Sinister (2012)

True-crime writer Ellison Oswalt moves himself and his family in to a house where an horrific crime took place earlier, but his family doesn't know. He is trying to find out more about the crime so he can write a new book about it to help his flailing career. He uses some "snuff" film that he finds which show the crimes to help in his research, but he soon finds more than he bargained for. There is a figure in each of the films, but who or what is it? As a result his family start to suffer as does he. Things take a turn for the worst. Will they survive?

Let me tell you, this movie has a stupid and predictable plot with big plot holes. There is, however, something there though, something good and freaky. This movie connected with the parts of my brain that actually makes me freak out.

Ethan Hawke couldn't chosen a better film to make his horror debut. He's excellent as a has-been writer that turns more paranoid and more frustrated as this movie and the movies within the movie unfolds. His characterization of Oswalt is splendid in it's imperfection. The character is foolish, selfish and he drinks too much but Hawke doesn't make it too overt, it's subtle and teasing.

Juliet Rylance, as Oswalt's wife, seems like a breath of fresh air to the horror industry, she can actually act. There is never a moment when I didn't believe in her performance, every movement and word seems to come from within. I really hope to see more of her in the future.

The two major weak points of the movie were the two sets of kids, living and "dead." There's a risk with making a horror movie with kids, a risk that almost never pans out and it sort of doesn't in this. The kids overact and don't really know when and when not to hold back in their performances. There's one moment when we get to focus on the "dead" kids and I have to admit it made me and others at the showing laugh instead of feeling scared. Hawke's and Rylance's performances together with the atmosphere of the movie, however, overshadows all that.

The real star of the movie though, is it's atmosphere. It looks and feel dark and ominous, but the sound is were the real terror comes from. The sound department seems to have been playing around with infra sounds because I could really feel the terror deep inside, even in moments I knew what was going to happen and logically knew I shouldn't be this freaked out. The 8mm film parts used in the movie only adds to the feel of the movie and is crucial to how we feel and perceive this movie.

While Sinister is no way perfect, it has just the right level of scariness to overcome it's imperfections and they only add to the whole experience.