On a whim, re-watched this movie 15 years after seeing it for the first and only time on release. Still like it, still think it holds up. Clearing away all the reactionary clutter of hype that tints a lot of general opinion - its a flawed but successful film for which, interestingly, its greatest strength is its greatest weakness - the ramshackle, aimless approach (problematic for some desiring a more structured story) accentuates the atmosphere and mood of the slowly encroaching threat (projected here onto civilizations default screen of the wilderness) while, arguably, becoming too meandering and frustrating for the audience at points (because it is, in some sense, promising us the trajectory of a story, the outcome of which is both already known and yet undetermined). As this approach took off post-big box office (found footage became the slasher film of the aughts, cheap and easy to make, with little need for name actors or flashy effects) my contention over time became that found-footage horror best achieved its successes by deliberately jettisoning artful/directorial composition (which in a lot of horror had become lazy/familiar/slick gestures) for a reinforcement of verisimilitude and the *immediate* reality of threat, rediscovering, thanks to imposed economic limits, the fruits of small gestures, subtly, atmosphere and human pacing/scale - when done *well* of course. Here, the details like the paganistic stick figures, personality friction, human teeth bundles and the extremely effective sound production (I imagine this movie is best experienced in a cinema - despite the nauseous handheld jiggle on the big screen - or at home in a completely dark room with a good surround sound system), as well as a rather sharp understanding of how folklore works its magic by being fragmented and associative (rather than a straight narrative), combine to capture a rather old school horror idea of characters being pixie-led and, eventually, panicked with the audience always distanced and spectating, on the outside of what is an internal emotional experience for those onscreen (just like watching documentary footage). The confessional and climactic scenes are both excellent standouts (I love how the ruined, overgrown house in the woods offers no comfort and is still just as much wilderness as the forest). A good film, I think, to test audiences ability to embrace approaches not normally found in mainstream horror films (at times, more reminiscent of art cinema tactics - cinema verite, unlikeable but realistic characters, a realization that the longueurs of the middle section are mostly deliberate - a literary comparison might be to see whether a Stephen King reader could find enjoyment in Algernon Blackwood : not all will) and perhaps a good, spooky movie for tweens that can give them some intensity while training them about expectations and cinematic variety. Not something Id need to re-watch very often but quite solid, although I still have very little desire to re-experience the sequel...
Posted on: Sun, 31 Aug 2014 14:12:05 +0000
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