This lethargic, uninspired take on a rather overdone topic might work if you really identify with the leads. And if not, then you might be in for a woefully dull time. Derek (Derek Lee) and Clif (Clif Prowse) are embarking on a year-long trip around the world, with the added difficulty that Derek has an inoperable brain tumor. Derek has long been the adventurous one between them, and Clif is an amateur documentary filmmaker, so it's an apropos team-up. Clif can not only watch out for the safety and health of his longtime friend, he can also document the heck out of their trip. In fact, all of their friends and family, and really the entire world, can track the duo's travels via the frequent updates on their website. But in early in their trip, during a visit to a nightclub in Paris, something happens to Derek that causes his body to undergo an interesting and unwelcome transformation - but not before making him deathly ill. That's probably about as much as I can reveal about the plot without giving it away. The story is told to us mostly through the lens of the ever-present cameras held and worn by Clif, although there were a few instances in which the audience appeared to get a (literal) different perspective. Probably the best part of Afflicted is the special effects usage. The movie looks good, and there are some decent scares, particularly given the small budget. But too often the scares are of the jump variety, another trope that's been beaten to death for a couple of decades. But as far as I was concerned, those effects were the only high point of the movie. The plot feels, like those jump scares, to be really overdone, and the characters come off as intelligence deficient, to put it kindly. That characterization isn't helped by the rampant overacting, particularly by Lee. And I can't tell you how many times you'll hear the sentence, "What are you TALKING about?" because I stopped counting. But I could relate to the question.
Review of Afflicted
