The V/H/S franchise has become dominant in found footage horror, more or less synonymous in viewers’ minds with anthologies in that subgenre. But that doesn’t mean other filmmakers shouldn’t offer up their own spin on the idea. After all, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and of course, competition keeps everyone creative. Dreamt up by filmmakers Joe Martinez-Weinberger and David James Clark, Ragebait serves up a surprisingly decent spin on the format, and while its obviously very low budget means that the team’s ambitions sometimes outstrip their capabilities, anyone looking for a fun, tongue-in-cheek slice of splattery horror with a generous helping of social commentary would be well served to check it out.

The clever wraparound story focuses on Ralph (Tyler Arceneaux), who hosts a live-streaming show titled Ralph Reacts from his bedroom in his mom’s house. As it’s Halloween season, he implores his handful of viewers to send him the creepiest videos they can find and one quickly complies, but not before making his donation bot read out some Latin text…

What follows are a variety of videos following formats that modern internet addicts should find very familiar. We have ghost hunters, pregnancy / beauty influencers, stunt bros, and, worst of all, misery peddlers. While the acting is a bit hit or miss between the segments, even at its worst it still feels pretty in line with what you might see in similar content on the real internet. These are not society’s finest and they can often seem stilted and transparently phony, so performances that reflect that may have been intentional decisions.

It won’t surprise you to know that each of these people are so desperate for fame, or whatever passes for it in our current digital age, that they are more than happy to put themselves into dangerous and morally questionable (or even outright wrong) situations to get it with little regard for any collateral damage they may incur. It should also come as no surprise that most receive some violent comeuppance for doing so. Of course, as in real life, some very guilty people emerge more or less unscathed and some innocents are harmed along the way.

Screenwriters Martinez-Weinburger, Clark, Jude Price, and Grant Chauncey aren’t afraid to go to some dark places, holding a grim mirror up to 2020’s web culture, but a streak of dark humor runs throughout, maintaining a sense of fun. On directing duties, Martinez-Weinburger and Clark are joined by Taylor Weiss and Dean Smith, who all prove capable of achieving a lot with a little. Some of the more ambitious special effects shots aren’t entirely successful and the production design can be distractingly sparse, but it usually lends the film a certain scrappy charm that, combined with the filmmakers’ keen eyes for suspense and shocks contributes to a surprisingly effective collection.

It’s great to feel like you’re discovering some fresh, hitherto untapped talent, and watching Ragebait one gets the sense of doing just that. These segments all have clearly been made by people with a love of the genre and with movies in general, and who have keen eyes for the flaws of their own generation. The result isn’t perfect, but it’s imminently entertaining, frequently frightening, and cleverer than it needs to be by at least half. A bloody fun way to spend a night in with likeminded friends that is also a vicious takedown of streaming society. ★★★½

Not Rated. Contains graphic violence, gore, nudity, and strong language.