Review: BODYCAM is a Cop-Led Horror Flick That’s Scary for All the Right Reasons

As point-of-view horror filmmaking evolves alongside advances in surveillance technology, so do depictions of our deepest fears. Night of the Reaper and Still/Born’s Brandon Christensen seizes an opportunity that few have (yet), classified somewhere between “found footage” and “Screenlife,” but it’s not a livestreamer like Spree or #ChadGetsTheAxe? Bodycam follows in the footsteps of [REC] 2 or Jordan Downey’s V/H/S/Beyond segment, “Stork,” using police body camera rigs to expose dirty officers—but that’s not the only nightmare. Christensen channels societal anger about corrupt law enforcement to lean into a demonic plot that has something to say about underprivileged neighborhoods and bastards in blue. It’s punchy, gutsy, and quick to the point, albeit forcefully blunt, and hindered by its production limitations.

Officers Jackson (Jaime M. Callica) and Bryce (Sean Rogerson) respond to a domestic disturbance call in the underprivileged area of “Henderson.” They arrive at a house that’s surrounded by “tweakers,” all appearing to be frozen mid-animation. Jackson and Bryce enter the premises after hearing worrisome screams, but in the basement, Bryce accidentally shoots a man holding a blanket-wrapped baby. Bryce panics and starts formulating a cover-up, while Jackson begs to report the incident. The biggest problem is their bodycams, which record and upload everything to a cloud server—well, until the satanic symbols all over town become dreadfully relevant.

It’s a real Point A to Point B chiller, written by Brandon and his brother Ryan. At under eighty minutes, there’s not a lot of room for exploration, which ensures a brisk tempo. That leaves some developmental intrigue off the screen, particularly the malevolent entity keeping locals from escaping a drug-infested suburb. However, what’s excised from Christensen’s screenplay in terms of minutiae lets the simplicity of a Copland scary story heave these manic, enraged breaths. Neither Jackson nor Bryce is granted passes for their actions, as they brainstorm how to save their hides at the expense of another fatal police shooting.

Now, Bodycam is as barebones as a college student’s diet when he’s almost out of cafeteria points—and it shows. The lawmen’s uniforms have that costume-shop quality, while the digital effects are a far cry from Wētā Workshop. Christensen has, time after time, proved he can excite and delight horror fans without blockbuster financing, and I think that remains true for a majority of Bodycam. But what’s left to post-production, from pivotal third-act visuals to pedestrian drive-by shots of Henderson’s intoxicated tent communities, is begging for additional help. For something so streamlined, taking a no-bullshit approach to this supernaturally charged assessment of crooked patrolmen, there’s a stronger emphasis put on special effects that, frankly, can be the film’s weakest aspect.

That said, Bodycam gets your heart pounding at the right moments. This repeated threat of “you take from us, we take from you” quickly confirms what the bloody crib and cryptic hellmouth in the basement suggest about the baby Bryce wastes. Shades of Last Shift and Let Us Prey exorcise monsters within police ranks, while Christensen simultaneously unleashes a villain of his own. Jackson becomes this representation of someone who “escaped” Henderson’s clutches, but as he and Bryce find out, there’s a darkness that draws even the luckiest back. It’s not just about Bryce’s selfishness, or a bargain-bin creature killing for giggles, but a despicable take on circumstances that feed addiction patterns, and the outsiders who view those struggling as helpless denizens that deserve no compassion.

Christensen is also clever about the body camera perspective and how that can benefit scares. You’ll get your expected night-vision shots: a monochrome thermal lens that drowns imagery in ghoulish grays and whites. There’s also a stress on intimate cinematography, as the officers dart around abandoned buildings with tight corridors where squatters now inhabit. There’s a claustrophobia about Bodycam, not like we’re trapped in a coffin, but how Jackson and Bryce are stuck in Henderson, and whatever’s cursed their existence won’t let them free. There might be issues with lackluster baddie execution, but the looming tension of an all-seeing specter is worth its tingle-up-your-spine frights.

Bodycam is hardly End of Watch meets Paranormal Activity, but I’ll take Night Patrol meets one of the mediocre Paranormal Activity sequels. Christensen’s nimbly operating in his on-a-budget wheelhouse, even if I’d kill to see the more expensive version of Bodycam that lets the filmmaker go deservedly ham. It’s got the right levels of aggravation, hysteria, and lingering ickiness that a Cops episode co-starring the devil deserves. Brace for an indie production that’s doing its best, but here’s the truth—worthwhile storytelling trumps certain issues. In Bodycam’s case, it’s the propulsive force that keeps us hooked even though there’s enough left desired.

Movie Score: 3/5