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So this movie is not at all as bad as people say it is. On this website (IMDB) the score is far too low. I'm specifically here talking about the Metascore and not the IMDB user score. It's 33/100 or 3.3/10 and for me that is too low. Now this movie is by no means a masterpiece even when we are strictly speaking about horror, but it's not a bad movie.

The story of this movie.... well it doesn't really have one to note. By this i don't mean there isn't one at all but rather there is very little to talk about when it comes to this movie. That is what i mean by "to note". The movie starts off with the introduction of the cast and what their deal is (they're a paranormal type TV show). But after their introduction into the movie everything else you need to know just happens as the movie progresses and there isn't really any deeper lore. It's simply a movie intended to scare and be uncomfortable and that's it. If you're looking for a horror movie with lore or really any story at all then skip this one.

The horror in this movie is actually ok. There are quite a few jumpscares however i actually though those were the least scary part of this movie (obviously this isn't including the first minutes of the movie). By this statement i simply mean that i found other parts more chilling and uncomfortable. The part that made me feel uncomfortable first was the fact that the building kept changing around them making for an uncomfortable experience for myself personally. I do not want to say more for fear of spouting spoilers, but this movies horror (for a found footage movie) is actually not bad. The place they are in isn't of our plain it seems. Nothing to blow you away i can assure you but at the very least it's average.

The cast of characters in this movie are my favourite part of the movie. I'm kinda surprised myself to say that i thought the acting in this movie was great. Compared to 99% of horror movie is watch, this movie has some of the best acting of them all. I truly believed that they were in this abandoned Asylum. Ever single actor was great in this film. The only one i didn't think was as good as the rest was Matt (played by Juan Riedinger). He wasn't bad at all just not as good as the rest of the cast. I really enjoyed their reactions and i felt like i was watching what real people would act like in this situation. Not perfect but very close too for a found footage.

Story - N/A

Horror - 6

Cast - 9/10

CGI/Monsters - 4/10

Compared to MOST found footage movies i believe this is one of the better ones, 6/10.

Well it definitely has more in common with The House On Haunted Hill than REC. or Paranormal Activity when it comes to impact or freshness and believability but it sure knows how to frighten you frozen in your seat as them. It starts off as a somewhat mockumentary similar to The Last Exorcism that was pretty clever and entertaining as a phony ghost hunting reality show crew willingly lock themselves inside an abandon mental hospital only soon do the realize that it has a mind of its own. The way the movie escalates the terror, suspense and intensity was unrelenting and I have never had to cover my eyes as much or be sleepless after watching a horror movie since I saw the first Paranormal Activity and though Paranormal Activity was more effective with its scares this one was a heart pounding frightfest with ghoulish ghosts and activity around every corner as though you feel like you're right there with them in a never ending haunted house ride. The films direction, plot and theme is nothing new or ground breaking and the acting not as raw as some of the better found footage movies but once this sub-genre dies out this one will not be lost and forgotten and might be named as one of the best found footage film of all time, it is sure on the top of my list. Overall this definitely deserves a wide release as it's one of the scariest, entertaining horror movie of 2011 and sure it doesn't have originality on its side and ends on a predictable but still chilling note but I got to tell you Grave Encounters will get under your skin and it gives me another reason why I love the found footage horror movies so much because they're involving and terrifyingly raw which makes most of them unforgettable. Keep them coming because I for one can't get enough of them. Highly recommended! 7.7 out of 10

GRAVE ENCOUNTERS starts out as a parody of those "ghost hunter" reality shows, complete with an overly-dramatic host, a psychic, and an occult expert. The humor comes from the raw, unedited footage, where the stars mock and condemn the fakery of their own show.

The real fun begins when these same paranormal investigators take a film crew into an abandoned, supposedly haunted mental institution. After having themselves locked in for the night, our fearless adventurers settle in for what they expect to be a long, dull evening.

What follows is a slowly-spiraling descent into terror, madness, and death.

The best part of ENCOUNTERS is its midsection, which is nearly perfect in its tense buildup. By comparison, the finale is abrupt and a bit of a buzzkill. Still, as "found footage" films go, it's a damned good one.

As with most such films, it's best viewed in total darkness...

Solid Concept The movie is one of them found footage horror flicks. It's kind of like when YouTubers make a video about exploring an haunted building and records it. It's pretty much this film except they're filming for a show called Grave Encounters. They explore an haunted asylum and capture the footage of ghost activity. Except things go wrong for the worse cause the ghost will never let them leave. I enjoyed the film but there are problems with it. My opinion: when people die, I couldn't tell if they died because the deaths happened off screen and there's barely blood around. And it just seemed rushed and things are slow as well. And the ending was just...What? But I did enjoy the film and it was a solid concept

It's a waste of time to complain that movies like this have been done before. Yes, they have and if you don't like them, don't watch them. I don't think I will ever understand why people watch a movie like this expecting something totally new and different and super high art to fulfill their overly pretentious taste and make them feel like true film critics- Please.

We watched this movie last night via On Demand. A roomful of horror movie fans ranging in age from 11 to 39- and we had a great time. A wall crawling, giggling, screaming at the top of our lungs good time.

-and that's the point! Having a good time.

I don't need to have everything in a scary movie make sense, or be explained to me. I am not in school, I am having a laugh and a good time freaking out with the poor saps trapped in the haunted mental institution.

The story was tight enough to be good, loose enough to allow for the insanity that ensued. The characters were not cliché and the ending was not totally cookie cutter.

Bottom line- this movie was fun. There were moments when we laughed at it, but there were also moments that made us freak out and want to turn on the lights. Just stop over-analyzing, relax and go with it and have fun. If you have to nit-pick a movie to death you have way too much time on your hands.....HAVE FUN!