Needed the Lights on

Rating: 10/10 (2 August 1999)

I grew up with scary movies. For some reason my parents, and my grandparents for that matter, thought it perfectly exceptable to show a young boy (I couldn't have been any older than 8 or 9 when I saw my first "Friday the 13TH" film) countless horror flicks that they were so engrossed in. By the time I saw "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" nothing was really all that scary. Yet, I have always found that the movies which leave the most fear behind are the ones with the least amount of gore and, more often than not, the least amount "startle" shots (Jason jumping out of the woods). The "Exorcist" is one of my favorite movies of all time, along with "Alien" and the "Shining" because of the sense of doom that each evoked in me. They were all terror driven movies, where the tension built and built without relief until the final, classic scenes. It wasn't about scaring someone for a moment, making them jump in there seat, but about truning a persons stomach inside out for more than an hour. Those movies caused people to squirm in their seat, to let out a soulful groan when a classic "horror movie mistake" was made, and to turn their face when the end was near because it was just to unsettling to see. That is why to me movies like the ones before mentioned, especially "Exorcist", are not merely horror classics but simply movie classics.
This film was billed as the "best horror film since the Exorcist" and, as you might have guessed that line sparked my interest. After reading several very positive reviews billing "The Blair Witch Project" as the scariest movie ever, and reading several posts from internet users concuring, my interest was further heightened. But then the phrases like "overhyped" began to be shot around and word that many user comments on well known, and trusted movie sites were planted by the studio or friends of the actors began to be spread, making me doubt the effect of this movie. I usually end up hating overhyped movies (Godzilla being the king of this genre) and am not easily scared to begin with, thanks to my families deliquent childhood pratices (sorry mom:). When time came to finally see this movie I entered it with very mixed emotions, most leaning towards the negative side of the spectrum. I WAS WRONG!!!!!!!
This movie is not only horrifying while watching it on the big screen, it is horrifying while driving home, walking to your home, looking out your window, or trying to go to sleep. It reaches you in so many different ways. I have read many people inferring to the "unknown" being the most frieghtening aspect of this film, and while I agree it is most unsettling, it is only a part of what makes this film work. The realism of the camera, which is shaky but does not draw away from what you are seeing, and the realism of the actors, who should all be nominated for Oscars, draw you into the woods. The instinctual fear of being lost in a foreign place without hope of being rescued quickly, the fear of unknown sounds and unknown forces at work all around you, the unsettling sight of people slowely losing their minds and their hope for survival, the nerve racking sound of people screaming and crying in absolute terror, and the fear of the dark all make this the most unsettling movie I have ever seen.
This is a squirm in your seat, look away from the screen, and tell me when it is over movie. The entire film held for me the intensity of the moment Tom Skerrits character went to go look for the alien in the vents, or when the little boy in "The Shining" kept reciting RedRum over and over, or when Chrissy Watkins is attacked by Jaws in the very opening scene. Many people felt the same way, as most did not leave their seat for a few minutes after the film had completed, and some clapped while others just let out a sigh of relief. My two friends, two of the more skeptical friends I have who are not easily impressed, had good reviews after the movie was over, but changed them to great reviews the day after as neither one could get to sleep that night. I myself, mister Jason is funny and Freddy is a comedian, had to sleep with a light on and closed blinds and found myself very happy to have my girlfriend sleeping over the next night for not the normal reasons:) Don't miss this movie. Don't wait for it to come on video. Don't wait for the spoilers to come out. Go see it now and get scared. I rate it a 9 1/2 out of 10, only because I thought the night scenes could have been longer.