Don’t Log Off is a refreshingly clever thriller that had me hooked despite what I found to be minor flaws. It’s March 21 2020. The pandemic has just begun and the city of Los Angeles is easing into lockdown. As if things weren’t bad enough already, a creepy cold open let’s us know that there is a killer on the loose targeting young women. Aside from the initial scene, the film sticks strictly with the point of view of a laptop screen. I know what you are thinking, but writer director duo Brandon Baer and Garrett Baer are inventive enough to keep this thriller from being claustrophobic. The action plays out in realtime as characters log on and off or jump to phone connections which ends up creating some entertaining moments. All in all, what could have fallen into the abyss of found footage faux pas is saved by a lively ensemble, sharp direction, and disciplined writing.
Blissfully ignorant of the global turmoil ahead, Katy (Kara Royster) has orchestrated a virtual surprise birthday party via video chat for Sam (Brielle Barbusca.) As the film opens a Katy starts the video chat while texting the other partygoers. Other partygoers begin to join the feed including Becca (Ashley Argota Torres) and Jacob (Jack Griffo), Annie (Ariel Winter), Adam (Luke Benward), and Brian (Khylin Rhambo.) We get to know who these people through some clunky expository dialogue but it gets the job done. Soon enough, the birthday girl logs on and everyone wished her a happy birthday. Everything is pretty normal until Katy let’s Sam know that she had a gift sent to her doorstep. Sam steps away from the camera to get her gift, but well…
Minutes go by and Sam never returns to the video chat. The group eventually becomes impatient and, despite pandemic barriers, they try to figure out where Sam might have gone. Now right about here, the Baer’s could have very easily broken a few stylistic rules to get the twisty story across. Thankfully, they stick to their guns, so to speak, and we are only given the vantage point of what might have been available through remote chat. As one partygoer after another decides to break away in search of the birthday girl, we soon realize that things are very very wrong and the last thing that any one of them should do is log off.
The found footage sub-genre is a tired one that is painfully limiting. The flip side of that is that when done correctly it can pay off. Don’t Log Off isn’t perfect, but it is made with an incredible amount of love and creativity. Coming off as a creative decision lass than a budgetary move, Brandon Baer and Garrett Baer lean into the sub-genre’s confines to mine for scares and surprises. They themselves to be painted into creative corners resulting in some satisfying scenes of suspense.
Although it’s not groundbreaking, Don’t Log Off is entertaining enough to keep you engaged and guessing to the last.
