Also known as screenlife, computer screen movies are a genre of found footage in which the story takes place entirely on, well, a computer screen. Think of Skype chats, Facebook and Instagram profiles, video streams… Yeah, granted, it doesn’t sound that exciting. However, you really shouldn’t judge a laptop by its case: usually sorted into the horror or thriller genres, computer screen movies can be extremely compelling and fun to watch. The most recent film to prove the nay-sayers wrong is the critically acclaimed Missing, a gripping story about a young girl trying to find her mother, who disappeared overseas. But this spiritual sequel to 2018’s Searching - yet another awesome screenlife flick - is far from being the only good example of its kind. Here are 9 amazing computer screen movies that will make you realize that your computer can be a lot more interesting (and scary!) than you thought.
The Collingswood Story (2002)
One of the first examples of the genre, The Collingswood Story is as experimental as any pioneering film. Thus, it might end up not being your cup of tea. Still, it is definitely worth a watch, even just to see what computer screen movies looked like in their inception. Directed by Michael Costanza, this 2002 film tells the story of a young couple trying to keep their relationship alive at a long distance. However, Rebecca (Stephanie Dees) and Johnny’s (Johnny Burton) love story quickly takes a turn when they enter an online chat with a psychic that introduces them to a world of supernatural horrors.
The Den (2013)
Online video chat services such as Omegle and Chatroulette can be pretty spooky. While jumping from one chat to the other, you can always stumble upon trolls doing some legitimately disturbing things and don’t even get me started on the unsolicited nudity. However, no regular video chat is as terrifying as "The Den," the fictional website that gives this 2013 film its title. While studying the habits of The Den’s users, researcher Elizabeth Benton (Melanie Papalia) witnesses a brutal murder that throws her and her loved ones into an IRL nightmare. Gory and unnerving, The Den will certainly awaken new fears in you about chatting online with strangers.
Profile (2018)
Based on the non-fiction book In the Skin of a Jihadist, by Anna Erelle, Profile is one of the few non-horror films on this list. However, this doesn’t mean that this thriller isn't disturbing, albeit in a completely different, more realistic way. Directed by Timur Bekmanbetov, the movie follows journalist Amy Whittaker (Valene Kane) as she enters an unknown portion of the world wide web to investigate the recruitment of European women by ISIS. Posing as a recent convert to Islam, Amy is quickly contacted by a recruiter for whom she develops dangerous feelings. Without the addition of any supernatural beings or bloodthirsty hackers, Profile scares us by simply recognizing that the internet is made of millions of people, some of whom don’t have the best of intentions.
Missing
The newest addition to the genre, Nicholas D. Johnson and Will Merrick’s Missing is a harrowing tale about a young girl trying to find her mother miles away from home. When June’s (Storm Reid) mother fails to return from her trip to Colombia, it is up to her to discover what exactly went wrong. Trapped behind the red tape of international agreements, June uses the internet and tools like Google Maps and Gmail to find out what might’ve happened to her mother. The film is a loose sequel to 2018’s Searching, and, despite aiming at a somewhat younger audience than its predecessor, it sure doesn’t fail at making us scared.
Unfriended
As a director, Timur Bekmanbetov’s only contribution to screenlife is Profile. As a producer, however, the man has written his name all over the genre, appearing in the credits for four other films on this list: Missing, Searching, Unfriended, and Unfriended: Dark Web. His first venture into computer screens was this 2014 teen horror about the supernatural consequences of cyberbullying. While chatting on Skype, Blaire (Shelley Hennig) and her friends are tormented by someone claiming to be their former classmate Laura Barns (Heather Sossaman), who committed suicide after an embarrassing video of her was leaked online. At first, they assume that someone is using Laura’s profile to prank them, but things soon become much eerier when this unknown entity takes control of their computers and traps them in a death game.
Unfriended: Dark Web
In this 2018 sequel to Unfriended, it is time for an adult group of friends to feel the wrath of the world wide web. Frustrated with his old computer, Matias (Colin Woodell) thinks he has hit the jackpot when he finds a slightly used laptop at a café. What he and his friends don’t know is that his new computer will drag them into a world of snuff films and serial killers on the dark web. The hunters become the prey when their attempts to identify the people in the videos turn them into targets of a sinister organization. Directed by Stephen Susco, Unfriended: Dark Web requires a higher level of suspension of disbelief to truly work. However, as long as you’re willing to go with the flow, get ready to feel distressed and even get some legit scares.
Searching
How well do you truly know your child? And how far are you willing to go for them? These questions are at the center of this 2018 thriller about a father looking for his missing daughter. John Cho stars as David Kim, a man whose relationship with his daughter, Margot (Michelle La), is significantly damaged by the death of his wife. When Margot goes missing after a study session with friends, David despairs as he doesn’t know anything about his daughter that might help the police to find her faster. But his daughter’s laptop just might provide him with the answers he needs. Directed by Aneesh Chaganty, Searching is an unnerving and touching movie that goes well beyond the gimmick of being told through a computer screen.
Spree
Extremely violent and unabashedly funny, Eugene Kotlyarenko’s Spree is a wild ride from start to finish. Beloved Stranger Things actor Joe Keery stars as Kurt Kunkle, a social media-obsessed driver for a rideshare app called Spree. In a desperate attempt to increase his number of followers, Kunkle, or @kurtsworld96, installs cameras in his car to film himself killing his passengers and disposing of their bodies. As his viewership continues to dwindle and his online icon fails to be impressed by his “boring” murders, Kunkle’s methods become more and more extreme. Things take a chaotic turn as the driver-turned-streamer-turned-serial-killer develops an obsession with Jessie Adams (Sasheer Zamata), an up-and-coming comedian with a huge online following.
Host
Shot entirely over Zoom in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, Rob Savage’s Host harnessed all of our fears and anxieties of the time and put them to more entertaining use. Well-written and expertly acted, Host is by far the best thing to come out of the computer screen genre. The story follows a group of friends that turn to a psychic for a little supernatural online fun during lockdown. But their fun and games séance turns into a nightmare when they unwittingly release an entity that puts their lives under threat. Tense and full of jumpscares, Host deals with themes such as social anxiety and the fear of isolation. It was a terrifying watch during the height of the pandemic but still lands its punch to this day.