Cam (2018)| A Sympathetic View of Sex Work through a Horror Lens

"Repeat after Me:

Hey Boys, You want to see something Cool?

You Stole My Face and Now I'm Going to Get it Back.

[Lola slams her face violently into the desk]

" - Alice "Lola_Lola" Ackerman 1:22:16

Cam is a Psychological Techno-Horror Film with the original screenplay by Isa Mazzie and co-written by Daniel Goldhaber and Isabelle Link-Levy and was directed by Daniel Goldhaber. It was Produced by Blumhouse, Divide/Conquer, Gunpowder & Sky, and Seer Capital and was distributed on Netflix after winning awards at its premiere in the Fantasia International Film Festival. It stars the acting talents of Madeline Brewer(Alice "Lola" Ackerman), Patch Darragh (TinkerBoy), Melora Walters(Lynne Ackerman), Devin Druid(Jordan Ackerman, and Flora Diaz(Fox). For a full list of Cast and Crew.

Sex has had a very prominent place in horror as at its core both lust and fear are primal instincts and utilizing the concept has provided some truly interesting storys such as Teeth(2007). However, in the past, Horror has had a poor track record when it comes to accurately depicting Sex work, whether its the campy antics of Zombies vs. Strippers(2012) or the abusive household of Kevin Smiths's Halloween Segment of Holidays(2016); So when I heard about CAM which was based on Mazzie own experiences as a camgirl I was immediately intrigued.  

CAM fallows Alice Ackerman, an ambitious Camgirl that's determined to reach the top ranking on her Cam Site and the first half hour introduces us to her family, her friends, and her Johns namely her "Whale" Barney (Micheal Dempsey) and one of her hanger on Tinkerboy. Everything is sunshine and Dildos until the first act twist when shes locked out of her account but she's still live streaming. Not only is this other stealing her image but she's stealing her career, her income, in essence just short of her entire life. The movie manages to be contained and intimate, with the scares used sparingly with effect and with the gore and violence acting like a suckerpunch unlike the third act  bloodbaths we are used to in slasher flicks. Cam is effective, personal and well paced. 

I can honestly say that I loved Madeline Brewer's performance. The first act was one of the most enjoyable setups I have watched in a recent horror film and Brewers bubbly persona was honestly infectious. Her character is an entertainer and as we see throughout the film her Camwork is something she truly enjoys not just a means to an end. The events that happen to Brewer later into the film feel raw and personal and I don't believe I felt this invested in a horror protagonist in a long time. Brewer's character is smart, ambitious, and determined and that determination is what keeps her trying to destroy this false version of her and finally get her life back. 

CAM manages to utilize the ghost in the machine trope amazing well. Where others movies such as Friend Request(2016) use the idea to hand wave why a character can't delete a facebook post or call the police, CAM uses this situation to aid the horror. We have all been locked out of a account online and the knowledge that someone else is out there using your identity is even more horrifying.  Another aspect of the film was the verisimilitude of the setting from them representing the Chat websites accurately to the perils of Sex work in the film tanging from attempted assault to the biases of the police. "So what's the weirdest thing you ever had to do?" A policeman asked Brewer when she calls them about the identity theft. The horrors of the film are just as much about Brewer's character's chosen profession as it is about her sexpot doppelganger. 

The incidental scoring done by Gavin Brivik(Living Undocumented) is fantastic providing emotional tone for the scenes using synth ambience instead of Screechy Violins. Besides the excellent background music the movie also managed to include a few licensed songs as well, including Galaxy by Missy Modell and while Cascadia-style Dance Pop doesn't seem congruent with a horror setting it surprising works. Overall the sound design and direction of the movie was fantastic.

Cam is a realistic look into the world of Camming through the lens of psychological horror. Brewer's excellent performance, Mazzie's writing and Goldhaber's technical direction bring together a fantastic and original horror film that combines the fears of modern technology and the perils of Sex work. An absolute great movie all around.