Scary as hell

Rating: Null/10 (8 May 2001)

I really don't think I'm being a snob, but: [1] those who don't find this movie scary have never been in the woods in the dark. [2] those who complain about the shaky camera-work baffle me: it was SUPPOSED to be about a bunch of non-professional kids running through the woods with handheld cameras! Duh!
I found this movie scary for the same reason that I find the writings of H.P. Lovecraft scarier than modern gory "horror" writers: fear of the unknown is the greatest fear of all. Being disgusted or repulsed or startled is not at all the same as being afraid and having your mind fill in the blanks.
This movie did that. It wasn't a masterpiece of cinematics, but it was very clever, a good story, used believable principals (I don't know if I'd even call them "actors"), and succeeded in scaring the crap out of me. Both times.