Premiering at Fantastic Fest 2025, Appofeniacs is the kind of horror film that sneaks under your skin and stays long after the credits roll. On the surface, it might appear as a blood-soaked spectacle — and yes, there’s plenty of viscera on display — but the true horror runs much deeper, in the ideas that pulse beneath its gore.
The film takes place in a near-future world filled with synthetic realities, where deepfakes are indistinguishable from real life and social media has become a chaotic hub of manipulation and obsession. What starts as a series of grotesque murders turns into a chilling look at how technology blurs the lines between perception and reality. It’s not just the violence that’s unsettling — it’s the realization that the most monstrous acts are often fueled by the desire for digital validation or the fear of being erased by an algorithm.
What makes Appofeniacs so effective is its refusal to let the audience off the hook. The gore grabs your attention, but it’s the underlying questions about identity, agency, and the fragility of truth that keep you unsettled. The film’s depiction of deepfakes — rendered with unnerving realism — is particularly haunting, forcing viewers to confront a future in which seeing is no longer believing. In this world, misinformation isn’t just a nuisance; it’s a weapon that erodes trust and fractures society.
The film also features a streak of dark satire, targeting the absurdities of influencer culture and the feedback loops of outrage that fuel online behavior. Behind this cynicism is a genuine, sobering warning about the psychological costs of living in an environment where attention is currency and reality can seem negotiable.
While Appofeniacs delivers the genre thrills expected of a Fantastic Fest screening — brutal set pieces, relentless pacing, and a tone steeped in dread — it’s the bigger picture that truly terrifies. The film suggests that the future of horror isn’t found in monsters or slashers, but in the technologies we accept without question and the systems we create to entertain and enrage us.
Ultimately, Appofeniacs is more than just a gore fest. It’s a provocative and deeply unsettling reflection on our digital world, offering a sinister preview of a future where truth, identity, and sanity might be among the first casualties of technological progress.