Tags:
Film: Strawstalker
Year: 2026
Director: George Henry Horton
Writer: George Henry Horton
Starring: Branika Scott, George Henry Horton and Dallas Steinback
Review:
This was a film that I got the chance to see thanks to Justin Cook. He sent over the press release and since this was a 2026 horror film, I decided to check it out. Seeing that it was filmed in the style of found footage was good. I did figure out that it was following ‘influencers’, which is an interesting variation on the subgenre. Other than that, I did come in blind, just thinking that the title was interesting.
Synopsis: when a fame hungry couple moves to an ideal LA home, their new dream life spirals into a nightmare as an ancient scarecrow begins stalking them - feeding on their lies, testing truth, and turning their fandom into witnesses of its judgment.
Now I will warn you that this starts out a bit manic until it settles in. The opening features a "Finance and Flirt" livestream where Sandy (Vincent Ranola) fakes a six-figure income to help give advice on his show. After Haley (Branika Scott) and Henry (George Henry Horton) expose him as rideshare driver, Sandy retaliates by stealing and editing footage from their home to release himself. He also claims that being a driver is something that he moonlights to do for ideas. We do see a sped-up version of the events that will then play out.
This then goes to the beginning where Haley and Henry live in Texas. He surprised her that they’re moving to Los Angeles. Haley in the past used to be an actor and it is something that she’s hoping to get back into, trying to use being an influencer to help. Henry is originally from the United Kingdom. We then see them as they arrive and settle into a house they’re renting. Something of note, as they move in, they see a neighbor who stares at them. He doesn’t respond when they greet him. The lady who handled their paperwork is Eleanor (Emily Rafa).
The couple then explore the city. This is where they meet Sandy who drives them to a place to make content. It is back at their home that they make a terrifying discovery. The next morning Henry goes skinny dipping in their pool. Haley thinks she sees someone watching them. There is a scarecrow in the hedges along the property line. This terrifies her. Henry doesn’t think much of it until strange things start to happen. He finds a pile of dead birds at one point.
Now this couple decides to throw a welcome party. They invite people that Haley knows who live in Los Angeles. Things start to get weird when the scarecrow starts to move on its own. There were also strange people at the party, including Solomon (Dallas Steinback). This is just the beginning of the nightmare. Then through all this, we cut over to Sandy who comments on what they’re seeing. He doesn’t remember doing the editing so it's a first time watch for him. This also pulls him into what is happening.
That is where I’ll leave my recap and character introduction. Moving to my analysis, some elements succeeded while others faltered. Regarding the filming style, I've seen several livestream-based movies, with Spree and Dashcam representing the standard. Unlike busier examples where chaotic comments can be distracting, the streams here are less cluttered, which works well for this film. That’s not to say that everything here works though.
I especially enjoyed the lore, which avoids heavy exposition. Eleanor's staging of the house and the couple's arrival introduce effective mysteries: a key hidden in a glove, an unfriendly neighbor, and a backyard scarecrow. The atmosphere is heightened by figures moving past windows and hints of a neighborhood stuck in time where houses are rarely sold—eventually revealing a local cult. These elements add to the atmosphere and to the eeriness.
Where I’ll then go are elements that don’t necessarily work. I don’t fully understand why we start with the Sandy character and then come back to him multiple times. It makes the film feel disjointed. He obtains footage that I’m not entirely sure why it would be a part of what he finds. I’m guessing it was intentional to continue to expand out those getting caught up in this. Ranola does fit this character who is an aspiring influencer but Sandy is a character that annoyed me. Credit to Ranola to get a reaction out of me though.
The central couple is more compelling. Haley is a down-to-earth Texan with a background in drama, while Henry is a British outsider. Both pursue non-traditional careers, but Henry's character reveals a potential scumbag nature. Whether this is innate or caused by their move to LA remains a welcome ambiguity. I’ll credit both Scott and Horton for their portrayals. There is an amateur feeling that lends itself well to found footage horror.
Then there’s this evil entity that is the scarecrow. I feel like the title of the film is its name, or something along these lines. What is interesting here is who it targets. There is a cult that pleads fealty to it. There’s an interesting angle that happens with a character where they cannot remember their line, almost like this entity wiped the memory for not being loyal. This creature does seem to be a manifestation of judgement and exposure for not being true to themselves.
Other themes that are explored would include the falsity and the performance of influencer culture. I do love this critique as we do see when they’re filming but not streaming. I do feel at times that this feels forced to stick with that style as I don’t know if everything we see would be filmed like it is. The last element to include would be suburbia vs. pastoral history. Where this takes place in the San Fernando Valley used to be farmland and soon became what we see. There’s an element that the scarecrow stands for the past and that the land remembers.
That should be enough for the story so let’s shift over to the acting performances. I’ll go ahead and just re-iterate that Horton and Scott are fine as our leads. Despite not liking the character, Ranola does well in bringing that to life. Steinback works in his role. I did like Rafala as well. The rest of the cast did round this out for what was needed.
All that is left then will be the filmmaking aspects. Technically, the found footage style fits these phone-carrying characters well, despite an initially manic pace. While the source of some footage and the subplot of Sandy forgetting his editing of the footage feels odd, the scarecrow design and sound design are effective. The CGI fire is less impressive, though its inclusion is understandable.
In conclusion, this is a solid addition to the found-footage subgenre, effectively using the modern livestream aesthetic to critique the performative nature of influencer culture. While the subplot involving Sandy feels disjointed and the CGI fire lacks polish, the film succeeds through its eerie atmosphere, intriguing lore, and the menacing presence of the titular scarecrow and its local cult. It is a worthwhile watch for horror fans looking for a fresh take on judgement and exposure in the digital age.
My Rating: 6 out of 10