Rashan Mines and Ren-Horng Wang’s We Never Sleep is a nifty, 21st-century take on Invasion of the Body Snatchers, leaning full force into the fear and apprehension surrounding our current society’s relationship with our online presence, artificial intelligence, and digital assassination.
Tyler Courtad and Mellisa Goodwin are Austin and Mikaela, who, whilst chatting and screen-surfing, get onto the topic of the rise of the “digital mob.” They discuss the way online privacy is disappearing, and why something, no matter how harmless or innocent the intention, can suddenly go viral and throw a spotlight on people, almost targeting them. Austin initially scrolls past the idea as conspiracy talk, but Mikaela pushes back, saying stranger things have happened. She brings up a series of bizarre but seemingly harmless messages she’s heard people have been receiving. Austin then shows Mikaela a random text he got, warning that his behavior is unacceptable and that he’s been marked for some kind of re-education.
“Austin then shows Mikaela a random text he got, warning that his behavior is unacceptable and that he’s been marked for some kind of re-education.”
The mood in the kitchen shifts, but the couple just stops, takes a breath, and pushes it all aside, Austin heading to bed while Mikaela stays up to finish some work on her computer. Then the emails start coming in—immediate, anonymous, but clear. The same message Austin showed her earlier. Mikaela tries to brush it off, deletes it, but it keeps coming back, again and again. Now properly rattled, she moves through the house to get her husband, but Austin is already asleep. And neither of them really understands yet just how serious this is, or that everything they talked about, speculated on, and dismissed as technological nonsense has just landed right on their doorstep.
With a David Fincher-like look and a really inventive spin on a classic, We Never Sleep suggests a deeper integration, maybe even a slightly supernatural version of assimilation. Cinematographer Ben Meserve and editor Steven Aguilera are vital components in what makes this picture cook. The gliding camera, combined with quick cuts, heightens Goodwin’s and Courtad’s performances as the echo chamber of the internet turns against them.
We Never Sleep is a very polished production with palpable dread. These filmmakers achieved what this reviewer wished the adaptation of Stephen King’s Cell could have looked like, because even the mighty Samuel L. Jackson couldn’t save a botched job that was dished up. Mr. Rashan Mines and Ren-Horng Wang, like many a fine short, I hope you eventually gain the opportunity to go feature-length.
"…a very polished production with palpable dread."
