From the moment The Blair Witch Project (1999) first made its rounds, found-footage has been a deeply polarizing sub-genre amongst horror fans. Though I enjoy the aforementioned film, I can more than understand the common criticisms – I, too, reserve a certain level of disdain for films that tease a monster throughout its runtime yet fail to deliver it on a visual level. Shit is annoying as hell, and when this trend was further perpetuated by the exceedingly successful Paranormal Activity (2007), frustrations totally became even more warranted. Despite spawning an abhorrent amount of sequels as well as several rip-off flicks in the same vein, there are still diamonds to be found in the rough of found-footage horror – And two of them are Canadian made, baby!
As I’m sure you’ve gathered given the title of the article, I will be discussing both Grave Encounters films. I personally value chronology, as does the story progression in this twofer, so let’s begin with the best of the best – Grave Encounters (2011). The title serves as the name of the ghost show in which the found-footage in question is plucked from. Essentially a team of (beyond) skeptical ghost hunters lock themselves in a reportedly haunted, abandoned psychiatric hospital and let’s just say they become believers, real quick. Yeah, yeah, yeah – You’ve likely heard this premise before, but I promise you it has never been done like this. As a seasoned horror fan, on-screen spooks seldom get under my skin, but she did this time. She really did.
This baby has got gore; It has got visible ghosts; The cameraman has a steady hand (thank god!); And without spoiling too much, this is seriously one of the most claustrophobic flicks I’ve consumed to-date. Complete and total nightmare fuel, almost like a Dante’s Inferno situation but with horrifying, twisty-faced ghosts. This is likely making it sound way less terrifying than it truly is, so you’ll just have to take my word for it. Some of these scenes will stain your brain.
Moving on to its sequel, aptly named Grave Encounters 2 (2012), the story continues in that meta way us horror fans have a tendency to lap right up. Basically a big ol’ horror nerd isn’t convinced that the events that occurred in the first film were fictitious, so he does what any of us would do (yeah right, there is no way in hell) and decides to band together a group of pals and lock themselves in the same location.
The flawless continuation here is absolutely incredible to the point where it is truthfully a little bit mind-boggling. I beyond dug how the college kids in the sequel had consumed the first flick just as I had, and it provided a moment of brief anxiety that got me thinking, “Shit, was I supposed to believe the first one was real? Oh my god, was it real?” – Beyond these irrational thoughts, the scare-factor managed to quintuple itself. I thought the first flick was chock-full of nightmare sequences, but man… the sequel had me on the edge of my seat more often than not.
I really cannot praise this duo enough, and it hurts my heart to know that so many folks out there have written ’em off simply because of a bad taste left in their mouth by inferior found-footage flicks in the past. Whenever I boast about my country’s vast amounts of contributions to the horror genre, these two films are the first to come to mind. Aside from horrifying images, faultless storytelling, and a horde of scares, the actors here are undeniably believable in their roles. And though this specific corner of the horror universe has become oversaturated by a million Paranormal Activity-esque ghost teases, these two deserved to be heralded as the masterpieces they truly are. Y’all won’t be having no supernatural blue balls here – And that’s a Heavy Horror guarantee!