my thoughts on.... 'Grave Encounters'

Hoooo boy, another 'found footage' movie! I know that's what you're saying right about now. However, before you jump to the usual conclusions, let me tell you a little bit about 'Grave Encounters'. First of all, it's got a bit more going for it than the average 'found footage' movie. The Vicious Brothers, who wrote and directed this, took their time to get some nasty special effects going on. Instead of relying on sound and things that aren't there, these two show you EXACTLY what you're facing. These ghosts are creepy and scary. When they turn on the 'BOO!' factor, it's on full blast! Secondly, they've taken a new twist on an old theme. What we have is a movie based on all those 'ghost hunting' reality shows that are out there right now. But in this movie, they say that 'Grave Encounters (the show) was way ahead of its time. You see a lot of behind the scenes stuff that probably happens on the real shows, but we never get to see it. That alone makes this movie fun to watch.

Here's the basic plot from Netflix.com: "In this horror flick, the stars of a paranormal-investigation TV show spend the night in a derelict psychiatric hospital, hoping to uncover what's been going bump in the night. As their cameras roll, they find themselves trapped -- and hunted." The last sentences there is what really sets this apart in the end. In the beginning, it feels like very familiar territory. Low budget scares and night vision shots or things moving or opening and closing. In the second act, things change. Suddenly, the TV crew realizes that everything has changed in the building and it seems that the building is not going to let them get out.... alive. Everything keeps shifting and moving so they can't ever find an exit. The crew goes round and round for, literally, days trying to get out. In the end, will anyone make it out alive? You have to see it to belive what happens. (That last part is showmanship, the ending is kind lame actually.)I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. It's by far, NOT the best movie in this sub-sub-genre.... but it's a whole lot better than most. It kind of makes me wonder what The Vicious Brothers have next on their plate? I can honestly say that I'm anxious to see whatever else they put out in the future. This was a strong indie movie that shows great promise. I couldn't see myself giving it more than 3 stars. The ending was so poorly thought out, that it almost seemed like an afterthought. However, don't let that distract you from the good things in this movie.... like the scares. This felt like a new movie to me in a very saturated market. You all may have already seen the commercial or the YouTube.com trailer for 'Grave Encounters'. It gives away a few of the high points in the movie, but there is so much more than that.

'Found footage' is never going to go away and I feel that over time, it's going to become more and more common. These kind of movies are cheap and make a profit, it's the indie zombie movie of this next generation of film makers. Whereas, you can find 1,000 indie zombie films to watch because every first film maker wants to start that way. Now, it's the found footage movies that are taking their place. Is that a good thing? That remains to be seen. This movie gives me hope, as there are glimmers of hope sprinkled throughout.

If you like this, check out similar titles like, 'Paranormal Activity', 'Paranormal Activity 2', and 'Paranormal Entity'

my thoughts on.... 'Paranormal Activity 2: Tokyo Night' aka 'Paranômaru akutibiti: Dai-2-shô - Tokyo Night'

We've all heard of or seen the cultural phenomenon of the 'Paranormal Activity' films. To date, there are three that have been made in the states. Two have already made their way to DVD and the third is finishing up production as we speak. However, not everyone realizes that after the success of the original hit our neighbors overseas, the Japanese wanted in on the game. They decided to make an unofficial sequel to the original that basically ties together with the American version and continues the story. Meanwhile, we were continuing the story on our own. What resulted is an interesting twist on something that was already interesting to begin with. It's another take on an already established franchise and it's kind of fun to see how it all plays out in another culture. Sadly, the version I watched had terrible subtitles and even though I don't speak the language, I could tell that what was written on the bottom of the screen, did not match up with what was actually being said. You don't have to be Japanese to understand that. What I did because of that was to read what was written on the bottom of the screen and made my best effort to make sense of it all. I think I got the entire story and I left feeling that I fully got the story and what happened. Is it a worthy addition to the franchise? That kind of remains to be seen. I haven't heard too much feedback on it yet and from what I have heard, it's not the most popular ghost film out there. All I'll say right now is that I'm a fan of the series, even if that's kind of unpopular, and I love seeing anything tied together with it.... no matter how removed.

So, how does it tie together ploy wise? Here's the plot according to Wiki: "The Yamano family lives in a secluded home in a remote Tokyo residential area. Their 27-year-old daughter Haruka (Noriko Aoyama) suffered a compound fracture in a car accident while traveling in America. Haruka returns home in a wheelchair. There to meet her is her younger brother 19-year-old Koichi (Aoi Nakamura), her younger brother. Their father is away from the Yamano resident due to a business trip abroad. Koichi is left to take of his sister for until she can walk again. Not long after, strange occurrences happen in the Yamano home. Haruka's wheelchair, which was left in her room, is found in another room. Their is salt found spread around their house. Koichi becomes uneasy by these events and, because of this, he persuades his sister to set up a video camera in her room. The video camera is connected to a computer screen so Koichi can see what is going on and, if necessary, run to Haruka's room. What Koichi discovers is beyond anything he could have imagined. Noises at midnight, a cup on a table breaks, even a friend, who never gets scared, becomes terrified. The situation worsens with Haruka and Koichi threatened directly. Finally, a terrible fact is revealed." I don't think the secret is anything to amazing. As it turns out, the person who part Haruka in the wheelchair is Katie from the original film. It took place AFTER the end of the original, so I guess the theory is that the entity followed Haruka back to Tokyo? Based on the subtitles I read, that's the jist of it. Yes, that does seem a bit confusing and can almost be tied to the original timeline.... but you might need to take a small leap of faith.Well, how will this be received by me or by the general public? I'm a bit of a biased fan and I've already kind of made it clear, that I enjoyed this installment.... problems and all. But the rest of the world? I don't know. I think with the proper subtitling this might go over fine. The ending is quite a stretch and it felt like the makers weren't quite sure where to go with the storyline. It's sad to me, because there was a lot of strength earlier on in the story. Seeing how things were handled in a totally different culture vs. how the American counterparts handled it was the refreshing part of the film. All in all, the result still kind of ended up the same. The film also has some slow points, but so does the American version. This film and the others are not built around non-stop action, it's more about the slow build up to each scare. You never quite know exactly what's about to happen and that's right on par with the rest of the series. I think that despite it's obvious faults, this film still qualifies as a worthwhile addition to the story.

I may get letters of confusion about my feelings on 'Paranormal Activity 2: Tokyo Night', but I would like to add this to my collection. I think the Japanese did the best they could based on the source material and made sure to put their own spin on the storyline. It felt like a part of the original, but still had it's own identity and voice. The actors were decent and sold the fact that they were supposed to all be living what was happening in the story. I kind of think that the side story with their father was a bit off track with everything else. The two leads were old enough to live on their own, I don't quite understand why they were still living with him. It also felt a little forced when they had guests over and one of them HAPPENED to be able to see spirits and quickly picked up on the haunting in their home. It was all a little too easy. In the end, I felt it deserved at least 3 out of 5 stars. Not the strongest in the series, but it didn't have to be.... it was unofficial. It was merely "based" on the original 'Paranormal Activity'. I'm left wondering how much re-watchability this film has? And exactly where I would watch it if I was watching them all in order? Would it come after number one or number two? That's all kind of moot anyway. Go out and track it down for yourself and let me know what you think. It's not readily available here in the states just yet, but you can track it down if you look.... bad subtitles and all.

If you like this, watch: 'Paranormal Activity', 'Paranormal Activity 2' and 'Paranormal Entity'

my very brief thoughts on.... '8213: Gacy House'

When 'The Blair Witch Project' came out, the whole "found fottage" phenomenom was brand new. Now days, it's everywhere. It's an inexpensive way to make your first movie and a lot of people are taking advantage of that. Some have been pretty effective, then there's '8213: Gacy House'. I'm not saying it's ineffective, but it is not as good as some of the others movies like this that i've seen. I do feel like it's kind of in bad taste to use the tragedy of John Wayne Gacy's crimes as a backdrop for this movie. I can't think of any movies that have used the ghost of a real serial killer as the main villan. I remember the whole John Wayne Gacy story. I was alive when it all went down and even celebrated on the night of his death with friends. Because of all that, I have to say I felt this was a little bit in bad taste. Granted, there is a pretty big niche market for movies that are being made about serial killers. There are a few examples of big budget ones, like 'Zodiac' by David Fincher. Then there are countless others that are made on a low budget and for the lowest common reasons. Like 'Dahmer', 'Gacy', 'Bundy', etc. I've seen some of these and for the most part they're exactly what you'd expect. Direct to DVD stuff that is just made to cash in on a famous name. Some of them feature big named b-grade actors and same make the careers of future actors. Case in point: 'Dahmer' starred a young Jeremy Renner. I felt like he was the only worthwhile aspect of that movie. He brought that character to life and now look at him. He's quickly becoming the toast of Hollywood. Anyway, I'm off track. '8213: Gacy House' is less about the real events of his life, but more about the fictional events of his afterlife.

This is the basic breakdown of the plot from both http://www.imdb.com and http://www.Netflix.com: "A group of paranormal investigators enter the abandoned home of pedophile and serial killer John Gacy, hoping to find evidence of paranormal activity. Upon entering the house they set-up cameras throughout the abandoned house while going room to room with hand-held cameras, performing séances and asking for John Gacy to come forward. As the evening progresses it seems the investigators are not prepared for the horror still within the house. Although Gacy's house of horrors has long since been demolished, with another house erected in its place, the tortured spirits of his 33 victims seem to be alive and well." I can say that this is pretty much the exact storyline. 6 people walk into a supposed haunted house of a former serial killer to find out the truth about the hauntings and no one walks out alive. This is the fottage of that night found later. BOO!

Don't get me wrong, I love a lot of these kinds of movies. 'The Blair Witch Project' even made it into my 'Top 50 Films Of All Time' list. There is something eerie about them. I've always been fascinated by ghosts and realized a long time ago that we might not ever have real proof of paranormal activty caught on camera. Therefore, these types of movies are the closest thing to that for me. I felt kind of dirty watching this because of what it was cashing in on, but at the same time I was looking forward to seeing it as it looked like a decent example of the found fottage genre. It reminded me quite a bit of 'Death of a Ghost Hunter' in the feel of the movie. I'm pretty sure it was in the same budget as well. It's OnDemand right now and may or may not be worth your time, but I don't recommend you renting it.

What I liked about this movie was the cast, they were pretty good. I liked the location, it was pretty effective for a ghost story. I liked the cinematography, it was fairly well done for this kind of movie. What I didn't like, was the fact that the house looked damn good for being abandonded for so long. I also didn't like the fact that this isn't the original house (as it was no longer around) but a rebuilt house. The cast still treated it like it was the original house that the crimes occured in. It overall just just felt kind of off. I'm not 100% sure why that is, perhaps it was the ghost in his 'wife beater' shirt and tighty whitey's attacking one of the victims. Who knows? For taking a new spin on an old genre, I gave it 2 out of 5 stars. I may be being generous or perhaps it's something else. Either way, you're watching this movie at your own risk. I am not planning on seeing it again at any point. Perhaps the next movie from these people will be better, perhaps it will be about spending the night in the apartment across from where Jefery Dahmer lived in Michigan! OOOO, scary. I'll stick with my 'Paranormal' Activity' and the like.

my brief thoughts on.... 'Paranormal Entity'

i've stayed away from the ripoffs of popular films, ever since i saw some of 'Tranmorphers'.... blech.... this appeared to be one of those "mockbusters".... however, i thought that i'd give it a shot.... i mean, how bad could it be....? well, i stand corrected.... this was actually pretty well done and although it felt a lot like 'Paranormal Activity', it was still its own movie.... and a pretty good one at that.... the story is pretty different.... a bit more violent.... and creepy.... the acting was above par for your average straight to DVD release.... the effects were well done, what few there were.... i honestly felt chills a few times.... this is available OnDemand right now.... and i would ask that you consider watching it.... it just proves that not all of these types of films are bad....

here's the plot.... footage is found in the attic of a home where multiple murders occured and only one man survived, who was accused of the crimes.... these videos are put together to make the movie.... as evidence of what happened....
i gave it 3 out of 5 stars.... i think it was a nice bookend to 'Paranormal Activity' and something that if you like that type of faux-real-footage type of movie, this may be for you.... i don't know if i'd need to own this or ever watch it again.... however, i don't regret watching it.... it was good enough, that i would almost believe that this and 'Paranormal Activity' was shot at the same time and just happened to have similar plots.... and that one wasn't trying to copy the other.... but i really doubt that.... anyway.... check it out while you can.... you may be pleasently surprised....!

if you like this, watch: 'Paranormal Activity', 'Paranormal Acticity 2' and 'The Blair Witch Project'

my brief thoughts on.... 'Lake Mungo'

with a title like 'Lake Mungo' it really doesn't tell you much about what to expect with this movie.... it's vague at best.... however, once you've seen the movie you understand the title.... it still seems to be a poor choice for a title to me, however i understand why they picked it.... that being said.... this is a well done movie.... not an entirely new premise, but still one that is pulled off decently.... the actors are well cast and do well with the source material.... this type of movie is almost becoming a genre unto itself.... the documentary style horror movie.... from 'The Blair Witch Project' to 'Paranormal Activity'.... this is another one to add to the list.... it's not based on any actual events, but it's presented in a way that you wouldn't be sure if you didn't know it was fictional....

the story centers around a 16 year old who mysteriously drowns.... and not long after her death, strange things begin happening around her home.... and her family isn't sure what to make of it.... so they begin to investigate to see wht they can find out.... what they find is disturbing.... and slowly over time a puzzle emerges as they find out more and more about their daughter.... and who she was before she died.... it raises more questions and brings about more problems.... and soon things come to a head as they finally get all of their answers....
i found this to be a 3 out of 5 star rating.... i don't think it really deserved more or less.... it's an average movie.... not really scary, but clever.... something that's worth the time to watch.... just not something for repeated viewings.... and i have to admit that the scenes at Lake Mungo are the most shocking and interesting of the entire movie.... and i recommend that if you do watch this OnDemand that you stick around through the credits to see some more questions that you didn't even know you had, answered.... it's not gory.... it's kind of slow....but the payoff is pretty well worth it.... and i'm not a huge fan of ghost stories....

if you like this, watch: 'The Blair Witch Project', 'Quarantine' and 'Paranormal Activity'

my thoughts on.... 'Paranormal Activity'

i rented this movie with no other knowledge about it other than it was similar to 'The Blair Witch Project'.... and that's the way i wanted it.... i wanted to come in fresh and with no expectations.... i usually enjoy a movie more the less i know about it.... i'd heard good things about this movie.... and had even heard some people say that it really scared them quite a bit.... and it's been a while since i've been scared of a movie, so this peaked my interest even more to rent it....

a couple buy a video camera to document strange goings on in their home which they think may be paranormal.... they soon find proof to back up their gut instincts.... but this just leads to more questions as we find out that the main girl in the movie has been followed from house to house by an entity since she was a little girl.... they then call in outside help to get more information about the spirit and how to get rid of it and that's when things get really dark.... i don't want to give the entire plot away.... but it's interesting enough to be worth your time to rent this one and watch it alone in the dark....

with the comparisons to 'Blair Witch', i'd say some of them are grounded.... but overall the only real relation is that it's all very 'reality show-ish'.... it seems like it's all unscripted and that you're watching footage from a police file or something.... there's not a huge amount going on in the movie.... and the plot is sparse at best.... but the atmosphere makes up for all of that....

all in all.... a clever twist on an old theme.... very effective scares.... and some of the tactics are based in reality.... i found myself getting swept up in the storyline and got a little bit of a jump at the end of the movie.... but this vs. 'Blair Witch'....? i'd take the witch anytime over this.... 'Paranormal Activity' is worth a watch and possibly a second viewing.... but i don't know how much staying power it has.... i'd give it a good 4 out of 5 stars.... most certainly not crap....

if you enjoy this movie, check out: 'The Blair Witch Project', 'Suicide' and any of the paranormal shows on basic cable