3.5/5
Written by Luke Barnes
Summary
A young couple is plagued by strange goings on so decide to record everything that is happening for reasons.
I remember when I was young and I first watched this I was terrified. A friend had convinced me that it was all real and it really messed me up for a few nights after watching. Now years later I know it is not real but I still find this film scary. I know a lot of the people don’t like the franchise for what it would later become and the litany of clones it spawned, but I think this film plays with expectations and builds tensions in such a superb way.
As the film progress and Micah, Micah Sloat, becomes more and more annoying the tension really does amp up and you start to believe it and really empathises with the couple. Obviously the film uses jump scares in its horror but I think it does it better than later films not just in the series but in the genre as they enhance the atmosphere of fear rathe than acting as a standin.
The film has so much promise and so much mystery, sadly they would ruin that as the series progressed, but this film has a fantastic mythology to it.
My main complaint with this film would be that it has a very slow start, made worse by the use of shaky cam and the whole home video aspect.
Overall, an enjoyable film with a few issues.
Pros.
A strong mythology
A nice tense atmosphere
The ending
A few good scares
Cons.
Pacing issues
Micah is an awful character and is super toxic
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Another Millennial Reviewer 