While working as a content moderator, a woman uncovers a disturbing series of videos recreating grisly death scenes from an old movie.A film by Daniel Goldhaber, starring Barbie Ferreira, Dacre Montgomery, Josie Totah, Aaron Holliday, Kurt Yue, Jermaine Fowler, Sam Malone, Tiffany Colin, Tadasay Young, Jared Bankens, Aria Jackson, Betsy Borrego, Jonathan Shores, Matt Story, Casey Ferrand, Paris Peterson, Isa Mazzei, Kyle Nordby, Nathaniel Woolsey, Trenise Gray, Anja Avsharian, Anne Nichols Brown, Brandon Sutton, Britton Webb, Michael Yahn, Walker Babington, and Charli XCX.

Margot Romero (Barbie Ferreira) works as a content moderator for a short-form video platform called Kino. Her day-to-day job involves watching user uploads and deciding their fate: approve them, flag them for deletion, or slap a content warning on them.

She checks for a strict list of violations like graphic violence, hate speech, harassment, drug use, and self-harm. Whenever she flags a video, she also has the ability to add her own comments explaining why.

One day, she comes across a disturbing video titled “One (BEHEADING) #fod2024,” resembling a snuff film, featuring several unsettling mannequins and a tied-up victim struggling to escape. She pauses the video just as her manager, Josh (Jermaine Fowler), drops by her desk. He asks if she can cover the company’s new team orientation the next day, explaining he’s supposed to walk the new hires through it, but he’s completely swamped. Margot agrees to step in and lead the session for him.

Their conversation is interrupted by a sharp beep from her computer; the system displays an idle timer counting down, prompting Margot to confirm she is still active. She turns back to her screen and resumes the video, watching as the victim is decapitated by a mannequin wielding a sword. Assuming it to be staged, she approves the video, leaving a comment that the footage is likely fake.

After her shift, Margot returns to the apartment she shares with her best friend, an artist named Ryan (Aaron Holliday). Ryan invites her to Cassidy’s housewarming party, but Margot tries to back out, using laundry as an excuse. However, she eventually caves when Ryan reminds her of her promise to start living her life and socializing again. Changing the subject, Ryan shows her a new gadget: a seemingly normal lipstick that pulls apart to reveal a hidden knife. Throughout the scene, it becomes apparent that Margot is actively avoiding social media, though the film has yet to reveal why.

On their way to the party, the pair stops at a local bodega, where Margot catches the attention of two girls (Anja Avsharian & Anne Nichols Brown). Overhearing them whispering and debating whether she is “the train girl,” Margot begins to panic. The moment one of the girls approaches to ask if she is the person from the viral video, Margot abruptly flees the store, leaving Ryan behind. The encounter implies that her strict avoidance of social media stems from being the subject of an infamous, and likely traumatic, viral video.

Retreating to her apartment, Margot replays old voice messages from her sister (Tiffany Colin) from Thanksgiving and her 23rd birthday. Margot’s reaction to the recordings strongly implies that her sister is dead, hinting at a tragic connection between her passing and the viral train video Margot is running from.

The next day, Margot steps in to lead Kino’s new hire orientation. She recites the company motto, reminding the group that their role is to protect the young, the impressionable, and the innocent. She instructs the trainees to simply flag any content that violates company policy and immediately move on. She warns them not to dwell on disturbing videos or investigate them outside of work, stressing that googling or discussing the flagged content is a direct violation of the non-disclosure agreements they all signed.

Returning to her shift, Margot is horrified to uncover a second snuff film titled “Two (ELECTROCUTION) #fod2024,” this one depicting a grotesque execution by electric chair. Deeply disturbed, she hits a button to request a supervisor. When Josh arrives at her desk, she explains her frustration, mentioning the similar video she saw a few days prior involving mannequins and a beheading.

Though she initially assumed the first video was fake, she admits the victim in this new footage looks like he is genuinely dying. Josh dismisses her concerns, arguing that DIY horror is driving massive traffic right now and that Kino should capitalize on the trend by giving the audience what they want.

Meanwhile, Signaler Wireless manager Arthur (Dacre Montgomery) develops an obsession with a young internet influencer known as @SamGrav.

Abusing his administrative privileges, he searches the company’s database to uncover her real name, Samantha Gravinsky (Josie Totah), and her home address. Using these stolen details, he tracks her down and abducts her from a university natatorium locker room.

The next day, Margot stumbles upon another disturbing clip with a familiar, unsettling setting. This one features a victim trapped between two mannequins, both armed with hammers strapped to their hands. She watches in horror as the mannequins repeatedly bludgeon the victim’s head. When she spots the title, “Three (HAMMERHEAD) #fod2024,” a terrifying pattern emerges. Even though the three execution videos were posted by different accounts, they all share the same hashtag, indicating a single creator is behind them all.

🅟

@pradt

FACES of DEATH 💀
The algorithm knew you'd watch.
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A film by Daniel Goldhaber, starring Barbie Ferreira, Dacre Montgomery, Josie Totah, Aaron Holliday, Kurt Yue, Jermaine Fowler, Sam Malone, Tiffany Colin, Tadasay Young, Jared Bankens, Aria Jackson, Betsy Borrego, Jonathan Shores, Matt Story, Casey Ferrand, Paris Peterson, Isa Mazzei, Kyle Nordby, Nathaniel Woolsey, Trenise Gray, Anja Avsharian, Anne Nichols Brown, Brandon Sutton, Britton Webb, Michael Yahn, Walker Babington, and Charli XCX.

Directed by American filmmaker Daniel Goldhaber and co-written with Isa Mazzei, FACES OF DEATH is a horror film about a serial killer who recreates the infamous death scenes from the notorious 1978 cult film of the same name.

Faces of Death is a controversial horror film franchise that began with a 1978 movie presented like a documentary about death and gore. Directed by John Alan Schwartz, the original became infamous because it blurred the line between real footage and staged scenes, and it developed a cult reputation on VHS.

What makes the film so effective is its realistic worldbuilding, which serves as a sharp reflection of our current reality. It captures a society where the desperation for online fame pushes people to extreme lengths, whether that means mindlessly copying famous influencers or risking their lives with dangerous stunts, hoping to create a viral phenomenon.

Dacre Montgomery’s serial killer, Arthur Spevak, is easily the best part of the film. Blending the terrifying traits of Buffalo Bill from The Silence of the Lambs and Peter Foley from Copycat, Arthur is a highly intelligent villain with a fatal flaw.

The film features a brilliant sequence where Arthur deliberately sends a private message to Margot’s Reddit inbox. It contains a link to a news article. Believing she is getting closer to the killer, she clicks it, allowing Arthur to instantly hijack her IP address and use his administrative privileges to expose her true identity.

While Barbie Ferreira delivers a solid performance as Margot, a woman burdened by a tragic past after losing her sister in a freak accident while filming a viral train stunt, the character’s arc becomes frustrating. Driven by trauma and an obsession, Margot recklessly hunts down the serial killer on her own. She becomes so desperate to right these wrongs that she ignores all logic, endangering herself and her roommate, who sadly becomes collateral damage. It is difficult to root for a protagonist who consistently makes such reckless and stupid choices.

FACES of DEATH premiered at Beyond Fest on 5 April 2026. The film was theatrically released in the United States on 10 April.

Beyond Fest is a major genre film festival in Los Angeles, focused on horror, sci-fi, fantasy, and other fan-driven cinema. It’s known as the highest-attended genre film festival in the U.S. and is run in partnership with the American Cinematheque. It typically features new premieres, rare repertory screenings, restorations, live events, and filmmaker appearances.