‘It’s With You Now’ (2023) Takes A Leap Into The World Of Found Footage Horror
Found footage horror is a subgenre of horror that can provide some of the most amazing horror gems in the modern age. There are some great examples out there, but there have been some that didn’t quite hit the mark. A found footage horror movie can waver when it neglects some of the most crucial elements that are necessary for the suspension of disbelief, as well as not providing an emotional engagement to the audience. There are some found footage horror movies out there that try to stand out by reliving too heavily on things such as contrived scary or paranormal scenarios, overly shaky camerawork, or (and this is something that even most horror movies rely on too much these days) excessive jump scares that undermine the overall film’s horror authenticity.
Having weak protagonists, eroding empathy, inconsistent pacing, lack of a cohesive narrative, or very predictable plot twists can also be a big contributing factor to a found footage movie failing to grasp the enjoyment and attention of horror fans watching. Furthermore, suppose you are using an excessive amount of special effects or some kind of overly narrating to essentially make sure the plot gets across to the viewers. In that case, it will deviate from the found footage movie’s raw, realistic aesthetic that can disrupt the entire immersive experience one would get from enjoying it and sitting on the edge of ones seat anticipating that chilling third act that makes it all worthwhile. Ultimately, a found footage horror movie fails when it sacrifices the genuine suspense, horror, and original story that provides a plausible narrative for cheap thrills and cliched horror movie tropes that have been done far too often.
Recently, I got a chance to watch a new addition to the found footage genre with the feature-length movie ‘It’s With You Now’. This movie stars Scott Harding (host of the ‘You Run Podcast’), his son Kane Harding, Angel Krause, Heather Silmon, and Marc Wilson. It is written/directed by Scott Harding with Kane Harding co-writing. The synopsis for this movie is as follows:
“After creating a new show for YouTube, Scott heads off to investigate a local legend. With his reluctant son in toe, will they uncover a hidden truth or something much darker?”
First, making a movie takes a lot. It takes courage to put yourself out there, as well as a lot of work to show the world your flair for creativity. Horror isn’t as easy of a genre as it seems, but occasionally people find the perfect formula for it. There is so much that can make or break a good horror film, especially a found footage one. With this particular movie, it didn’t really land as gracefully as the filmmakers would have hoped.
There is a lot of things in this found footage attempt that will take you out of the story more than keep you on the edge of your seat. One of the biggest things that take you out of the story is the many mentions of the filmmaker’s real podcast ‘You Run Podcast’. There are several times (possibly over 10 times) where the title of that podcast was mentioned in the movie. Doing this makes you feel that you are seeing that product placement in a movie more than you should, making it a bit more of the focus than the story’s plot (we all remember that scene in the first ‘Wayne’s World’ and get that obvious reference, right?). Doing this makes the found footage movie feel more like a commercial for his podcast than something of substance to entertain the people watching it.
Another thing that really stands out is the way that this found footage movie is taking obvious tropes from other popular found footage movies. There is talk of a witch, a curse, taking a challenge brought on by someone online, and some haunting that happens within the main character’s home. It feels very derivative of movies like ‘The Blair Witch Project’, ‘Paranormal Activity’, and many others. We live in a world where so many things have been done before and it is hard to not accidentally stumble into the same footsteps as someone who made a movie before you but here it felt very obvious it was done to fill in holes within the plot.
There is one scene in particular where the main characters (portrayed by Scott and Kane Harding) are searching for the remains of the witch’s home to find an object to steal, but then happen to find a perfectly good (almost new-looking) pendant that was “buried” underneath the porch of the home. This scene and others like it lack substance or anything but is more based on the chutzpah of the filmmaker. A good chunk of the movie takes place in the woods with our fearless main characters making a vlog and joking around about how unreal this challenge is. This is a pretty typical setup for most found footage movies, but it takes over most of the run time.
The final act of this movie is also a swing and a miss as there is a twist within a twist that falls flat and a jump scare at the end that seems to have no effort put into it. Most horror fans out there tend to be so well-versed in the world of horror movies, so they tend to read between the lines and look for ways for a movie to have those golden moments at the end. Unfortunately, this movie didn’t have any. It was something most found footage fans (especially the ones where it is their favorite sub-genre of horror) will be a bit annoyed at, especially with a 90-minute runtime. It felt like a parody of a parody that took itself a bit too seriously.
The most enjoyable part about this movie is not just how well and crisp the footage looks (which is impressive because it was filmed on a Samsung Galaxy phone) but that it is essentially a father and son just having a great time making something together. No matter how much this movie isn’t enjoyable, that aspect really is something that stands out. You can tell both Scott and Kane were having a blast with their attempt at a found footage buddy comedy and you have to respect the fact that they put themselves out there to share something they both enjoyed making.
‘It’s With You Now’ is currently available on YouTube. You can watch the movie here.
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