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Found Footage Movies That Don't Suck


Rock Raider Obsidian
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Rock Raider Obsidian

So, I really, really like the idea of found footage movies. The genre gets knocked a lot, but I think it's a fantastic way to really pull the audience into the experience. Immersion is key in entertainment, with horror especially.

 

I've seen a handful so far, some were great, some sucked. Here's a quick rundown of what I've seen. I'll give brief descriptions for those unfamiliar with any of the movies.

 

Cloverfield

Synopsis: A giant monster attacks New York City.

Thoughts: I loved it.

 

Apollo 18

Synopsis: A mission to the moon goes wrong when the astronauts discover horrific alien life.

Thoughts: Could have been a lot better.

 

Area 51

Synopsis: A group of college kids break into Area 51.

Thoughts: So, as silly as the idea sounds, the techniques they use are fairly good, I guess. There were some really cool moments and concepts, but there was way too much boring build-up (I'm a fan of the slow boil, of setting up your characters/universe/atmosphere/etc., but this was just poorly done), and nowhere near enough payoff. They didn't even get into Area 51 until about the 50 minute mark.

 

The Tunnel

Synopsis: A reporter, cameraman, sound guy and producer go into a series of abandoned underground tunnels beneath their city to investigate mysterious disappearances and discover true terror.

Thoughts: The best found footage movie I've ever seen. Amazing.

 

Quarantine

Synopsis: While reporting on a local firefighting team, a reporter and her cameraman end up becoming trapped with the firemen in an apartment building infested with zombies.

Thoughts: Pretty good.

 

Frankenstein's Army

Synopsis: During World War II, a Russian Special Forces team is sent behind enemy lines to investigate the rumors that Baron von Frankenstein's grandson is creating flesh-machine hybrids for the Nazi war machine.

Thoughts: This was freaking awesome. What could have been a generic B horror movie was done as an actually fantastic film with some fascinating concepts and creature design.

 

Diary of the Dead

Synopsis: A survival story told from the perspective of a group of film students in the beginning days of George Romero's Of the Dead series.

Thoughts: Pretty cool zombie survival story.

 

Europa Report

Synopsis: The first manned expedition to Europa makes some startling discoveries.

Thoughts: This was definitely interesting, but it's way more Sci-Fi than horror. Well done, but I thought there'd be more horror.

 

The Frankenstein Theory

Synopsis: A distant relative of Frankenstein goes looking for the original creature deep in the Alaskan wilderness.

Thoughts: Interesting idea, some interesting concepts, ultimately poorly executed, though.

 

Grave Encounters

Synopsis: A team of fake ghost hunters becomes trapped in a long-abandoned asylum and discover genuine paranormal horror.

Thoughts: Some interesting concepts and decently made. A fun B movie to watch.

 

Into the Storm

Synopsis: A brutal series of tornadoes hits a small Oklahoma town.

Thoughts: Pretty poorly done, but at points hilarious to watch. They got the actor who played the main dwarf in the Hobbit Trilogy to be one of the protagonists of this, a principal at a high school, and you could tell that he was still stuck in badass dwarf mode. He instantly knew how to solve every problem he came across and everything he said was delivered as an epic speech.

 

And that's about it. Does anyone know of any other found footage horror movies that are actually awesome?

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