Roadshow’s Final Stop at Whammy Analog Microcinema on Oct. 17 – Los Angeles, CA
Spoiler Alert
At first, I thought Dead Media might be a horror movie anthology, but instead, it’s a tale within a tale about Maggie Sloke (Sammi-Jack Martincak), who is stuck with the consequences of her poor life choices. One night, she’s with her mates, Daniel (Antonio Teodoro) and Brenda (Jessica Fenton), for a streaming marathon of horrible pulp movies at home, including Night of the Lurchers. This forgotten piece of late-1990s horror has special meaning to her, and when Uncle Heppy (Sam Landman) shows up with a proper DVD version to watch, things shift from a “They’re here” moment to the characters becoming part of the movie itself.
Or is that the other way around? After Maggie goes poking at the DVD’s menu and finds a hidden Easter egg, her excitement turns into an oh sh*t moment as the people and zombies from the film start appearing. And for budget reasons, no, they don’t emerge from the television. I’d have loved to see that, but alas, some effects would blow this film’s budget, and what happens instead becomes a mix of Last Action Hero and Scream!