AMFAD: ALL MY FRIENDS ARE DEAD is one of slasher films that juggles several familiar aspects of the genre. Thankfully, the end result is fairly satisfactory, so the filmmakers have achieved what they have set out to achieve even though it is clear that the characters of the film are not the brightest of people.
The main source of inspiration in terms of the plot is 1995’s SE7EN although the basic story is built around the murders of a serial killer based on the seven deadly sins: pride, greed, wrath, lust, gluttony, envy, and sloth. There are also withheld elements of I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER, SCREAM, UNFRIENDED, and many other films in which a few clueless friends find themselves trapped in one house far away from civilization.
In 2003 or 2004 ( that is the controversy here, #AMFAD calls for these years at various times), one music event Karmapalooza was made popular because oh yeah, remember the serial killer? Its been two decades and they still have no idea who the suspect is.
It’s 2023, or 2024 (depending on which part of the film you’ve seen) and it is time to bring back, Karmapalooza. Newscasters along with police detective Daniels (Pete Graham) are optimistic about not facing the murderer again. Well….
From a prologue, we learn that Colette (JoJo Siwa), an attractive and young woman, is found dead in conditions that resemble a suicide. One of her friends pays her tributes through narrative.
After that we get to know our main antisocial group. Sarah (Jade Pettyjohn), who only met the others a few years back in college, is the most recent among acquaintances. At least the others have known each other since secondary school. The group includes ruthlessly ambitious social influencer Mona (Jennifer Ens), wanna-be social influencer Liv (Ali Fumiko Whitney), promiscuous L.B. (Julian Haig), drug enthusiast Guy (Jack Doupe-Smith), dumpy Will (Justin Derickson), and the barely-recognized Aaron (Cardi Wong) who has an obsessive crush on Sarah.
Due to the poor foresight, the septet has not made provisions for accommodation in advance even though Karmapalooza is a big event that spans across the weekend. Their van experiences a tire bust on the road and with the help of an officer (Michaela Russell) they manage to tow their vehicle and get an Airbnb.
The protagonists come into the house only to find lassos on the living room table with shot glasses of seven deadly sins and a note signed SDSK. This must be a prank by the owner of the house and everyone assumes so.
For now, the reader should understand that we are being informed of two things a) Yes, AMFAD: ALL MY FRIENDS ARE DEAD has dark humor accompanied by bloody battle scenes, and b) the depicted characters are meant to be weak and disposable fools.
As written by Josh Sims & Jessica Sarah Flaum, based on a story they crafted together with John Baldecchi, thank God, the humor is never too broad. We understand the jokes but we do not feel like ribs ticklers. We also have several plot changes, several of which many of us really did not expect anywhere.
Marcus Dunstan (a man who has worked on saw) takes the gore to comic and exaggerated extremes and this is also why it’s funny for the intended audience. There is good imagination to the killer’s mask and while we may not get any jump scares, we at least experience good build-up in tension for not knowing when or who is going to appear.
Dunstan handles the material expertly and draws very good performances from his actors, where all seem to be in the moment enough not to have certain things occur to them.
The year spoken of in the flashbacks and one in the present also has some editorial slippage particularly inconsistency which would be one of the main problems. But it is not a major flaw, simply something that could have been remedied in post-production.
AMFAD: ALL MY FRIENDS ARE DEAD is so self-assured that its target audience will enjoy it that it quite literally includes a teaser for the sequel and a key scene or two during the credits. The film by no means seeks to be revolutionary, but it achieves its goals.
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