Better Than and Not Really a Found Footage Film

Rating: 8/10 (9 November 2014)

The Found Footage Films Rarely Emerge as Something Other than the Cheapest of Cheap Thrills, that Usually Make a Lot of Money, but are Nothing Special Except for an Inspiration for Very Young and Novice Filmmaker Wannabees that Can Use the Format with Relative Ease to Get Off Their Butts and Head Out to Make a Movie. More Power to Them and Good Luck.
But When Done Professionally the FF Format is just Lazy. In This a Homage to but Not Really a Found Footage Film it Manages Some Genuinely Creepy Images and a Uniquely Confident Style that Makes Scott Derrickson a Director to Keep an Eye On.
Although His Remake of the The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008) was Anything but Remarkable and Soiled the Reputation of the Original, The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005) was Something Special and Put Derrickson on the Radar.
Ethan Hawke and a Gaggle of Children are Around in this Supernatural Thriller that has a Good Premise and a Great Ending. The Soundtrack (Music and SFX) are Fittingly Frightening and the Movie is Way Above Average for This Type of Thing.
The Movie is Not Flawless and Requires a Goodly Amount of Suspension of Disbelief, the Worst Offense Being that Ethan Hawke Never Bothers to Flip On a Light Switch and at Times that Can Be Frustrating.
Overall, Worth a Watch for Horror and Thriller Watchers, True Crime Buffs, and Found Footage Fans (to see how to use or not use the shaky camera).