10 Documentaries More Terrifying Than Most Horror Films

Tickled begins with documentary filmmakers David Farrier and Dylan Reeve discovering the world of Competitive Endurance Tickling. It’s a place where young men, as the name suggests, tickle each other for sport. All of which is ran by a company called Jane O’Brien Media. It seemed like a fantastic idea for a quirky documentary project. But don’t let the amusing premise fool you. It doesn’t take long for the pair’s investigation to turn sour.

When they reached out to interview O’Brien for their film, they responded with what can only be described as homophobia and hatred. Homoerotic undertones of competitive tickling aside, this response only spurred the filmmakers’ search further. And events only get more surreal from here.

Without spoiling anything too much (because this is one film that should never be spoiled), their journey into this rabbit hole of tickling uncovers extortion, threats, and the shady people behind it all. There are even points in this film where viewers will be genuinely concerned for Farrier and Reeves’ safety.

The madness didn’t stop when the credits rolled either. A short follow-up film called The Tickle King was released in June 2017 which showed what happened when Tickled toured the festival circuit.