Macabre Daily's "Best Of" Gets Lost in Found Footage!
You’re in the woods alone, your camcorder is scanning the environment you’re in. You’re breathing heavily as you pray to find some way of escaping whatever is chasing you. While you’re trying to focus on the shaking camera screen that you are trying to keep steady, you’re missing the terror that is stalking you due to your quick panning from one side to another. You see an opening to freedom and then…….you let out a blood-curdling screen as the camcorder drops to the ground, glitching due to damage. This is when your story ends…….
This is a tactic that has been used for many found footage horror movies that have grasped us in a way that has made the found footage horror sub-genre have the giant fan base that it does. Found footage horror movies possess a morbid allure that blends the thrill of the unknown with a touch of DIY cinematography.
The ways it can use shaky camera work and amateurish framing serve as a terrifying entryway to what makes us fascinated and makes us feel like an accidental witness to the unfolding terror we witness on our screens. It provides those who watch it on the edge of their seats a perspective as if the ghosts and monsters are stepping into our world through the lens. It can make you feel as if the found footage horror movie you are watching is transforming our surroundings into eerie landscapes.
This horror sub-genre has a way of tapping into our primal fear of the unexplained or paranormal, turning ordinary environments into potential haunts that always send a chill down our arms or spine. This absolutely genius and horrifying approach to making a horror movie provides anyone who watches it with a raw, unpolished nature that makes you wonder if you are witnessing something real. It is why the found footage horror movies we watch have the effect of adding authenticity, making it easier for the fans that watch it to suspend disbelief and immerse themselves in the chilling narrative.
After all, do we always need our horror movies to have the ‘Hollywood Big Budget’ that most movies have these days? For many years horror fans have lived in a world saturated with high-budget CGI and polished productions. In a way, found footage horror movies can do it better than big-budget studio horror films. The obscured visuals and ambiguously eerie sounds found footage horror movies have tended to force our minds to fill in the terrifying details, giving us a sense of dread that transcends the screen right into our living rooms. Found footage horror is like a blank canvas for fear, allowing the audience's wildly running imagination to conjure horrors that are far more unsettling than anything explicitly shown. It gives a somewhat cinematic equivalent of stumbling upon a mysterious VHS tape – you may not know exactly what you're in for, but you're irresistibly drawn to press play with that horror-fueled curiosity that makes you want to confront the unknown.
The great thing about found footage horror movies is they span more years than you may think. This amazing horror sub-genre has roots that can be traced back to the 1980s with ‘Cannibal Holocaust’, which was so believable it caused the filmmakers some real-life drama that led to a potential murder trial. The controversy of this trailblazing-found footage horror movie made it so uncomfortable with those who watched it that it is even banned in some countries. There are many more great found footage horror films that came after it, such as ‘The Blair Witch Project’, which played a huge role in modernizing the widespread popularity of this particular style of filmmaking. Because of this film’s amazing success with such a low budget they worked with, it demonstrated the effective ways of using a “found footage approach” to telling a horror story that now continues to evolve.
It is standard for found footage horror movies to often explore subjects of the unknown, paranormal, and supernatural, as the main characters go through terrifying situations armed only with their cameras. This style allows for a more realistic connection between the audience and the characters which heightens the suspense as those watching become immersed in their experiences.
Today, there are so many found footage horror movies that many have seen (one of the most popular being the ‘Paranormal Activity’ franchise) but there have been so many that people have overlooked. With streaming services making any movie virtually available at the click of a button, most found footage horror movies are sitting there waiting to be either rewatched or discovered for the first time. Like any movie genre, there are lots to choose from when it comes to found footage horror. While some of the popular franchises are fan favorites, there are also some little-known and obscure found footage horror movies that stand up to the greats. Some of those include:
‘Hell House LLC’
Courtesy of IMDB
Synopsis: “Five years after an unexplained malfunction causes the death of 15 tour-goers and staff on the opening night of a Halloween haunted house tour (Hell House), a documentary film crew visits the scene of the tragedy to investigate what really happened that night.”
Why You Should Watch It: This particular horror found footage franchise has taken the simplistic approach of a haunted house attraction and added the element of it truly having terrifying spirits. The writer and director Stephen Cognetti shows his immensely talented ways with these films by making this concept scary for anyone who watches it, while also making you ever question going into a haunted house again. It has even great rewatchability around the month of Halloween.
‘Butterfly Kisses’
Courtesy of IMDB
Synopsis: “A filmmaker discovers a box of video tapes depicting two students' disturbing film project featuring a local horror legend, The Peeping Tom. As he sets out to prove this story is real and release it as a work of his own, he loses himself and the film crew follows him into his project.”
Why You Should Watch It: The crazy way that this found footage horror movie takes a meta approach (not only with a cameo from ‘The Blair Witch’ creator Eduardo Sanchez) but with the way this crazy town’s urban legend feels so real, you wouldn’t dare take a chance at trying the ritual for yourself.
‘The Poughkeepsie Tapes’
Courtesy of IMDB
Synopsis: “When hundreds of videotapes showing torture, murder, and dismemberment are found in an abandoned house, they reveal a serial killer’s decade-long reign of terror and become the most disturbing collection of evidence homicide detectives have ever seen.”
Why You Should Watch It: Not only is this found footage horror movie beyond terrifying, but it appeases to those particular horror fans who are also huge fans of true crime. This mockumentary found footage horror movie gives off the vibes of a Netflix true crime documentary and makes you feel incredibly fearful of the serial killer that is the main focus of the movie.
‘Grave Encounters’
Synopsis: “For their ghost-hunting reality show, a production crew locks themselves inside an abandoned mental hospital that’s supposedly haunted – and it might prove to be all too true.”
Why You Should Watch It: For those horror fans out there that love a good ghost hunting reality show (who doesn’t love ‘Ghost Adventures’, right?) this meta approach is so damn good. Not only does it have those slight behind the scenes comedic moments, but it makes you feel that the realism behind the location they are exploring is as intense as the reality shows we enjoy. Not only that, but the sequel is a great combination (or double feature) worth watching for these same reasons.
‘Be My Cat: A Film for Anne’
Courtesy of IMDB
Synopsis: “An aspiring filmmaker goes to shocking extremes to convince Hollywood actress Anne Hathaway to star in his film. First entry in Adrian Tofei’s trilogy which includes ‘We Put the World to Sleep’ and ‘Pure’.”
Why You Should Watch It: The sheer craziness and way that this movie unfolds on screen is the biggest reason to watch this. A lot of credit and respect goes to the filmmmaker Adrian Tofei, who also plays the main character of this movie. His obsession with Anne Hathaway goes from completely innocent to intense so smoothly you will want to watch it again just to catch the subtle hints of insanity creeping up to the terrifying end of this movie.
‘Mister Creep’
Courtesy of IMDB
Synopsis: “Three college students stumble upon a secret television broadcast of a deceased serial killer and search for its location.”
Why You Should Watch It: The crazy story not only behind a serial killer being the main subject, but the supernatural aftermath of his death leads to a great story with this found footage horror movie. The characters are very likable and there are some surprisingly good jump scares that stand out well after the movie’s credits have ended. It has a unique story that blends some great found footage horror concepts and the back and forth between the killer’s jail interviews are a nice touch.
Each of these found footage horror movies provides their individual blends of true crime, supernatural horror, and even a bit of terror from local urban legends. They have gathered their own group of fans that continue to enjoy, talk about, and eagerly await the next chapter of the found footage horror movies that are in a franchise.
Found footage horror movies will continue to grow as the years go on. Those of us who are already fans will rush for an opportunity to be the first ones to watch a new release as soon as it comes out. This has made found footage horror movies to be much more successful and will continue to be one of the biggest earning horror movie sub-genres.
As filmmakers continue to push the terrifying boundaries of this sub-genre with unique and new takes on old tales, we can expect new and innovative ways to terrify audiences, ensuring that found footage horror movies will remain a compelling and influential force in the world of horror cinema. So, next time you see a grainy video online about something supernatural, an unmarked VHS tape, or even hear of a terrifying urban legend that makes you want to grab your camera and explore, remember that you may just be well on your way to being in your very own found footage horror movie.
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