RATING: A-

Magenta Light Studios and Magenta Edge Films presents a Yeahbvddy production in association with Panay Films. Written and directed by Chris Marrs Piliero. Produced by Andrew Panay, Jared Iacino, and Chris Marrs Piliero. Cinematography by Adam Leene. Edited by Professor Montgomery Cobblepot.

Stars Aaron Holiday, Sean Gunn, Jermaine Fowler, Simran Jehani, Will Brandt, Paige Searcy, Chad Addison, Scarlett DeMeo, Amogh Kapoor, Michael Abbott Jr., and Massi Pregoni.

Chris Marrs Piliero’s feature film debut serves as both an anthology of interconnecting stories and a stern warning about the dangers of AI and deepfake videos. 

When James sees an adult video on his phone, he is upset at the sight of his girlfriend Ali with his best friend, Chase. Unhinged, James confronts Ali and shoots her in a fit of rage. When Poppy, James’ friend and a cosplayer, is heading to meet her husband Banks, Chase, and friend Stoletto at an Airbnb, she is enthralled by Texas Tim, the rideshare driver who is taking her there. A night of fun turns into a nightmare when James shows up, leading to chaos and death.

The video is a deepfake created by Duke, an unhinged fellow who has discovered how to use AI to create videos against those who he feels ticked him off. His next victims are artist Clinto Brito, who offers a too-high price for a piece of work for Duke, and Lazzy, who confronts Duke while waiting at a coffee shop because of his conspiracy about tipping. When the videos he creates slowly destroy their lives, Duke finds even bigger problems when Cedric, a man to whom Duke owes money, comes to confront him. 

Chris Marrs Piliero’s feature film debut revolves around the dangers of AI and deepfake videos. It’s one thing to show actors playing other roles in films as a means to provide comic effect, but it’s another to purposely use it to hurt and harm others. Piliero uses the anthology/connection method à la Traffic to show the latter effect and, specifically, how it affects three people.

While the first story takes up one-third of the film, the other two stories find themselves connected within the same day, but the aftermath comes in the span of two nights, or so it seems. The first story, in which Chad Allison’s James sees the video of his girlfriend and best friend doing the deed, we see how unhinged he becomes as a direct result, shooting his girlfriend before disappearing to give the film some fleshed-out exposition, before he returns to get revenge on Chase, played by Dhar Mann actor Amogh Kapoor. Add to the mix, a cosplayer, her voyeuristic husband, and an acquaintance who is an undocumented immigrant with a rideshare driver caught in the middle of it all.

It is after this story that we learn the mastermind behind the deepfakes. Aaron Holliday is excellent as Duke, a man who uses the technology to go after those who he feels wronged him, calling the girlfriend in the adult video “very annoying”. But it is his next two targets where things pick up as he goes after Sean Gunn’s Clinto, a renowned artist who charges Duke too much for a piece of work; and Paige Searcy’s Lazzy, an influencer who ticked him off at a coffee shop. The means he goes to destroy their lives is insane, with Lazzy the focal point of story two. Making her look like a bigot in a ranting Karen video, Lazzy finds her reputation in jeopardy, which leads to a very shocking end to her tale when her paranoia gets the best of her. 

As for Sean Gunn’s Clinto, it may seem weird but it looks as if Piliero has a love for Quentin Tarantino films as we see some subtle nods to some of his works. Especially when his video is made to look like he is hiding money in his home, leading to a robbery attempt that looks to be inspired by a recent film of Tarantino’s. However, this is after a major curveball is thrown in with the arrival of Jermaine Fowler’s Cedric, the loan shark Duke owes money to, and this third act alone provides a lot- not some, but a lot of jaw-dropping moments. 

Appofeniacs is a very important film to see when it comes to the dangers of AI and deepfake videos through the eyes of three people affected. Fantastic performances and the nods to Tarantino make this definitely one to see.

The film will be released in select theaters on October 2.