Movie Review: Spree

Written By Harry Palin


Spree (2020) is a horror satire that tells the story of Kurt Kunkle, a lowlife rideshare driver/internet streamer who is hellbent on going viral. It details his slow dissolve into insanity as he struggles to break into the world of online stardom. After years of failed experiments trying to stamp his place on the internet, he makes a plan to take advantage of his job as a Spree driver to finally get the world to notice him, through whatever violent means necessary.

This is the first truly unique movie I've watched in a while. The storytelling through phone screens and live streams is such a great idea for aiding the film's pace and really makes it feel fresh as it and other unorthodox methods of storytelling are used throughout its runtime. The director Eugene Kotlyarenko was able to create a feeling of relevance around the film because of the way it harnessed and weaponized social media to make it into a viable plot device. Even small things like the different messages that would appear in the chats of the live streams in various points of the movie felt like real things that people say on the internet. Having a young director helm this project was a very smart decision by the producers because Kotlyarenko’s youth, and that of the young people he consulted, made the film feel grounded and as if it were actually qualified to be dealing with the current media devices and themes that it does.

It very much felt like there was serious thought put into the casting of this movie and not just in terms of finding the best actors available but also bringing in people who fit the mould and exist in the same circles touched on in the plot. Sasheer Zamata and Kyle Mooney both broke out on SNL, which has grown a huge social media following recently and Joshua Ovalle is quite literally one of the most iconic faces in recent internet culture (he was the guy that never learnt how to read). Then there's Joe Keery, Netflix wonderboy who gives a surprising performance that immediately reminded me of Christian Bale in American Psycho. Obviously, Patrick Bateman and Kurt Kunkle are two very different people but I believe there are quite a few similarities in the ways they are portrayed. They are both very aware of themselves and conduct their violence with a sense of poise, whether that's Bateman's wry smile or the way Keery's character will go back to talking to the chat after doing something unspeakable that you think would scar most people. They also both have amusing moments where they will express some thought of political correctness before they go back to committing obscene acts of cruelty just to show how removed from reality they really are. I have to say I was so impressed by Joe Keery in this movie as I wasn't sure if he had it in him to truly helm a project like this one but his performance is wonderfully dynamic and entertaining and left me wondering what path he is gonna go down from here when it comes to future projects.

The movie takes advantage of satire in a very interesting way as well, like I mentioned before, Keery’s character conducts himself with a sense of self-awareness and observation that makes the film feel almost like a farce, poking fun at the genre as well as the internet lowlifes such as the one being portrayed in the movie.  Overall I would say that Spree is a really fascinating experience and an insightful snapshot into a modern subculture that many people are entirely oblivious of. I would highly recommend watching if you're a fan of movies such as American Psycho, Scream and Cabin In The Woods.

4/5 stars

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