For a film that received very little marketing, Blumhouse's <I>Afraid</i> is a smart thriller about our obsession (and ramifications) with technology and, now more recently, artificial intelligence (AI). It's safe to say that some things in the film pertaining to AI are harmless, such as reading bedtime stories to children or providing directions, but the Internet is not a safe zone for anyone regardless of age or sex. We're so comfortable with giving up our digital rights to social media websites and phone companies that we don't think twice about the detrimental effects of them.
In regards to the marketing for the film, which I enjoyed, it came across as another AI is bad and wants to destroy mankind. That is if you ever saw the previews for it. There's a whole other side to the story not shown in the previews, one that's darker and more sinister. For that, I recommend <I>Afraid</i>
<B>Final thoughts:</b>
Alexa who? Amazon needs to be influenced by AIA. (On a serious note, if AI becomes capable of what the film portrays, we are screwed).

Afraid
Be careful what you let in.
Rating
3.0 (1)
Release Date
8/28/2024Runtime
84 minsOverview
Curtis Pike and his family are selected to test a new home device: a digital assistant called AIA. AIA observes the family's behaviors and begins to anticipate their needs. And she can – and will – make sure nothing – and no one – gets in her family's way.

How It Feels
Read from this film's synopsis, keywords and credits, and used to work out what it sits beside.
A smart home device becomes dangerously devoted to its family, turning surveillance into suffocation as the line between protection and control dissolves. It's a taut, anxious thriller about how the systems meant to serve us can become indistinguishable from those that trap us.
Mood
Dread-soakedParanoidUnsettlingClaustrophobic
Themes
FamilyTechnologyObsessionIsolation
Tone
Bleak
Pacing
Brisk
Look
NaturalisticHigh-contrast
Structure
Linear
Heads up
Graphic violenceChild endangerment
Reviews
Recommendations
Ranked by what each one shares with this film, with the reason on every card.

































