When it comes to depicting the rise of the internet on film, it’s usually a pretty vapid and perfunctory portrayal that doesn’t really go into depth about the technology or our ever-growing reliance on it. Instead, flimsy callbacks to early internet memes or criticism by out-of-touch boomers on how teenagers are ‘always on that damn phone’ are usually in place of anything meaningful or poignant.
Thankfully, films that understand the internet and its unique culture do exist, and more films are beginning to explore the narrative potential of how people now operate in this brave new world with these devices that we could never live without anymore. A select few nailed the internet experience and helped to tell us more about how this technology has shaped our modern society.
‘Feels Good Man’ (2020)
Whenever someone mentions “Pepe the frog,” it is impossible not to discuss the meme’s overwhelming presence on alt-right and virulent message boards like 4chan and how his smiling green face has become synonymous with white supremacist groups and other hate symbols. But for his creator, Matt Furie, Pepe was just a happy, goofy guy who liked pizza and hanging out with his buddies in his webcomic, Boys Club. The film documents the history of Pepe, his skyrocketing to fame as a popular meme, his assimilation by the alt-right to be a symbol of hate, and Furie’s determination to take back control of his creation.
The film examines internet culture, the social currency of memes, their real-world ramifications, and the constant blurring between what is digital and what is real. It’s pretty heartbreaking to watch Furie helpless to stop an invisible and much larger force, and the film also features his animation and art to showcase his talent. Feels Good Man is a documentary that adds nuance to the niche of internet memes and is an incredible film that everyone from the most chronically online to normie-trash will enjoy.
‘Spree’ (2020)
Starring Stranger Things actor Joe Keery and shot primarily through car dashcams, CCTV footage, and Instagram live reels, this horror-comedy holds a magnifying lens on influencer culture and explores the lengths one is willing to go to achieve internet fame. Keery plays the character of Kurt, a young man who works as a rideshare driver and makes YouTube videos in his spare time, despite having little to no followers.
Things quickly go sour, and the audience watches as Kurt undergoes a murder spree in a misguided attempt to become internet famous, as he is egged on by his new influx of loyal followers that watch him commit violent acts in the name of views. The film understands how the internet works depict how social media is used in realistic and horrifying ways, and shows how the new, transactional need for attention and social connection has disturbing consequences.
‘Ingrid Goes West’ (2017)
Another film exploring influencer culture, Ingrid Goes West stars Aubrey Plaza in the titular role of this Matt Spicer black-comedy drama film about a mentally-ill young woman and her relentless need to become friends with popular influencer Taylor (Elizabeth Olsen). The film quickly shows how Ingrid’s obsession with Taylor and social media is incredibly unhealthy, and her methods of achieving internet fame soon become desperate as the audience watches her do whatever she can to reach influencer status.
Ingrid Goes West explores the endless appetite for shock and perfection of social media and how individuals will commodify their existences and self-destructive behavior to reach peak engagement. The film is a wild journey with smart humor and topical social observations about social media, connection, and the price of internet fame.
‘Eighth Grade’ (2018)
Written and directed by Bo Burnham, who painfully and accurately portrays the pitfalls of one of the most awkward times in your life, Eighth Grade follows middle-schooler Kayla (Elsie Fisher), who struggles with anxiety and making social connections with her classmates. The film shows how young people today navigate and interact with social media, such as through Kayla’s reliance on creating vlogs to give herself (and her virtually empty audience) motivational advice, as well as using social media and the internet as escapism from her lonely life.
The film is excellent in its offbeat humor and blood-curdling realism, making the memories of being an awkward thirteen-year-old flood back into your senses just like that one scene in Ratatouille. It examines the relationship between young people and the internet and the overpowering influence it holds over their unique experience of growing up as a teenager in today’s world.
‘Searching’ (2018)
Searching is a mystery-thriller film told solely through web browsers, live streams, laptop screens, surveillance footage, and pretty much every other form of the digital screen (god only knows how much of a workload this was to edit) and is about a widowed father trying to find his missing daughter. The internet plays a major role in this film, acting as the main medium of communication among each character and the primary vehicle David (John Cho) uses to find clues about his daughter, Margot (Michelle La), and her whereabouts.
The film uses the unique and timely approach of the internet as a new storytelling device, helping to bring a fresh and modern concept into the mystery genre. The digital narrative helps to add nerve-wracking suspense, as well as slowly revealing other details about Margot that are only found in her private life online. It’s exciting, it’s detailed, and its twists will genuinely throw you for a loop.