Too many cheap scares harm what is otherwise a very good horror film

Rating: 7/10 (15 October 2012)

Ethan Hawke stars as a true crime writer who moves with his family into the house where a grisly murder occurred a short while ago. He immediately discovers a box of home movies in his attic (which appear to have been placed there after the police investigation) which show the murder. And not only that one, but several other murders from years past which seem to be connected. As Hawke explores the movies further, strange things begin happening in the house. This is most certainly a scary movie. I was honestly in constant terror all through it. Yet, I have to admit, I didn't really love it. I had a lot of problems. The whole situation is freaky, so why does the director (who previously made the awful Exorcism of Emily Rose) feel the need to scream at us to get us to jump? One also has to question Hawke's actions through much of the film. An antagonism with the local police is set up in the first sequence, but it never makes any real sense. Hawke never seems to be the kind of guy who would obstruct justice for his book, and, really, even if he did give new information to the police (and he absolutely would have called them immediately when he discovered what was in the box), how would that effect his book adversely? Not that it really matters, because the horror is revealed to be supernatural anyway, but it just seems like a pointless obstruction to set up. So, in short, effective, but I'm not exactly happy HOW it is effective.