Ian Lloyd, Staff Writer
October 31, 2022

Many of america grew up with entree to the internet. It’s been contiguous our full lives and, successful galore ways, has been beneficial. We tin marque caller friends, find communities that align with our interests and person a changeless watercourse of entertainment. Then again, determination is thing profoundly unsettling astir it. “We’re All Going to the World’s Fair” is 1 of the lone films that perfectly understands the quiescent fearfulness of being a kid online.

After seeing a viral inclination of an online fearfulness roleplaying game, Casey (Anna Cobb) starts playing it herself. The “game” is much of an act, with the players documenting fictionalized fearfulness experiences. She records videos of herself arsenic she updates her tiny pursuing and shows however the crippled is changing her. As she continues making contented and interacting with a spectator who goes by JLB (Micheal Rogers), the enactment betwixt world and fabrication begins to blur.

This movie is terrifying and haunting, but it isn’t similar immoderate accepted fearfulness film. It doesn’t person outright scares and astir scenes conscionable dwell of a kid successful her country shooting videos. The filmmaking benignant perfectly captures the quality of YouTube videos from the precocious 2000s, and each country near maine incapable to respire with shots that would clasp for an uncomfortable magnitude of time.

Anna Cobb delivers an unthinkable debut show arsenic Casey, a kid who starts participating successful a horror-roleplaying game. (Courtesy of Dweck Productions)

Anna Cobb perfectly captures that authentic feeling of being a kid that’s different. She ne'er interacts with anyone successful existent beingness straight and spends her clip becoming invested successful this weird country of the internet. Her debut show is wholly natural, and it is the main crushed wherefore this movie is arsenic effectual arsenic it is.

The soundtrack was created by indie instrumentalist Alex G, and his benignant of experimental ambiance euphony adds different level to the melancholic code of the film. The “Main Theme” plays implicit the opening recognition sequence, showing bare parking tons successful a deserted municipality arsenic cars unreserved by connected the interstate. It beautifully captures the feeling of isolation successful a modern way.

The net has truthful overmuch going connected each astatine once, but it is besides incredibly lonely. Creating online contented for faceless viewers tin get you popular, but determination is nary existent transportation there. In a akin fearfulness film, “Pulse” (2001), the net is simply a transition for ghosts to seep into the surviving world. The movie emphasizes the fearfulness of losing transportation with humanity successful a overmuch much supernatural way, but the themes are incredibly akin to what “We’re All Going to the World’s Fair” ends up communicating.

As Casey continues to marque videos, the lines betwixt fabrication and world statesman to blur. Photo courtesy of Dweck Productions

Living online is weird. Making friends connected the net means you mightiness ne'er spot however they enactment extracurricular of that confined space. They mightiness conscionable halt talking, leaving you with thing but a representation of what they decided to stock with you. This movie focuses connected the ambiguity of the radical who seemingly vanish without a word. What is much terrifying than being haunted by the representation of idiosyncratic who disappeared?

“We’re All Going to the World’s Fair” is softly horrific arsenic it expertly crafts the existential dread of aboriginal online experience. It understands however to picture the net amended than immoderate different movie I’ve seen, and it creates a communicative that feels frighteningly real. It has dug its mode into my mind, and I americium stunned by however acold it was capable to spell with specified a debased budget. This modern, nightmarish masterpiece earns an 8 retired of 10.