The original Faces of Death may have launched an eight-installment franchise, but it’s not one that screams “reboot material.” The 1978 faux documentary traded a conventional narrative for graphic footage showcasing gruesome ways to die. While much of it was faked, its taboo subject matter and the pre-existing video footage of actual deaths catapulted it to Video Nasty cult status in the early ’80s.
Director/Co-writer Daniel Goldhaber and co-writer/producer Isa Mazzei forgo the traditional remake route in their contemporary update of Faces of Death and instead build a narrative feature around the original’s notoriety and controversial imagery to explore digital voyeurism and the terminally online desensitization to violence. Morbid curiosity fuels their polished cat-and-mouse horror thriller, one that poses unsettling questions through its provocative but underdeveloped approach.
That starts with Barbie Farreira‘s Margot Romero, a content moderator for a YouTube-like platform, Kino. She’s a senior employee fully numbed to the graphic videos that cross her desk, demonstrated by the way she dismisses an informative Narcan video but quickly gives a pass to graphic violence. Never mind that her own brush with internet infamy further eroded her morality on digital content. That changes when she comes across an apparent execution clip that Margot realizes, with the help of her horror-obsessed roommate Ryan (Aaron Holliday), recreates a snuff scene from the original Faces of Death. Only this time, it’s real.
Goldhaber and Mazzei frontload Faces of Death with a chilling depiction of a cynical world where violence has been commodified for bite-sized entertainment, and its insidious ripple effects on society at large. That’s reflected not just in its flawed, complicated protagonist, but in everyone around her, from her apathetic boss Josh (Jermaine Fowler) to her jaded co-worker (Charli XCX), who vocally delights at gore videos while puffing on her vape over breaks. The first half also sets up a collision path for Margot and the Faces of Death-inspired killer Arthur Spevak (Dacre Montgomery), challenging Margot’s world-weary, hardened nature as she’s further entangled in the serial killer’s crosshairs.
From there, Faces of Death 2026 descends into a standard cat-and-mouse chase between the killer and his amateur adversary, though one terminally online enough to be savvy to his pursuits. Goldhaber evokes the grimy feel of the original with grainy, gorgeous 35mm photography, but leans even harder into vibrant Giallo influences. Which is to say that this is easily the most handsomely shot, well-crafted film of the entire franchise. But it’s also a bit empty in terms of shock or suspense.
While Arthur revels in his work and his affinity for staging mannequins in his grisly recreations is striking, the new Faces of Death never comes close to invoking the discomforting, forbidden danger of the original movie. As intense as Dacre Montgomery’s committed performance is, the action-heavy back half fails to generate scares as it abandons introspective themes altogether for an underwhelming climax.
Not helping is that, for all that Margot endures, some by her own poor decision-making, Faces of Death doesn’t draw any conclusive answers from its themes. Instead, Goldhaber and Mazzei are more fascinated by the way the digital age and social media have shaped society and our morbid fascination with violence. It’s just abandoned halfway through to deliver a by-the-numbers serial killer thriller, one that’s never as transgressive or gory enough to draw the ire of censors.
Smart commentary and a clever approach get Faces of Death off to a strong start, but it lacks the conviction to see its bolder ideas through to its forgettable and far too conventional end. Whereas watching the 1978 film felt like a rite of passage, this update superficially wades into ideas already covered more chillingly in films like Red Rooms.
Faces of Death releases in theaters on April 10, 2026.
