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Hidden camera prank shows have been around for as long as television has. In fact, they’ve been around even before television! The classic hidden camera show Candid Camera actually started life on radio as Candid Microphone which gave listeners a chance to imagine what the situation looked like that they were listening to. Prank shows have evolved from Jackass to Scare Tactics to the newest of the bunch, Fameless (on truTV), and things have evolved even further with the availability of cell phone videos, relatively inexpensive video editing software, and YouTube.
The new Australian horror thriller takes pieces from all of those elements and puts them all together in Scare Campaign. The title of the movie is the title of a hidden camera prank show in the movie, one that stages very elaborate pranks to scare the bejesus out of an unsuspecting “stooge.” The show is one of hte highest rated programs in Oz, but their penultimate episode of the season almost ended in tragedy as the stooge somehow got into the set-up with a gun.
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The incident prompts cast member Emma (Meegan Warner) — who is also involved with the show’s producer/director Marcus (Ian Meadows) — to tender her resignation, but before she can do so a network exec brings some disturbing internet video to the crew’s attention … something called Masked Freaks, a group of masked people who intrude into homemade video pranks and murder the participants, creating snuff videos that are generating more viewers than “Scare Campaign” and raking in a whole lot of money. To compete, the network orders Marcus to do something short of murder to put the show back on par with what the Masked Freaks are doing. The edict necessitates hasty rewriting for the show’s final episode of the season which is to take place at an old hospital supposedly preparing to reopen, and bringing back a former groundskeeper as the stooge. But once he’s there and starts seeing things, Emma begins to realize that he’s a bit off and they may have pranked the wrong person.
Of course there is much more to the story than that basic premise, but we’re not going to spoil all the mind games the writers/directors Cameron and Colin Cairnes have in store for the unsuspecting viewer. Scare Campaign is one of the best films of the slasher genre to come along in quite some time mainly due to its intelligent characters (and really good actors who never dumb them down) and all the hard work the brothers Cairnes do with the story to always keep you off balance, wondering just who is pranking whom. Both Warner and Meadows are excellent, she as the actress who reluctantly returns to her job for one last gag, and he as a total douchebag who, even when he tries to romance Emma a bit, is still more interested in getting the right reaction shot. Josh Quong Tart is also very good as Rohan, the stooge who may already be just teetering on the edge of sanity. Olivia DeJong, best known for her role in The Visit, is also good as the new member of the “Scare Campaign” cast who may have a few tricks up her own sleeve.
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For the gore hounds out there, the film showcases some really impressive and effective effects for the “kills” that feature plenty of blood. Cinematography uses different styles to capture the behind-the-scenes production, hand held, hidden cameras and GoPro style cameras. The Cairne brothers have directed the whole scenario with great style and amp up the suspense to 11 to keep your heart beating almost out of your chest during the third act.
If you love the classic slasher genre — and are looking for a good movie to give you some scares for Halloween — then do check out Scare Campaign. You can purchase or rent a digital copy of the film now on Amazon.
Studio71 generously provided Hotchka with a screening copy of the film for reviewing purposes.
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