speaker 1: [00:06:30] The tech aspect is a bit downplayed in this one, but definitely present as the entire plot revolves around the internet and the allegory of how it's a dangerous window into the unknown. There's a modernist take on concepts of social struggles, loneliness, depression, and suicide, all through a gen [00:07:00] X prism. Some of the writing translation comes off as a bit confounding and even juvenile at times, not to mention true to form. We get a major WTF ending, but once you catch the vibe, you'll understand why this has such a cult following. Oh, and avoid the 2006 remake. If you wanna, slightly better English language alternative, check out fear.com. Before we cap the list off, let's make some honorable mentions. Tetsuo the iron man classic body horror from Japan, for fans of human centipede, [00:07:30] tusk, or house of wax countdown. And app knows when you will die, will you snooze notifications and maximum overdrive, Steve and king is on cocaine and he wants you to be afraid of trucks.
Speaker 1: All right. And to bring this list full circle, we have ghost in the machine not to be confused [00:08:00] with the classic anime ghost in the shell. What can I say? Well, let's say this one is a stretch. If you weren't remotely unaware that this movie was set in 1993, it sure as hell will remind you and remind you how dumb we were as culture when it came to how computers worked once upon a time it's child's play. But with the PC take that how you will. There's something about an address book and lightning and an MRI. All I know is nobody has any idea how [00:08:30] anything electrical or mechanical works in this film or what amps do or wattage versus voltage or microwaves, but it's gross as hell though. So it's got that going for it. I mean, I know you need to have a suspension of disbelief when it comes to the concept of bad ghost, man, make smart home a smart health, but come on a little research, would've gone a long way, but it's a product of its era.
Speaker 1: And there's a whole subspecies of us horror junkies that can still find a place in our hearts for movies that clearly ran out of money [00:09:00] like this one, just turn off your brain and have a delightfully cringy stomach churning time with this one, Marion deserve better though. And that's the list, not our list, not your list, just a random list of neat spooky movies that have to do with tech culture. What are some of yours sound off in the comments and make sure to include trailer links? Also, what streaming platform do you think has the best horror selection besides shutter, which is obviously a hundred percent horror focused. Our vote is for Hulu and HBO. Max, great cross [00:09:30] section of underdogs and classics through both. So hopefully we are able to help you fill up the hopper for your inevitable upcoming movie, marathons a Maya actor, and have a spooky time.
