“Engaging with trolls is like the worst possible use of your energy,” one of Adam Ellis’s Buzzfeed co-workers admonishes him in the Dear David trailer.
Her warning is super sound advice because engaging with nasty keyboard warriors never leads anywhere productive or good. But it’s also what makes some of the comments on the Dear David trailer that much more entertaining.
For the most part, none really fall squarely into troll territory. A few were even favorable because, in its defense, the Dear David trailer is pretty entertaining. If I didn’t know anything about the saga behind what led to the movie’s creation, I’d be interested in seeing it after watching the trailer.
However, people didn’t hold back with their honest opinions either. We’ll employ a common BuzzFeed style to look at some of the trailer’s comments. (If you ever read their list posts where they aggregate a bunch of comments on a topic, you’ll recognize the approach.)
But first, let’s talk about the movie.
About Dear David
The description that accompanied the trailer sums it up best: “After responding to Internet trolls, a man becomes haunted by the ghost of a dead child named David. Based on the viral Twitter thread by BuzzFeed comic artist Adam Ellis.”
But this longer synopsis from Lionsgate elaborates a little more on what the movie is about:
Shortly after comic artist Adam (Augustus Prew) responds to Internet trolls, he begins experiencing sleep paralysis — while an empty rocking chair moves in the corner of his apartment. As he chronicles increasingly malevolent occurrences in a series of tweets, Adam begins to believe he is being haunted by the ghost of a dead child named David. Encouraged by his boss to continue the “Dear David” thread, Adam starts to lose his grip on what is online…and what is real. Based on the viral Twitter thread by BuzzFeed comic artist Adam Ellis.
But perhaps my favorite is the tagline: “Going Viral is a Nightmare.”
It’ll be in theaters, On Demand, and on Digital on October 13th.
Oh no. They ruined the tweets.
The tweets the movie is based on were super entertaining. It’s why they went viral and why 14 million people followed the story.
It all began when then-Buzzfeed author and illustrator Adam Ellis captured the image of a ghost child in his New York City apartment. It sparked the first of his many spine-tingling tweets, which was, “My apartment is currently being haunted by the ghost of a dead child and he’s trying to kill me.”
After that, Ellis documented his paranormal experiences in tweets, as well as his investigation into the murderous ghost child’s identity.
The trailer brings a lot of that to life, but then it adds the over-the-top Hollywood angle. People expressed a lot of concern that the movie wasn’t going to do the tweets justice.
“The actual Dear David shorts on Twitter that Adam Ellis would tweet were really captivating. This trailer looks nothing like that. I really hope they didn’t ruin his story.”
~@aprilblack223
True? Pfft. Please.
The “based on a true story” angle sometimes wears thin, especially when the “true” part of the story blurs the line.
Adam Ellis was responsible for the #DearDavid tweets. That part is true.
However, the veracity of the content within those tweets is questionable.
“Crazy how they added all this stuff that didn’t happen to a story that also didn’t happen.”
~@SeventhSwell
“This isn’t based on a ‘true story’ this was viral set of videos that were fake. There wasn’t a haunting”
~@ThisGirlConnie
“Buzzfeed stories: the movie. Based on real events. Just believe us. Like always.”
~@KumaKuma1984
How good can a BuzzFeed movie be about a BuzzFeed-created phenomenon?
People also don’t have a lot of faith that BuzzFeed, which is known for its reactionary click-bait headlines and sensational content, can create a good horror movie. Although, they do acknowledge that the BuzzFeed Unsolved: Supernatural series with Shane Madej and Ryan Bergara on YouTube was well done.
So there’s hope…? Or does BuzzFeed have a credibility problem to surmount?
“Just based off the association with Buzzfeed, I’d nominate this for an award Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture”
~@glitchwraith
“It’s not a bad trailer, but by virtue of it being associated with Buzzfeed, I have no choice but to assume it’s going to be a bad movie.”
~@sentientmlem727
“you lost me at Buzzfeed lol”
~@davidmckesey8381
The trailer is the movie.
Finally, so many people agreed with this next comment, and there was no need to see the movie.
“You managed to fit the whole movie in the trailer, congratulations!”
@plume…
Dear David Trailer
Check-In
What’s your reaction to the trailer? Do you want to watch the movie after seeing the trailer? Or does it show all of Dear David you ever need to see?
Courtney Mroch is a globe-trotting restless spirit who’s both possessed by wanderlust and the spirit of adventure, and obsessed with true crime, horror, the paranormal, and weird days. Perhaps it has something to do with her genes? She is related to occult royalty, after all. Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo practitioner of New Orleans, is one of her ancestors. (Yes, really! As explained here.) That could also explain her infatuation with skeletons.
Speaking of mystical, to learn how Courtney channeled her battle with cancer to conjure up this site, check out HJ’s Origin Story.
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Since I didn’t follow the viral Twitter feed, I don’t know the story. The trailer doesn’t explain everything to a newbie, so it wouldn’t make me not see the movie.
Oooo! SUCH a good answer, Vera! A perfect perspective that this jaded old Virgo hadn’t thought of. THANK YOU for taking the time to share your view of the trailer!