TV is our friend, we all know that. And although the method we view content may have changed over the years, with the current form embraced being that of streaming, it’s still all about the shows.

And one of the most bitter pills to swallow as a TV fan is to become utterly hooked by a show, only to have it cancelled not long after. For us, some of the shows that were cancelled way to soon include Carnivale, Pushing Daisies, The Punisher, and of course Mindhunter - damn you Netflix!

Writer and director Jane Schoenbrun uses our love of TV shows as the backdrop for her film.

Being a ninth grader is hard for Owen, having very little in the way of friends. He is fascinated by trailers for a TV show on the Young Adult Network called The Pink Opaque, about two young women with psychic powers. Unfortunately it’s on too late for him to watch.

Then at school he bumps into Maddy (Brigette Lundy-Paine), who he catches reading a book about the show. He somehow manages to come over to her house for a sleepover, so they can watch the show together.

Two years later and Owen (Justice Smith) is still obsessed with the show, despite it being cancelled for some time. He’s still too young to watch it on his own, but his friendship with Maddy has grown to the point where she videotapes them for him to see. They soon find themselves so wrapped up in the show, which leads them to question not only the reality of the show’s world, but their very own.

You get the impression that perhaps Schoenbrun herself has been obsessed with the odd TV show in her time, with possibly Twin Peaks being a favourite, as it appears to be a heavy influence here.

There’s something very insular about the film, from its look – which is distinctive yet not terribly inspiring - to the reserved performances, and the all too inward looking script. It is the absolute definition of an indie film, but not in a good way.

It’s also laughably described as a horror, but it’s about as scary as a rainbow. Tonally its very flat throughout, especially with performances, so it’s very difficult to assess what emotions any of the characters are having, and fear is definitely not on their range.

There’s the possibility that there is an interesting story in there somewhere, but it’s wrapped in such heavy layers of tedium, it never surfaces.

It all looks and feels like an overlong College film project, that takes itself far too seriously, that manages to look fairly atmospheric without having any atmosphere as far as the story is concerned whatsoever.

The film is a failed attempt to tap into nostalgia, a time of videotapes and video nasties, with what is a disappointingly sedate experience.

The fact is, there are far more interesting things than this worth watching – yes, even a long gone cancelled TV show that’s worth digging up - but this is just a big turn off.