The Hollywood Reporter by Frank Scheck
The film's impact is greatly enhanced by the superb performances by the young lead actors who handle their characters’ complexities with impressive skill.
Critic Rating
(read reviews)User Rating
Director
Andrew Douglas
Cast
Jamie Blackley,
Toby Regbo,
Jaime Winstone,
Joanne Froggatt,
Liz White,
Stephanie Leonidas
Genre
Drama,
Thriller
Based on the Vanity Fair article of the same title, a story about a young boy drawn into a web of lies through an online chatroom.
The Hollywood Reporter by Frank Scheck
The film's impact is greatly enhanced by the superb performances by the young lead actors who handle their characters’ complexities with impressive skill.
Total Film
Massively unlikely, but compelling to the last, it makes a decent fist of conveying the strength of internet attachments, even if filtering the unfolding drama through endless computer screens becomes a well-worn device.
RogerEbert.com by Sheila O'Malley
These are tantalizing glimpses, hinting at the deeper psychological abysses at play here, but they are left unexplored.
Village Voice by Chuck Wilson
A compelling but ultimately unsatisfying film.
Variety by Guy Lodge
Salaciously watchable but finally hokey.
Empire by Kim Newman
Interesting material let down by the occasionally pedestrian direction.
Los Angeles Times by Martin Tsai
Andrew Douglas, who directed the 2005 "The Amityville Horror" remake, mishandles the standard noir as straightforward drama and gives it an unfortunate after-school-special vibe.
The Dissolve by Noah Berlatsky
The pretense of concern, combined with the cynical manipulation of the plot for cheap thrills, is both transparently hypocritical and broadly repulsive.
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