We’re All Going to the World’s Fair is an intimate coming-of-age horror film
The article reviews the 2021 film 'We’re All Going to the World’s Fair,' describing it as an intimate, unsettling coming-of-age horror story. It highlights the film's focus on digital isolation and the search for belonging in an online world, distinguishing it from traditional horror tropes.
Why it matters
The film serves as a cultural commentary on the psychological impact of internet subcultures and digital loneliness.
Jane Schoenbrun’s latest film, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, is making a splash in theaters right now. So it seems like the perfect time to revisit their first film, We’re All Going to the World’s Fair. I fell in love with this film when I first saw it at Sundance in 2021.
We are immediately introduced to our protagonist, Casey, as she engages in the World’s Fair Challenge, a sort of ARG creepypasta meets ice bucket challenge. There’s a creepy mantra, some bloodletting, and a mysterious video — basically a speedrun of horror movie tropes. But having them all delivered by this young girl alone in her room who just stares directly into her webcam the whole time is unsettling. And I actually physically recoiled when she jabbed herself repeatedly with a pin to draw blood.
[Media: https://youtu.be/y0AnGfzgh_w]
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