It's a meandering pointless story full of horror clichés.

Rating: 4/10 (22 October 2012)

While Sinister does offer enough scares I found it to be a lack luster affair. When I was going to see this film I didn't know what to expect. When I was watching it I have to admit that it put my nerves on edge. Unfortunately, it doesn't do this in any innovative way. Sinister relies too much on jump scares, and consists of Ethan Hawke as Ellison Oswalt interacting with things like a laptop and a supernatural projector. There are supporting characters but they're often nothing more than plot devices. At one point Vincent D'Onofrio pops in as Professor Jonas only via iChat to provide more info about the baddie. One has to give Hawke some credit because he does deliver a good performance as a frightened family man, but it's just silly when the demon Bughuul (a.k.a. Mr. Boogie) looks like a member of a heavy metal band. In the end we still get to know almost nothing about this Pagan deity and he has very little screen time. It's clear that Sinister was heavily influenced by the Japanese horror genre and Paranormal Activity (2007). It features a silly conspiracy involving Super 8 footage, several children and the demon baddie. Because the film aims so much to shock you with a minimal plot you have to watch scenes which make no sense. Director Scott Derrickson made it a thing to show doors being closed and the projector being turned on again and again. It seems that some moviegoers consider Sinister a good horror film because it gave them a difficult time. Unfortunately, when you're done watching it and look back on it you can't help but notice the unexplained and the silliness. The film should have been more serious. As a horror flick it's passable but I don't recommend watching it.