#chadgetstheaxe review.
We may have seen a lot of the tricks #chadgetstheaxe employs before…but it fosters its own fun and worthwhile story anyway.
New movie reviews will not contain spoilers.
#chadgetstheaxe
Directed by Travis Bible
Written by Travis Bible and Kemerton Hargrove
Starring Spencer Harrison Levin, Michael Bonini, Taneisha Figueroa, Cameron Vitosh, Terry J. Nelson and Jerilyn Armstrong
#chadgetstheaxe Review
It’s impossible to talk about #chadgetstheaxewithout talking about the 800-pound gorilla in the room. Last year we discussed Shudder’s excellent release Deadstream. It was one of our top ten movies of the year, picked up a Scare Value Award nomination…and we even did a podcast episode about it. Long story short…we love that movie here at Scare Value. #chadgetstheaxe is an extremely similar movie. From plot to tone…it’s all very similar. Now…none of this can be held against the later released film we’re going to talk about today. You see…#chadgetstheaxe is the feature length adaptation of a short film that predates Deadstream’s existence.
That out of the way…#chadgetstheaxe is a fine film. It just isn’t as good as Deadstream. There are a few ways to take that. If you are a fan of Deadstream…you should go ahead and watch #chadgetstheaxe. If you’ve never seen either…it’s easy to recommend one of our top ten movies of 2022 as the choice. I’d like to say that will be the last of the time we’ll spend talking about Deadstream in this review…but I have a feeling that it won’t be.
So…#chadgetstheaxe is the story of social media stars who decide to explore a supposedly haunted house to attract viewership. We have the titular Chad (Spencer Harrison Levin), the most popular, and annoying, of the group. Spicy Steve (Michael Bonini) who wants to achieve Chad’s level of success. And a couple, Jennifer (Taneisha Figueroa) and Spencer (Cameron Vitosh). Jennifer is more driven for views than her partner…and has a past with Chad. Their mission…to investigate Devil’s Manor.
Devil’s Manor has, of course, a horrific history. It formerly housed a satanic cult. A man named Burrows axed some people to death and even utilized the alligator filled swamp behind the manor in murderous ways. The movie does a good job explaining the lore of the house straight away. The other thing it does well is to make the three simultaneous streams filming the outing feel real and, more importantly, not a headache to watch when they’re flipped between.
Essentially…a found footage movie just one, like a movie we aren’t talking about anymore, done as a live stream. The expected chat scrawls on the side of the screen are our connection to the viewers. There is an annoyance factor to them. Not so much that they’re there…more than the chat moves at the same speed whether there are 500 viewers of 5 million. I get that you want to give time to read the messages…it’s just wholly unrealistic.
#chadgetstheaxe does one more clever thing before it sends its inevitable victims to their demise. It establishes that there is a prank war happening between not only Chad and Spicy Steve…but also the not present Benson brothers. It allows the characters to dismiss some creepy occurrences as pranks and sustain the story for as long as possible. If Chad and company recognized their situation immediately…you’d be left with two full acts of running and trying to survive…and miss out on the fun.
That dynamic allows the story to unfold in very fun ways. As viewers…we know that everything happening is real. Listening to Chad casually dismiss things as a prank is funny. Watching the world escalate around him through other people’s streams he isn’t privy to is even funnier. It begins with the discovery of a body in the attic of the house. When that body disappears…the movie shifts gears into a wild ride that will see Chad having to navigate a murder house that he isn’t fully aware he is even in. He’s really excited about the growing viewership though.
The cast does an excellent job here. Chad is the most (maybe only) truly annoying person, but Levin does a great job growing the character to someone we can root for. Some clever moments are included where Chad is confronted with what his friends, family and followers really think of him. You start to feel for him. A far cry from how you look at him at the start of #chadgetstheaxe. I found it to be a great twist on the usual stance these movies take that everyone on social media is a phony. Far more impactful to see a person realize that they aren’t…and how he is regarded for it. And an impressive accomplishment for both the actor and the screenplay.
There are a lot of fun moments as #chadgetstheaxe ramps up its craziness. We aren’t confined to the manor. Memorable trips to the swamp, woods, and an inspired escape attempt with aided (or hindered) by a pair of fans watching the stream…shake up the formula. The pacing is excellent. You never spend too long on any one aspect or setting of the story to lose interest. Even when the four leads are casually dwindled down to Chad…still thinking someone is probably pranking him.
The best thing about #chadgetstheaxe is that we can discuss this many aspects of it yet leave so many things to be discovered by viewing it. There is a lot going on…almost all of it fun. Watching the streams go down one by one…seeing them hijacked by who/whatever is about…enjoyable times. Murder, chase sequences, hide and seek with a killer…#chadgetstheaxe has everything that you’re looking for. Even if you may have seen it done before.
Scare Value
Yeah…it’s basically Deadstream. Which is unfortunate since the short film that it is based on predates Deadstream by three years. You can’t knock it for unoriginality when its source material was, itself, an original work. It is, however, fair to compare the similar narrative features to each other. Deadstream takes the blue ribbon at this fair…but that doesn’t make #chadgetstheaxe unworthy of your time. It powers through comparison to deliver its own fun.
3.5/5
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