Rated R for violent content, pervasive language, some sexuality, and drug and alcohol use - all involving teens.
Set entirely within a Skype chatroom, teenagers Blaire (Shelley Hennig), Mitch (Moses Storm), Jess (Renee Olstead), Adam (Will Peltz), and Ken (Jacob Wysocki) are enjoying each others company. However, an unknown user has also joined their group. They are unable to get rid of him no matter what they try, and it isn’t long before strange things begin to happen within their computers. They realize that all of this is happening one year to the day that an old friend of their’s turned bully named Laura (Heather Sossaman) committed suicide after an embarrassing video of her went viral. There’s more than enough evidence to prove that this mysterious user is Laura coming back from the grave. And she wants to know who posted the video by forcing the five protagonists to confess or face death. Unfriended is one of the first films to be produced within the Screen Life genre; movies that are told entirely on computer screens. Or at the very least, the first to use it for a mainstream motion picture. It technically counts as found footage because this specific sub-genre derives from it. It’s an interesting experiment that tries, and succeeds, to add a new flavor of style to the found footage genre. This is a great modern example of the classic horror concept of the fear of the unknown. By having the entire film set in a chatroom, we don’t know what’s happening offscreen. The movie takes full advantage of its limited setting to deliver some delightfully fresh scares within the crowded world of jump scare horror. It does have plenty of those, but the fear mostly comes from the tension of the situation. The visual presentation, for being one of the first, is very well executed. We see many familiar websites throughout the film that all start playing a role in the horrific situations the characters find themselves in. The user interface is messed with in supernatural ways that make a basic desktop feel unsafe. You would think that would be a hard task, but this movie pulls it off with ease. The cast also deserves praise for their performances. Even though they’re not playing the most original horror movie characters, and they are clearly older than they’re supposed to be, they all give good performances that become much more unnerving as the film goes along. They all seem genuinely terrified, and that helps with understanding that they are in true danger, and they could be picked off at any point. That being said, it’s not the easiest found footage film to watch. It works off the very relevant concept of modern bullying, and the story finds terrible people getting their comeuppance for their actions. I still enjoy this movie, but this is a fair warning to those who might not like what this movie plays with. Unfriended is mostly an experiment in upgrading found footage to the next level, and mostly works off a simple premise with stock horror characters. However, just because it’s an experiment, doesn’t mean it’s terrible. It has its own supply of fresh scares and clever visuals that suggest this new sub-genre has tons of potential, which has been explored in other movies in recent years.
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Rated R for language throughout and some sexuality/nudity.
Ever since a strange incident at a party, Reid (Reid Warner) has been obsessed with the concept of UFOs and beings beyond our planet. His friends Darrin (Darrin Bragg) and Ben (Ben Rovner) aren’t too thrilled about his new hobby, but are willing to play along with his plan to infiltrate the infamous government base known as Area 51, which has always been rumored to house evidence of extraterrestrials. With the help of a local named Jelena (Jelena Nik), who’s father used to work at the base, the quartet successfully break into the compound, somehow without detection. Even though the surface levels only look like a standard government base, as they venture deeper into the lower levels, they start finding what they’ve been looking for; alien artifacts and captured specimens that have decided to use their break-in as a chance to escape. Area 51 is the second film from writer/director Oren Peli, the creator of the original Paranormal Activity. Despite the hype created around it, the movie was delayed for several years and suffered from numerous re-writes and reshoots. It wasn’t until early summer 2015 that the movie finally saw a release on video on demand, where it was thoroughly savaged by critics for not being as original as his first film. But while it doesn’t quite reach the heights of first film, Peil’s second outing does a lot different from the standard conspiracy/alien horror format. First of all, it spends much of the first half of the film setting up their strategy for getting into the base. This feels like a great departure from the basic setup where the characters very easily break into the facility without detection. Seeing the details leading up to this adds a fresh layer to the story. There’s one scene in particular where the characters break into the home of a high-ranking official in order to steal the things necessary to move around the base. But before they are able to make it out, the man comes home with his wife and daughter, and the character with the camera is forced to hide in the bathroom while the family gets ready for bed. This scene is one of the better parts of the film, because it creates great tension from knowing the characters are mere inches away from the people they’re stealing from. The movie starts getting really good when they finally reach the base and start heading down to the lower levels. It’s here where they start introducing new ideas by giving us an up close and personal look at the types of alien technologies the government is working with. The visual effects used to bring these concepts to life are really well done and gel well with the shaky cam footage they inhabit. The production design of the base is also exceptionally well done. There are several different kinds of rooms they stumble upon, each with a different kind of alien artifact in it. As they go deeper into the bowels of the base, it feels more like a twisting labyrinth where you’re not quite sure what could be around the corner. Overall, Area 51 isn’t as strong a film as Paranormal Activity, but represents director Oren Peli beginning to branch out and work with larger concepts. It offers a fresh take on movies revolving around the supposed secrets surrounding the base. And even if it has some pacing issues here and there, it adds enough fresh layers to its formula to feel like its own thing. It deserves to be appreciated for what it is rather than what it wasn’t. Not Rated (Contains Strong Language, Sexual Content, and Disturbing Bloody Violence)
While the critical reception towards Grave Encounters was varied upon release, the film gained a cult following. There is a pretty intense fanbase around the movie, and with good reason. As my previous review stated, it is not only one of the best of the found footage genre but a great movie all by itself. So, it’s no surprise that the producers would want to cash in on this fandom by making a sequel. But in the world of the sequel, the first Grave Encounters is only a movie; one that has become the obsession of college film student Alex Wright (Richard Harmon). After giving it a particularly scathing review, he begins receiving messages from someone who claims the movie is actually real. After some investigating, Alex begins to believe that the movie truly is real footage that was disguised as a found footage movie. Determined to find the truth, Alex and his friends Jennifer (Leanne Lapp), Trevor (Dylan Playfair), Tessa (Stephanie Bennett), and Jared (Howard Lai) journey to the same hospital where the movie was shot. As they begin to conduct their own investigation, it isn’t long before they’re faced with their own supernatural encounters, as they come to the horrifying realization that the first film’s threats are real, and they have become the next targets. Grave Encounters 2 is often considered to be inferior to the first. Despite an amped up production budget that resulted in better visuals than the first, it received significantly worse reviews. Even I’ll admit that it’s not as good as the original. The characters aren’t as likable as the cast of the original, and the meta story creates some continuity issues when trying to match it up with the first film. But the story is one of the more original parts about the film. It avoids the sequel cliché of just repeating the first film, and acts as a long-overdue commentary on the abundance and tropes of the found footage genre. It also offers commentary on filmmakers attempting to market found footage movies as real footage of missing people. All of this makes for a genuinely entertaining story that feels like a proper continuation of the first, while still doing its own thing. The story also expands on the supernatural side of the first film and goes into why the building keeps shifting and changing around whoever is inside it. It goes into much more dark fantasy territory, and it is easy to see how this shift might upset some people. It’s a departure from the atmosphere of the original, but it’s an interesting continuation that at least tries to be something different. And as I said above, the higher budget results in greater production design and visuals than the first. This time around, the characters are taken to more places in the hospital, including air ducts, children wards, and places that look right out of a fairy tale. The higher quality visual effects allow for more direct visibility of the hospital halls moving around, and it looks really convincing. And while the new cast of characters aren’t as good, Sean Rogerson’s return to the series gives us another great performance from him. After being trapped in the hospital for a decade, he’s been driven mad. He gives a performance that surpasses his from the original, as he plays a convincing lunatic that you can’t really figure out whether he wants to help the characters or hurt them. Grave Encounters 2 isn’t as good as the original, but it tries to be something different rather than just repeat the story, and that’s enough of an achievement from a low-budget horror sequel. It features upgraded visuals that puts a new spin on the twisty location we knew from the first film, and the meta undertones add a fresh flavor to not only this film, but found footage as a whole. Your enjoyment will depend on whether or not you’re accepting of what new things it brings to the table. Not Rated (Contains Strong Language and Disturbing Violent Content)
In 2003, producer Jerry Hartfeld (Ben Wilkinson) greenlit production of a ghost hunting series called Grave Encounters. The show was created and hosted by Lance Preston (Sean Rogerson), who was determined to find evidence of the supernatural. But the show never made it to air, and Hartfeld explains that they only made it to episode six before production mysteriously shutdown. For this episode, the team, consisting of tech wiz Matt (Juan Riedinger), camera operators Sasha (Ashleigh Gryzko) and T.C. (Merwin Mondesir), and psychic Houston (Mackenzie Gray), are investigating the abandoned Collingwood Psychiatric Hospital. The building has a colorful history, having operated during the time when the mentally ill were treated more like nuances rather than patients. As night falls, the group locks themselves in the building for the night. Though nothing much happens at first, eventually the spirits of the hospital begin to show themselves through playful interactions. Soon the team find themselves lost in the seemingly ever-changing labyrinth of the halls and are faced more aggressive entities. They’ll have to face their worst fears in order to keep their sanity and avoid becoming the newest patients of the hospital. Grave Encounters is the first film from the duo known as The Vicious Brothers, and acts as an homage/parody of the abundance of ghost hunting reality shows and their various clichés. Right off the bat, the movie feels like a beat-for-beat ripoff of the famous series Ghost Adventures. Everything from the team’s process, to the name of the show, to Rogerson being basically a doppelgänger of Zak Bagans are direct references to that show. Only this time, the team finds something much more menacing than your average, run-of-the-mill spirits. The twisty production design and visual effects is one of the film’s biggest accomplishments. For a movie shot on a budget of just over a hundred thousand dollars, the crew does an amazing job making it look like the halls of the building are really shifting around the characters. The ghost hunting show format also allows for the film to provide a reasonable case for exposition. Many movies struggle to meld story information into natural dialogue, feeling more like lectures rather than people talking. Using this format allows for characters in the opening act to give us information dumps about the history of the hospital while feeling appropriate for the scene. The performances of the cast are also a highlight. Each member of the Grave Encounters team do an amazing job of fitting their respective characters within the format of the show. Sean Rogerson, in particular, does an amazing job filling the role of the overly egotistical team leader. But once the horror kicks in, he gives a genuinely unnerving performance that really shows how scared and confused he is by situation he’s in. Grave Encounters ranks among the best of the found footage genre for the way it uses ghost hunting television to create a suspenseful and terrifying journey into madness, while also utilizing a clever script and great production values to twist the genre’s conventions on their head. As someone who was obsessed with these types of shows at the time of its release, as well as just starting to develop my love of found footage, this film gave me everything I wanted and more. It’s not just a great horror movie, but a great movie period. Rated PG-13 for disturbing violent content and terror, some sexual references and thematic material.
For years, Reverend Cotton Marcus (Patrick Fabian) has been performing exorcisms and has had a strong faith in God. However, after his son almost died during childbirth, he has lost his faith. He know merely masquerades as an exorcist, helping people expel the “demons” from their bodies with props and special effects. Essentially, he takes advantage of people’s faith as a form of helping them heal mentally. Hoping to prove religion as the sham he thinks it is, he has hired documentary filmmaker Iris Reisen (Iris Bahr) and her cameraman Daniel (Adam Grimes) to film his final exorcism before retirement. This leads the trio to a small Georgia town and the home of Louis Sweetzer (Louis Herthum). He had sent a request to Marcus explaining that he believes a demon has possessed his young daughter Nell (Ashley Bell). At first it seems like business as usual as Marcus performs his regular exorcism, and it appears to work. But something seems off as Nell continues to display disturbed behavior, and it becomes harder and harder to decipher the exact origins behind her actions. It becomes clear that Marcus is dealing with something more genuine, and will have to rediscover his faith is he wants to save Nell’s soul. It’s the performance of Ashley Bell that’s the true standout of the film. The character performs many contortions and physical abnormalities, something that Bell was fully capable of pulling off. She also gives a very unsettling portrayal of Nell, able to switch from innocent young girl to possessed sociopath with equal ease. Patrick Fabian also gives a great performance as Cotton Marcus. He has a very charismatic personality that gives his character life and makes him very watchable. He’s also able to keep us guessing as to what he truly believes. When Nell acts more psychotic, it’s hard to pin down exactly what Marcus believes. He states his belief that she is mentally ill, but his facial expressions say that he might be questioning that belief. The screenplay by Huck Botko and Andrew Garland is also one of the best of the found footage genre. The idea of a priest using a documentary to prove religion is wrong is an interesting concept, and their script does a good job twisting not only the format’s conventions at the time, but also the central mystery. There are several red herrings throughout that keep us guessing until the very end. We’re also at uneasy due to the overall dreadfulness of the film. The use of southern American setting, and the unsettling bayou-style score all work in making us feel consistently creeped out. Places like Louisiana and Georgia are already kind of creepy because of the strange things that people do down there. This movie works off of that basic fear and emphasizes what is already off-putting about that area. The Last Exorcism is a twisty and frightening tale about what happens when one uses faith for personal gain, as well as when belief in science collides with a belief in religion. It features great performances from the cast (particularly Bell and Fabian), and a twisty story that constantly defies audience expectations and keeps you guessing until the chilling climax. It’s a generally liked film that still feels underrated at times. Rated R for language and some bloody images.
Zach (Zach Gilford) and Sam (Allison Miller) are a young couple celebrating their wedding. Inspired by his own childhood, Zach buys a video camera with the intention of documenting every moment together. Sam enjoys this, as she’s an orphan and has very little memory of her own childhood. After an eventful honeymoon in the Dominican Republic, including a night that they can’t seem to remember, the couple find themselves faced with their first pregnancy. Even though Sam isn’t that thrilled to become a mother, the couple nonetheless prepare for the arrival of the baby. But something seems to be wrong as they find themselves stalked by mysterious people, and Sam begins displaying aggressive behavior. Zach is determined to find out the truth and stop whatever sinister force is tied to their child. Much of the criticism people have had about Devil’s Due is that it seems very similar to films like Rosemary’s Baby and Paranormal Activity; essentially combining both concepts together. However, in my opinion, the film manages to make both concepts work, creating more of a modern update to the antichirst story rather than just a straight ripoff. A lot of this comes from the performances of Allison Miller and Zach Gilford. They have a magnetic chemistry that paints a great picture of a young, modern couple. Zach is someone who wants a kid despite not quite being ready for one yet, and Sam is someone who wishes to put career over family. There isn’t much in the way of character development, but their portrayals of the characters help make them likable leads. The movie also offers a great portrayal of a modern family that helps add to the increasing horror. Zach and Sam’s basic activities as they prepare for the baby are relatable and fun to watch. Then the film twists these playful images when the realization that their baby is the antichirst comes along. This really puts us on edge as the characters are thrown into a nightmare world that they can’t seem to escape. This all comes together in the final act that goes all in for the big jump scares as Zach races to save his wife from the evil cult they’ve gotten tangled up in. Once the movie has reached this point, the tension has been successfully built up to the point where many of these scares land hard and are able to keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end. Personally, I like the experimental structure the film plays with. Directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett say that the film isn’t portrayed as recovered footage, but is just told from the perspective of the cameras present at the time. I believe this setup allows for more playful directing of the scenes, and the duo take full advantage of this by crafting some really well put together shots that help with the visual side of the storytelling. Devil’s Due is another very underrated addition to the found footage genre that was once again torn apart for being similar to other movies, and not given the praise it deserves for what it does on its own. It features great performances, great terror, and a unique use of the found footage format that allows for more creative ideas to be included into the visuals. This has developed a cult following in the years following its release, so it’s great that people are giving it the love it deserves. Rated R for disturbing bloody violence and language.
Clif Prowse and Derek Lee have been friends for most of their lives, having made movies together since they were kids. They have always dreamed of traveling the world and seeing what there is to see. They’ve decided to take their trip now because Derek has been diagnosed with a brain abnormality that could cause his death at any moment. So, armed with several video cameras, the two set off on the trip of a lifetime with the plan to turn it into a video blog. As their dream vacation begins, Derek meets a young woman that ends up attacking and abandoning him. They just assume she intended to rob him, but as they journey along, Derek begins showing signs of a mysterious illness. He begins to develop superhuman abilities such as increased strength and speed, but also develops a growing dark side that leads him on a mission to discover what he has become before he hurts those closest to him. Right from the start, the characters of Clif and Derek are easy to love because of their natural chemistry. The two have been friends for most of their lives in real life, much like their characters in the film. This helps make the duo likable in their adventures during the first act. Then when the horror kicks up, they really seem like they care about one another. Their performances are also a highlight. As their first feature film, and also acting as the writers and directors, the two give great performances and really imbue their roles with life. They never feel like they’re just reading from a script. I don’t know much about the duo, but what we’re given shows that they’re kind of portraying fictional versions of themselves; since they’re backstories mirror their own. But they really feel natural. Despite the low budget, the visuals of the film are quite impressive. When CGI is used, it gels with the environment well, and their use of practical effects and stunts are very impressive as well. Overall, along with the types of cameras used, it feels very cinematic when compared to most found footage movies. And considering the minuscule budget they shot it on, it’s quite an accomplishment. It’s also worth noting that the creatures used in the film are another highlight. I won’t spoil the big reveal, as the trailers do an amazing job of not giving it away, but I will say that the main subject of the story is a classic horror monster. And the way they’ve chosen to portray it feels absolutely fresh when compared to most modern interpretations. It’s great to see someone try and bring some fright back into one of the genre’s icons. Afflicted boasts some really impressive technical aspects despite being shot on money that was mostly funded through family and the Internet. It’s one of the best looking found footage movies; a big advantage for those of you looking for one that doesn’t rely on shaky cam. And the performances and chemistry of Lee and Prowse help elevate the likability of their characters. I am looking forward to seeing what these two produce in the future. Rated R for disturbing violent content including bloody images, language, and brief drug use.
Reporters Sam (AJ Bowen), Jake (Joe Swanberg), and Patrick (Kentucker Audley) have been to many different places during their careers at Vice. But they never thought they’d come across a story like the one that has fallen into their laps. Years ago, Patrick’s sister Caroline (Amy Seimetz) joined a community to help escape her drug addiction. Now, he’s received a letter saying that she and the rest of the group have moved to a commune called Eden Parrish. So, the three journey down there, with Sam and Jake intending to turn Patrick and Caroline’s reunion into their next big story. They also intend to show the world the Parrish’s utopian intentions. But once they arrive, they immediately see signs that things are not quite what they seem on the angelic surface. And the more time they spend, the more they learn that there’s a darkness bubbling to the surface, and they’ll have to act fast if they want to escape with their lives. The Sacrament, from well-known horror filmmaker Ti West (The House of the Devil and The Innkeepers), takes its inspiration from the Jonestown Massacre from 1978. For those of you who don’t know, Jonestown was a religious community that was formed in South American by a man named Jim Jones. An extremely paranoid man, Jones never let anyone leave the camp and was very manipulative of his people. They were visited by politician Leo Ryan, who was investigating the commune, and even though he was planning to give a good report, Jones ordered his men to shoot down Ryan and his party. Following this, Jones ordered everyone to commit suicide with cyanide-laced drinks, and killed anyone who refused to go along. To this day, it remains one of the largest mass suicides in recorded history. And the film follows the story almost perfectly. Every last detail pretty much covers what happened that last day in Jonestown. While it may seem disrespectful to do this, in reality it’s quite the opposite. West’s fictional take on the story actually pays respect to the victims of the incident and never feels like he’s exploiting the story for entertainment. Having the knowledge of this helps add to the intense and menacing atmosphere of the film. I had never come across any horror movie that fit the term “bone-chilling” until I saw this one. There’s no real jump scares in here, but what we see is enough to send chills down your spine. It almost feels like watching a full-blown nightmare, only you’re awake. This has always been one of West’s strengths, and it serves him well here. This feeling is aided by just how real the who film feels. Despite the fact that the actors are relatively known, there are times when this movie feels more like a documentary. This is because West’s script is the perfect blend of naturalistic dialogue and horrific situations. The characters sound like real human beings and we care about what happens to them, which successfully gets a reaction out of the audience when things deadly. The Sacrament is hard to watch in places, and even more so when you realize that what’s depicted isn’t as bad as the event that inspired it. But if you’re looking for a movie about the Jonestown Massacre, then this is the film for you. It pays proper respect to the victims while updating the setting in a way that isn’t in poor taste, and Ti West crafts a menacing atmosphere that truly gets under your skin. Rated R for violence, disturbing images, language and brief nudity.
There are some found footage movies that sometimes take a long time to get released. Many of them are independent films made without the involvement of major studios. So the chances of the film getting picked up aren’t very good, especially when the demand for found footage movies is basically gone now. Sometimes, the film just doesn’t get released at all, and we’re only left wondering what they’re about. One such film that took forever to be released is a film simply called Evidence, shot back in 2010. The trailer showed up in 2011, but the film failed to make an appearance for several years before I finally saw it thanks to a bootlegged copy on YouTube. It wasn’t until recently that I saw that it has finally showed up on iTunes. But unless you actually know the film you’re looking for, you probably wouldn’t stumble across it. The story begins as a sort-of Blair Witch clone, following best friends Ryan (Ryan McCoy), Brett (Brett Rosenberg), Abi (Abi Richie), and Ashley (Ashley Bracken). The quartet are heading out for a relaxing vacation in the woods, with Ryan making a documentary about this. They hope to have just a fun weekend with nature. But it soon becomes apparent that something isn’t quite right with their surroundings. While hiking, Ryan captures what looks like an unidentifiable creature in a ravine. Things become uneasy as they realize the creature has seen them, and is now stalking them. As they fight to escape it, they realize that they’ve stumbled into something much bigger than they could’ve imagined. It’s this shift in tone that helps it become much more than a ripoff of the aforementioned film. Evidence consistently plays with the audience’s expectations and successfully twists them in ways that keep you guessing. You never get the full picture of what’s going on, and you’re never quite sure what’s going to happen next. Once the third act kicks in, things get really strange as the characters find themselves lost in a ransacked facility of some kind. For a movie shot on a budget of $12,000, the sets look really good. They really look like they’re lost in a labyrinth with dangers lurking around every corner. The visuals are also well done, with the design of the creature being scary without looking too cheesy, even if some shots of it show the cheapness of it. Evidence may run on a familiar premise, but what it does with the formula makes it consistently entertaining. It looks really good for something shot on a minuscule budget, with set design and visual effects that boast a look much better than you might think. It’s a twisty story that keeps you guessing about the truth and manages to live up to my personal hype when I finally got to see it. Rated R for language, terror and some disturbing images.
After the massive success of The Blair Witch Project, it’s no surprise that studios would want to cash in on that success with a sequel. This came in the form of Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, made just one year later and sporting a highly meta-based story that, much like the first film, also feels ahead of its time. But audiences weren’t accepting of the film and the franchise went dormant. That is, until 2016 when Lionsgate revealed a produced sequel, simply titled Blair Witch. Directed by longtime indie horror director Adam Wingard, the film was initially billed as an original found footage horror film called The Woods that only took inspiration from the original film (according to early interviews with Wingard). It wasn’t until the film premiered at Comic Con that year that its true nature was revealed. This sequel completely ignores the event of Blair Witch 2 and focuses on James Donahue (James Allen McCune), the previously unknown younger brother of missing college student Heather. Having only been 4 when she disappeared, he has spent his entire life attempting to learn the truth behind what happened to her. But it isn’t until he receives a mysterious video that he decides to take the journey himself. He recruits his friends Lisa (Callie Hernandez), Peter (Brandon Scott) and Ashley (Corbin Reid) to make a documentary like his sister did, but this time, James intends to find the truth that his sister couldn’t. They are joined by two Burkittsville locals Talia (Valorie Curry) and Lane (Wes Robinson), the latter of which was the one who found the video. Journeying into the Black Hills Woods, the group aren’t quick to believe in the stories of the witch, and all but James believe Heather simply got lost and died of natural causes. But the more time they spend there, the more things around them don’t really seem right. Soon, it becomes clear that something in the woods is stalking them, as they become the next targets of the Blair Witch. And in my opinion, this pretty much lives up to the hype created by the unique marketing, as Blair Witch is a satisfying continuation to its genre-defining original. It doesn’t do much to expand on the witch’s backstory, but it does expand on the variety of powers she’s capable of, which helps to give explanations to some of the events of the first film. The biggest difference between the two films is its use of scares. While the first film relied on only implying the witch’s presence, this one goes all in for the loud jump scares. It would be easy for the filmmakers to fail at this, but luckily they created a chilling atmosphere that helps make these big jump scares terrifying, making them feel like satisfying payoffs rather than just loud booms. It also updates the use of found footage when compared to the original. Rather than just two cameras, the characters are loaded with at least a dozen in all varieties; from ear cameras to drones. This helps add a fresh, modern flare to the premise, and allows us to see multiple angles of the story rather than just one side. Blair Witch is much more studio-centric film, with more visual effects and in your face scares in contrast to the more atmospheric original. But with horror expert Adam Wingard behind the camera, he knows how to justify the amped up scares with a creepy tone that already makes us feel uneasy about the situation. It’s a worthy follow up that doesn’t achieve classic status, but offers enough modern updates and twists that make it a great horror film on its own. |
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