History Film / FriendRequest

** Was the fire that destroyed Moore's Grove the work of a criminal arsonist? We see a news report that mentions that the commune was believed to house a demon-worshiping cult, and that a suspect was taken into custody; did someone get wind of what was going on there and take matters into their own hands? Or was the fire was carried out by the cultists themselves--perhaps as a RitualSuicide to [[spoiler:transfer power to Marina in the womb]]? The runes on Ada Nedifar's belly hint that she was attempting some sort of magic with her unborn daughter, and might have even anticipated her own death. However, there's no explanation of what the runes mean or ''when'' Ada made them; they might have been a simple protection spell enacted to [[spoiler:ensure Marina's survival]] -- possibly at the last second, after Ada was caught in the fire.

* AbandonedArea: Moore's Grove, a deserted farm town where Marina's mother Ada lived (and where Marina herself was conceived). It was formerly home to a mysterious commune, which burned to the ground in the 1990s. On the surface, only the charred walls of the compound remain; however, some hidden subterranean rooms survived (with their occult accoutrements intact).

* AbandonedArea: Moore's Grove, a deserted farm town that was once home where Marina's mother Ada lived (and where Marina herself was conceived). It was formerly home to a mysterious commune, which burned to the ground in the 1990s. On the surface, only the charred walls of the compound remain; however, some hidden subterranean rooms survived (with their occult accoutrements intact).

* AbandonedArea: Moore's Grove, a commune where Marina's mother Ada lived (and where Marina herself was conceived). It was formerly home to a mysterious cult, until it burned to the ground in the 1990s. On the surface, only the charred walls of the compound remain; however, some hidden subterranean rooms survived (with their occult accoutrements intact).

** On that note, were the Moore's Grove cultists ''actually'' demon worshipers, or simply misunderstood neo-pagans with some practices that ''looked'' evil to outsiders? Marina believes it's the latter: she carries out rituals (presumably the same sort once practiced by the Moore's Grove cultists) ascribed to witches, inscribes Laura's Facebook page with runes that are described as "Wiccan", and one of her Facebook posts has an animation of the burning compound with the description, "We destroy what we don't other understand". However, Marina's suicide allows her to rise from the dead as an explicitly evil, demonic, murderous entity, which later [[spoiler: takes possession of Laura's body and steals it from her]] -- all of which are strictly attributed to the [[https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left_Hand_Path#:~:text=Left%20Hand%20Path%20is%20a,Tantra%2C%20Vama%20marga%20in%20Sanskrit Left Hand]] [[TheDarkSide path]]. At least one neo-pagan [[https://beyondelysium.ca/2019/05/17/the-kult-take-friend-request/ viewer]] posits that the cult was devoted to the worship of the demon Sathariel.

* AbandonedArea: Moore's Grove, the commune [[spoiler:where Marina's mother Ada lived (and where Marina was conceived)]]. It was formerly home to a pagan cult, until it mysteriously burned to the ground in a massive fire in the 1990s. On the surface, only the charred walls of the compound remain; however, some hidden subterranean rooms survived (with their pagan accoutrements intact).
** The factory at Saddle Mills, where [[spoiler: Marina carries out her suicide ritual and]] the film's climax takes place, also qualifies. The power is running, but it's deserted and doesn't appear to be in use.

* AFateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler:Laura loses her friends, her boyfriend, her reputation, and watches the people she's closest to ''and'' her only living relative die horribly before she is taken over by Marina -- losing her body, mind, and (possibly) her soul as well. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking She also loses her looks]], as Marina has seemingly begun pulling out Laura's hair and neglecting her personal grooming.]]

* AmbiguousSituation: The Moore's Grove commune only appears briefly, but its nature -- and the nature of its destruction -- raises many questions:
** Was the fire that destroyed Moore's Grove the work of a criminal arsonist? We see a news report that mentions that the commune was believed to house a demon-worshiping cult, and that a suspect was taken into custody; did someone get wind of what was going on there and take matters into their own hands? Marina herself believes this was the case: one of her Facebook posts has an animation of the burning compound, with the description, "We destroy what we don't other understand". Yet, Marina has no way of knowing precisely what happened (barring supernatural means), and it's just as likely that the fire was planned out by the cultists themselves -- perhaps as a RitualSuicide to [[spoiler:transfer power to Marina in the womb]]. The runes on Ada Nedifar's belly hint that she was attempting some sort of magic with her unborn daughter, and might have even anticipated her own death. However, there's no explanation of what the runes mean or ''when'' Ada made them; they might have been a simple protection spell enacted to [[spoiler:ensure Marina's survival]] -- possibly at the last second, after Ada was caught in the fire.
** On that note, were the cultists actually demon worshipers, or simply misunderstood neo-pagans with some practices that ''looked'' evil to outsiders? Marina believes it's the latter: she accordingly carries out rituals ascribed to witches, and inscribes Laura's Facebook page with runes that are described as "Wiccan". However, Marina's suicide allows her to rise from the dead as an explicitly evil, demonic, murderous entity, which later [[spoiler: takes possession of Laura's body and steals it from her]] -- all of which are strictly attributed to the [[https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left_Hand_Path#:~:text=Left%20Hand%20Path%20is%20a,Tantra%2C%20Vama%20marga%20in%20Sanskrit Left Hand]] [[TheDarkSide path]]. At least one neo-pagan [[https://beyondelysium.ca/2019/05/17/the-kult-take-friend-request/ viewer]] posits that the cult was devoted to the worship of the demon Sathariel.

* DemonicPossession: One of Undead!Marina's primary abilities. [[spoiler: She uses it to control Laura's friends (and later, her mother) and force them to mutilate and kill themselves. At the end of the film, she also takes control of Laura's body.]]
* DisproportionateRetribution: Marina commits suicide, turns into a vengeful spirit, systematically murders six people, and completely ruins Laura's life and reputation [[spoiler: and steals her body]] -- all because Laura lied about not inviting Marina to her birthday party and unfriended her on Facebook (which only happened in the first place because Marina's clingy, stalker-esque behavior and disturbing artwork frightened her).
** [[spoiler: Gustavo and Laura's mother]] haven't even ''met'' Marina; she murders both of them horribly, just because they represent things that she can never have (a friend and [[spoiler: a living mother]], respectively). [[spoiler: Gustavo is especially egregious, as he's barely Laura's friend in the first place, only spending time with her because he's dating her friend, Isabelle.]]

** On that note, were the cultists actually demon worshipers, or simply misunderstood neo-pagans with some practices that ''looked'' evil to outsiders? Marina believes it's the latter; she accordingly carries out rituals ascribed to witches, and inscribes Laura's Facebook page with runes that are described as "Wiccan". However, Marina's suicide allows her to rise from the dead as an explicitly evil, demonic, murderous entity, which later [[spoiler: takes possession of Laura's body and steals it from her]] -- all of which are strictly attributed to the [[https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left_Hand_Path#:~:text=Left%20Hand%20Path%20is%20a,Tantra%2C%20Vama%20marga%20in%20Sanskrit Left Hand]] [[TheDarkSide path]].

* AmbiguousSituation: The Moore's Grove commune is only mentioned in passing, but its nature -- and the nature of its destruction -- raises many questions:
** Was the fire that destroyed Moore's Grove the work of a criminal arsonist? We see a news report that mentions that the commune was believed to house a demon-worshiping cult, and that a suspect was taken into custody; did someone get wind of what was going on there and take matters into their own hands? Marina herself believes this was the case: one of her Facebook posts has an animation of the burning compound, with the description, "We destroy what we don't other understand". Yet, Marina has no way of knowing precisely what happened (barring supernatural means), and it's just as likely that the fire was planned out by the cultists themselves -- perhaps as a RitualSuicide to [[spoiler:transfer power to Marina in the womb]]. The runes on Ada Nedifar's belly hint that she was attempting some sort of magic with her unborn daughter, and might have even anticipated her own death. However, there's no explanation of what the runes meant or ''when'' Ada made them; they might have been a simple protection spell enacted to [[spoiler:ensure Marina's survival]] -- possibly at the last second, after Ada was caught in the fire.

* AmbiguousSituation: The fire at the Moore's Grove commune. Was it the work of a criminal arsonist? We see a news report that mentions that the commune was believed to have house a demon-worshiping cult, and that a suspect was taken into custody; did someone get wind of what was going on there and take matters into their own hands? Marina herself believed this was the case: one of her Facebook posts had an animation of the burning compound, with the description, "We destroy what we don't other understand." On the other hand, the fire might have been planned out by the cultists themselves -- possibly even a RitualSuicide to [[spoiler:transfer power to Marina in the womb]]: the runes on Ada Nedifar's belly hint that she was attempting some sort of magic with her unborn daughter, and might have even anticipated her own death. However, there is no way of knowing what the runes meant, or when Ada made them; they might have been a simple protection spell to [[spoiler:ensure Marina's survival]] -- possibly at the last second, after Ada was caught in the fire.

* AmbiguousSituation: The fire at the Moore's Grove commune. Was it the work of a criminal arsonist? We see a news report that mentions that the commune was believed to have been home to a demon-worshiping cult, and that a suspect was taken into custody; did someone get wind of what was going on there and take matters into their own hands? Marina herself believed this was the case: one of her Facebook posts had an animation of the burning compound, with the description, "We destroy what we don't other understand." On the other hand, the fire might have been planned out by the cultists themselves -- possibly even a RitualSuicide to [[spoiler:transfer power to Marina in the womb]]: the runes on Ada Nedifar's belly hint that she was attempting some sort of magic with her unborn daughter, and might have even anticipated her own death. However, there is no way of knowing what the runes meant, or when Ada made them; they might have been a simple protection spell to [[spoiler:ensure Marina's survival]] -- possibly at the last second, after Ada was caught in the fire.

* AbandonedArea: Moore's Grove, the commune [[spoiler:where Marina's mother Ada lived (and where Marina was conceived)]]. It was formerly home to a pagan cult, until it mysteriously burned to the ground in a massive fire. On the surface, only the charred walls of the compound remain; however, some hidden subterranean rooms survived (with their pagan accoutrements intact).

** The animation on Marina's Facebook of a burned, heavily pregnant woman with runes carved in the charred flesh of her belly. [[spoiler: It represents Marina's mother, who was declared brain dead after being caught in the fire that burned her commune to the ground.]]

* TheChosenOne: There are several hints that Marina has connections to the deity worshiped by the Moore's Grove cult [[spoiler: -- and may even be its avatar: she was BornFromADeadWoman, and apparently possessed supernatural abilities from an early age (including the power to summon wasps out of nowhere and control electronic devices)]]. That her ritualistic suicide succeeds in resurrecting her as a powerful entity [[spoiler: (and that she was apparently the only person attached to the cult who managed to successfully do so)]] further alludes to this.

* AlliterativeName: '''Marina''' '''M'''ills.

* AmbiguousSituation: The fire at the Moore's Grove commune. Was it the work of a criminal arsonist? We see a news report that mentions that the commune was believed to have been home to a demon-worshiping cult, and that a suspect was taken into custody; did someone get wind of what was going on there and take matters into their own hands? Marina herself believed this was the case: one of her Facebook posts had an animation of the burning compound, with the description, "We destroy what we don't other understand." On the other hand, might the entire thing have been planned out by the cultists -- possibly even a RitualSuicide to [[spoiler:transfer power to Marina in the womb]]? The runes on Ada Nedifar's belly hint that she was attempting some sort of magic with her unborn daughter, and might have even anticipated her own death. However, there is no way of knowing what the runes meant, or when Ada made them; they may have been a simple protection spell to [[spoiler:ensure Marina's survival]] -- possibly even carved at the last second, after Ada was caught in the fire.

* AmbiguousSituation: The fire at the Moore's Grove commune. [[spoiler: Was it the work of a criminal arsonist? We see a news report that mentions that the commune was believed to have been home to a demon-worshiping cult, and that a suspect was taken into custody; did someone get wind of what was going on there and take matters into their own hands? Marina herself believed this was the case: one of her Facebook posts had an animation of the burning compound, with the description, "We destroy what we don't other understand." On the other hand, the entire thing might have been planned out by the cultists -- possibly even a RitualSuicide to transfer power to Marina in the womb; the runes on Ada Nedifar's belly hint that she was attempting some sort of magic with her unborn daughter, and might have even anticipated her own death. However, there is no way of knowing what the runes meant, or when Ada made them; they may have been a simple protection spell to ensure Marina's survival -- possibly even carved at the last second, after Ada was caught in the fire.]]

* AFateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler:Laura loses her friends, her boyfriend, her reputation, and watches the people she's closest to ''and'' her only living relative die horribly before being taken over by Marina, losing her body, mind, and (possibly) her soul as well. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking She also loses her looks]], as Marina has seemingly begun pulling out Laura's hair and neglecting her personal grooming.]]

* AmbiguousSituation: The fire at the Moore's Grove commune. [[spoiler: Was it the work of a criminal arsonist? We see a news report that mentions that the commune was believed to have been home to a demon-worshiping cult, and that a suspect was taken into custody; did someone get wind of what was going on there and take matters into their own hands? Or was the entire thing planned out by the cultists -- possibly even a RitualSuicide? The runes on Ada Nedifar's belly hint that she'd anticipated her death, and was attempting some kind of ritual involving her unborn daughter. However, we have no way of knowing when said carvings were made; it's possible that they were made in a last-ditch effort to protect Marina and ensure her survival after Ada was caught in the fire.]]

** The picture on Marina's Facebook of a burned, heavily pregnant woman with runes carved in the charred flesh of her belly. [[spoiler: It represents Marina's mother, who was declared brain dead after being caught in the fire that burned her commune to the ground.]]

* TheChosenOne: There are several hints that Marina is the avatar of the deity worshiped by the Moore's Grove cult: [[spoiler: she was BornFromADeadWoman, and apparently possessed supernatural abilities from an early age (including the power to summon wasps out of nowhere and control electronic devices)]]. That her ritualistic suicide succeeds in resurrecting her as a powerful entity [[spoiler: (and that she was apparently the only person attached to the cult who managed to successfully do so)]] further alludes to this.

* AFateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler:Laura loses her friends, her boyfriend, had her reputation destroyed, and watches the people she's closest to ''and'' her only living relative die horribly before being taken over by Marina, losing her body, mind, and (possibly) her soul as well. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking She also loses her looks]], as Marina has seemingly begun pulling out Laura's hair and neglecting her personal grooming.]]

* AmbiguousSituation:

* AmbiguousSituation: The fire at the Moore's Grove commune. [[spoiler: Was it a RitualSuicide, as mentioned below, or the result of an arsonist, as suspected? We see a news report that mentions how the commune was believed to be an evil cult, so did someone get wind of what was going on there and try to take matters into their own hands?]]

* {{Commune}}: Moore's Grove, a "farming community" which mysteriously burned to the ground in the mid-1990s. It was home to a pagan cult that was rumored to be demonic. [[spoiler: Marina's mother was a member prior to her death, and Marina herself was conceived there (and may have had ties to the entity worshipped by the cult).]]

* BigEater: Izzy (who is the fattest of Laura's friends) craves chocolate).

* AbandonedArea: Moore's Grove, the commune where Marina's mother Ada lived (and where Marina was conceived). It was formerly home to a pagan cult, until it mysteriously burned to the ground in a massive fire. On the surface, only the charred walls of the compound remain; however, some hidden subterranean rooms survived (with their pagan accoutrements intact).

** The recurring image of two dead boys with swollen, misshapen, mutilated faces. [[spoiler: They're Marina's first victims: two bullies who were stung to death by wasps.]]

* TheChosenOne: There are several hints that Marina is the avatar of the deity worshiped by the Moore's Grove cult: [[spoiler: she was BornFromADeadWoman, and apparently possessed supernatural abilities from an early age (including the power to summon wasps out of nowhere and control electronic devices)]]. That her ritualistic suicide succeeds in resurrecting her as a powerful entity, [[spoiler: (and that she was apparently the only person attached to the cult who managed to do so)]] further alludes to this.

** When Laura's Facebook page is hijacked (with graphic video of Marina's suicide posted to the timeline), tech support is completely unable to remove the offending content or deactivate the page. Nor are they able to do anything when the same happens with videos of Laura's friends. (To be fair, the page itself is cursed, which prevents it from being altered or removed.)
* AFateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler: Laura slowly loses her friends her boyfriend, her reputation, watches the people she's closest to ''and'' her only living relative die horribly, and then is taken over by Marina, losing her body, mind, and (possibly) her soul as well. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking She also loses her looks]], as Marina has seemingly begun pulling out Laura's hair and neglecting her personal grooming.]]

* DownerEnding: [[spoiler: Every major character in the film is killed by Marina, except for Laura, who becomes [[DemonicPossession possessed.]] The film ends with Possessed!Laura -- now going by "Lau Ra", and looking very much like Marina once did -- sitting alone in the cafeteria of a new university, gazing sadly at a group of girls at a nearby table (who look on with disgust and pity) before glancing down at her now friend-less Facebook account. Laura has become Marina in mind, body, and soul, and will likely spend the rest of her life lonely and rejected, in a mind and body that are no longer her own. Not even Marina-in-Laura gets a happy ending, as her actions have left Laura as alone as she was in her first life.]] There's also the very real possibility that [[spoiler: the cycle will repeat itself when Marina-in-Laura tries to make new friends]].

* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: Laura has golden-brown hair and dresses in whites and jewel tones, while Marina is dark-haired and invariably wears dark colors.
* LonersAreFreaks: Marina lives alone, has no friends (literally, with her Facebook profile showing a friend count of zero), always sits by herself. She also hides her face beneath a hood and pulls out her own hair. Laura's friends call her a freak, but Laura takes pity on her and tries to befriend her...only for Marina's clingy behavior to drive her away.
* MagicMirror: Marina uses the screen of her laptop (on which she films her suicide) as a modern version of a black scrying mirror. This allows her soul to use it -- and by extension, ''all'' mirrors and the blackened screens of electronic devices -- as portals.
* MonsterClown: A child's drawing of a black and white, fanged clown (representing Marina's troubled childhood) appears on her Facebook. The same image later appears to her victims.
* NightmareFuelStationAttendant: Marina is a loner who dresses in black and makes surreal, disturbing artwork and animations.