Dacre Montgomery's Killer in 'Faces of Death' Explored
Why it matters: The film explores how the internet's attention economy can incentivize acts of mass violence, as seen in countless real-world examples.
- Isa Mazzei and Daniel Goldhaber co-wrote and Goldhaber directed the new "Faces of Death," drawing inspiration from their previous work on "Cam" and their discussions about content moderation.
- Dacre Montgomery's character, Arthur, is an internet-obsessed killer who recreates violent acts from the original "Faces of Death" and posts them online, reflecting the creators' view on extreme attention-seeking behavior.
- Barbie Ferreira's character, Margot, a content moderator, becomes entangled in a deadly game as she investigates Arthur's disturbing online content.
- Mazzei emphasized the importance of using licensed, real-life footage for Margot's content moderation scenes to ensure the film's depiction of the internet feels authentic and reflects its diverse, often disturbing, content.
The new "Faces of Death" reimagining, co-written by Isa Mazzei and Daniel Goldhaber, tackles the internet's obsession with violence by featuring a killer, Arthur (Dacre Montgomery), who recreates the original film's acts for social media, prompting a content moderator, Margot (Barbie Ferreira), to investigate. The creators aimed for authenticity by sourcing real-life disturbing footage for Margot's moderation job and exploring how the internet's pursuit of attention can drive extreme violence.
