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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Ian Bunting

MOVIE REVIEW: We buckle up for a rocky ride with horror 'Dashcam'

I was a huge fan of Rob Savage’s lockdown-set and shot horror Host .

Naturally, then, I couldn’t wait to watch his second feature-length directorial effort - but I sort of wish I hadn’t.

Dashcam follows American Annie Hardy - a right-wing internet personality who live streams from her car, making musical content using her viewers’ comments as lyrics - as she embarks on a nightmarish road trip in London.

The film is shot on mobile phones and contains a scrolling commentary from Annie’s live stream and it’s often quite hard to follow, and focus on, what is going on - especially during the darker latter sequences.

Dashcam is one of the first movies I’ve seen to incorporate COVID and while this adds realism, I’m not sure I want to be reminded of everything we all went through during lockdown.

Annie is an anti-vaxxer but no matter what your views on that are, she is a hugely annoying protagonist. Her repetitive songs, the way she treats everyone - even her friends - and her blasé attitude make her impossible to root for.

This is Hardy’s first proper acting role and if her aim was to come across as unbearable and a nasty piece of work then maybe the Oscars should come calling.

In fact, Dashcam doesn’t feature any likeable characters at all, which is a real rarity in film or television.

I like to think I have a high tolerance for squeamish moments - particularly, as a horror buff, gore - but there were two or three scenes in Savage’s sophomore effort that I genuinely had to turn away from as it’s not just blood that flows.

What saves his flick from being a complete waste of time, however, is the mystery of the situation Annie stumbles into, and a few unsettling shots involving Angela Enahoro’s gaunt, seemingly deathly ill Angela .

Otherwise, Dashcam is visually frustrating, at times nauseating, filmmaking with a so-called heroine you’ll be desperate to see get her comeuppance.

Do you enjoy movies filmed on mobile phones or handheld cameras? Has the found-footage flick had its day?

Pop me an email at ian.bunting@reachplc.com and I will pass on your comments – and any movie or TV show recommendations you have – to your fellow readers.

Dashcam is available to own or rent on Sky Store.

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