Incantation

Some of my friends know me for being that guy who does not get scared at horror movies. So because of that some of them came up to me saying how this was "the scariest movie that they've ever seen" and "oh this one is definitely gonna scare you". And tbh i see why. The movie make many attempts to build tension, i mean like many. And for the most part i can see how it would get people to feel unsettled or uncomfortable with what's going on in the movie.

I liked the movie a lot if you couldn't tell from the high ratings. I did catch my self a couple times getting like really into it but honestly it was nothing i haven't seen before. The movie was still fun with big climaxes and tones of scares that even got me to jump. Really enjoyed it. One thing i will say is so not watch it in dubbed. It sounds terrible, just suck it up and read some subtitles. Trust me it makes the movie 100% times better.

If you like horror movies, you might have watched stuff at the end of which you were either 1. Glad it was over 2. Or, glad you watched it because it was fun 3. Or, both but now didn't want to dream about the movie

This film did something that I haven't come across before. Towards the end of the movie, it'll leave you feeling like you are and will continue to be a part of the movie. Get it? I was like "That was a good movie, I'm glad I watched it, but WHY did I watch it?" It's tough to explain this feeling without spoiling it so I'll leave it there.

Incantation is a story about a mother's drive to protect her daughter from a curse, no matter what/who comes in her way.

The movie is shot in found-footage (FF, cinematic technique in which all or a substantial part of the work is presented as if it were discovered film or video recordings); showing a movie in the form of a recording is fine, but the purpose of the recording and the audience's involvement with the recording is what IMO makes or breaks the FF sub-genre and I have to say, they've made really GOOD use of this technique, just by better writing. I so wish I could tell more.

Horror movies that make you feel uneasy/creeped out are so much better than the ones that heavily rely on cheap jump scares. I counted a grand total of ONE jump scare in this movie, so that is a major plus in my books. There's this continued sense of eeriness and the creeps (goosebumps galore) throughout the movie, all well conveyed by the audio-visuals and just plain silence. The acting by everybody involved was good, including the kid.

The movie does have flaws IMO, a couple dumb moments here and there, but you can't expect to make everyone happy as a moviemaker. If I look past that, it's a regular horror movie with a certain twist that makes it a GOOD horror movie, the best of the year so far...?

If you like horror movies, check this out. Watch it especially if you're a fan of the FF sub-genre, they've done something that you may not have seen before.

Overall I feel like if they shaved about 20-30 minutes off the movie and kept the direction a bit more clear It could have been really great. Minorly confusing at times how a character got somewhere or how much time passed, it also jumped back and fourth from past and present, it was fine and we figured out pretty quickly what was years in the past, but that mixed with the hazy time passing between present scenes it was a bit confusing still.

Ronan (Tsai Hsuan-yen) had spent time recovering in a mental institution and was now ready to be reunited with her daughter Dodo (Huang Sin-ting), who had been raised in a foster house run by Ming (Kao Ying-hsuan). However, when Dodo was with Ronan, she began to act bizarrely and "see" invisible entities called "baddies".

Ronan realized that these paranormal phenomena were related to events six years ago. She tagged along with her boyfriend Dom (Sean Lin) and his cousin Yuan (RQ) when the two returned to their village for some mystic family rituals. They began filming the proceedings for their YouTube channel, thus violating religious taboos.

Director Kevin Ko used the "found footage" style (mainly home videos and security cameras) to tell his unsettling story, going back and forth in time. The involvement of a cute child in mortal danger makes things more stressful. Ronan breaking the fourth wall to involve her audience to join her to chant "Hou-ho-xiu-yi, si-sei-wu-ma" added more creeps. The cursed video taken within cursed tomb made for a grand finale.

Incantation had the potential to be great, and the earmarks of a great horror movie were present in the first five minutes: a creepy score, unsettling imagery, and the unique application of optical illusions, as well as legitimate audience participation. Sadly, the film wasn't quite able to capitalize.

Incantation's major downfalls can be found in its overuse of what can only be referred to as horror cliches. These include but are not limited to telegraphed jump scares, nonsensical character decisions for the sake of advancing the plot, and excessive "found footage" that heavily strains believability. When done well, a found footage film can be one of the most immersive horror experiences, but when characters consistently film themselves in ways that make no sense and actually become detrimental, the film tends to break the suspension of disbelief. Incantation is a particularly bad offender in this category, and frequently has protagonists waste valuable time reaching for the camera or aiming it to get a good shot rather than do literally anything more logical.

Upsides? The concept is fascinating, and the aforementioned mechanic of audience participation is implemented in a clever way. There are some genuinely haunting visuals that are absolutely not for the faint of heart, and the sound design and score of the film do a fine job of creating a creepy atmosphere when they aren't screaming at the audience to prepare for a jumpscare.

Overall, Incantation is a technically competent found footage film that fails to rise above mediocre in most aspects, but it's good enough for a single watch.