Bodycam (2025)

Bodycam is a film undone by bad choices. Foremost a creature design and choice of VFX that undermine the entirety of the last act. Until this the film was a decent supernatural romp, but the 11th hour CG creature just looks atrocious and brings down what was, to that point, an interesting film. Poor decisions undermining genuine intention likewise extend to the characters and plot. While not handled with any particular depth, the film looks at police corruption and brutality, and how quickly bad decisions escalate. With a terse runtime, there’s little breathing room to explore deeper themes, but it makes a valiant attempt at presenting the dichotomy between the blue brotherhood and actual family. This is not the first ‘descent into damnation’ a found-footage film has attempted, and the characters here are rather rote, with at least one an egregious cliche, but again, there’s little time to dwell. While obviously of a limited budget, the film handles building dread and increasing creepiness efficiently, using claustrophobic settings and decaying surroundings to heighten tension. The corruption, the slow erosion of intention into catastrophe, is executed with more care than the ending deserves. And were it not for that poor decision, the film would warrant a better verdict.

C+