Let me be forthcoming: I initially laughed, nay scoffed, at Sinister based on its production credentials. I wondered if Jason Blum possessed an ambition to direct a trilogy of mono-titled horror films. Perhaps, I speculated, we’d see Malicious next, and if that made enough money we’d likely see the trifecta expanded to include such titles as Unpleasant and Eeeeevil. Of course, these thoughts all preceded my first viewing of the original trailer, which creeped me out and showcased what looks like a strong performance from Ethan Hawke. I’m all for atmospheric, built-up horror films that center themselves around really talented actors, so that first impression I had dissolved within mere…
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Going Back to the Cabin: The Horror of Formula
At first blush, Drew Goddard’s long-awaited meta-horror film Cabin in the Woods (my review) is designed to foster invested discussion of its genre among both its core and secondary audiences. It’s an unavoidable byproduct of meta-filmmaking of any kind; movies that peer behind the scenes, so to speak, lend themselves to more intensive conversation by virtue of their defining sense of self-awareness. Put differently, movie fans like talking about movies that are about movies, and Cabin, brandishing the tropes of horror cinema with an inwardly critical sense of pride, certainly fits that description. The film pulls off a tricky balancing act, existing as a genuine entry in horror canon while also serving as…
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G-S-T Review…Chernobyl Diaries
Curiously enough, Chernobyl Diaries may mark the first non-found footage found footage film. While constructed using mostly a straight narrative approach, there’s a nagging sense that this cautionary horror jaunt (penned and backed by Paranormal Activity mastermind Oren Peli) may have actually benefited from more fully embracing the tricky conceit; it’s shot like a found footage movie, it’s crafted like a found footage movie, it scares like a found footage movie, and the title’s reference to “diaries” naturally leads us to conclude that someone, somewhere, came across the footage we’re watching by unhappy accident. But those eponymous documents are nowhere to be found in an hour and a half of story. Chernobyl Diaries bases…