Society’s relationship with violence and the internet is explored in Mikhail Red’s Deleter. The film joins content moderator Lyra (Nadine Lustre) and follows her day-to-day routine. Her job is a tough one; she has to spend hours on end reviewing internet content and deciding whether it is appropriate or not. The footage is randomly picked for her and may contain anything from a children’s birthday party to live be-headings, hardcore sex to drinking games. Her constant consumption of real world horrors has left her desensitised to the world around her, however, the death of a co-worker draws her out of her shell.
The commentary within Deleter is its strongest hand. Although slightly distorted, Lyra is a perfect example of how modern society has been shaped by what we interact with online. The constant stream of the twenty-four hour news cycle thrusts so much violence at us that it becomes hard to be affected by it. This desensitisation has left many numb and unable to empathise. It’s a dangerous way to live and, as highlighted in Lyra, can lead to other problems.
Outside of the social commentary angle, Deleter is a little more formulaic. The direction of the narrative is an easy one to work out, especially for those familiar with the tropes of Asian genre cinema. The pace is – without cause- on the slower side. This drawn out time does help build Lyra’s working environment, and brings some tension into play, but it does sag on occasion.
Nadine Lustre is great in the role, capturing Lyra’s self-imposed isolation wonderfully. Her life has become so insular that even when surrounded by others, she is on her own. Red highlights her disconnect from the world around her at every opportunity. By placing the viewer with her, they too are an outlier. The closeness between the audience and Lyra means that they have a front seat view for the footage that Lyra has to consume. It is here that the truest instances of Deleter’s tension manifest. Like Lyra, the viewer has no idea what is going to play on-screen, but unlike Lyra, this scenario unnerves them. Whilst nothing on screen is truly grotesque, the anticipation of the horrors likely to be seen are enough to cause concern.
Deleter is a great film for discussion; its analysis of societal response to online violence is sure to stir up conversations. Outside of this, Deleter remains an interesting and tension-filled thriller, but its reliance on the routine, renders the viewer slightly numb.
Deleter
Summary
Some brilliant work highlights society’s relationship with violence, but Deleter suffers from a plot that is too familiar, with a slightly drawn out pacing.
Deleter was reviewed at Grimmfest 2023.
