Sinister

A true crime writer picks the wrong murder mystery for his next book in "Sinister," a horror movie that balances the contemporary horror movie formula with mystery thriller elements and a solid leading performance.

Ethan Hawke plays Ellison Oswalt, a successful writer who has just moved his family to a town in Pennsylvania where a family was found hung from a tree in the backyard except for the third child, who was reported missing. Unbeknownst to the rest of his family, Ellison has moved them into the exact house where the family was killed. In the attic, he finds a box with an 8mm film projector and a handful of film reels, all of which show families being murdered, including the case he's investigating. Ellison realizes he's on to something big, but eventually things take a supernatural turn.

If the film weren't titled "Sinister" (a title that seems to have been subjectively chosen for marketing purposes) and you went in without knowing anything, you might actually convince yourself you were watching an eerie true crime thriller and be a bit surprised to watch the film take a contemporary horror flick turn equipped with creepy ghost children, freaky old movies and a pagan deity.

"Sinister" straddles these two genres without disappointing fans that wanted one over the other, but might disappoint fans that enjoy one but don't like the other at all. Director Scott Derrickson ("The Exorcism of Emily Rose") uses classic suspense techniques and the creepy Super8 videos for that slow-building dread effect reminiscent of a more classic horror-thriller, while also employing the slow- walking-through-a-house-at-night-that-ends-in-a-jump-scare techniques of today's horror movies. The film predictably begins with more of the former and ends distinctly as the latter, and Derrickson oversees the passing of that baton and ensures it happens cohesively with strong, evocative visuals and an unusually creepy soundtrack.

C. Robert Cargill's story also allows these genres to function effectively together. Good horror movies show more interest and concern in the characters and how they deal with horrifying events than the horrifying events themselves. Cargill's script definitely focuses on Ellison, and the simple conceit of him being a writer who investigates murders puts him in a unique position among horror movie protagonists. Cargill adds the twist that Ellison has not had a best-seller in 10 years, so there's pressure on him to pursue this case in spite of the warning signs.

A strong lead character also appeals to a better caliber of actor, and Hawke lends so much legitimacy to this movie. Ellison is more accustomed to seeing disturbing things, so to watch Hawke's performance as this case gets more and more under his character's skin is a real added benefit. Hawke allows us to empathize with his character despite knowing full well that we would not have handled things the same way he does at various points in the film.

The ending has some issues along those lines and some information that seems obvious to the audience is not obvious to the characters, and that can be frustrating, but on the whole, "Sinister" leaves you with a jaw-dropper of an ending, a perfectly freaky culmination of all the classic suspense and minutes upon minutes of wondering when it's all going to blow up.

"Sinister" will more likely win over viewers who don't always like scary movies than it will avid scary movie watchers who love the genre precisely for its conventions and clichés, but it successfully reaches out to both.

~Steven C

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One of the scariest horror movies I have seen in a long time. I put off watching this one for a quite a while because when I first started it I noticed it had dim lighting which is a pet peeve of mine. Once I decided to watch it at a later date however, I realized that the cinematographer actually made very effective use of light/dark contrasts, highlighting what we need to see and using the dark spaces to create a cloistering atmosphere of dread and claustrophobia. The performances are also very good, especially the lead, although I feel as though they could have given us more background on the rest of the family. Also the ending isn't what I expected at all and I feel there could have been more action but it did fit in with the rest of this movie which can be quite slow at times, but you hardly notice because of the way this film draws you into it's world. The super 8 sequences were terrifying, they had me on the edge of my seat. In my opinion Sinister is probably one of the best horror films of this decade.

This movie is creepy and I always love to see D'Onofrio in anything, always. Cool premise, finding super8 movies in the attic, but it's sooooo dark.

Turn of your lights. Turn up your volume. Close all your curtains. And enjoy that you can't sleep that night. Sinister is a great movie. Take a blanket and when it is scary put it over your eyes :-) I don't want to tell anything about this horror movie because anything you tell will spoil the fun, you should not know anything about the story in advance I think to keep the excitement 100%. I have read some reviews and I have to say it contains too much information however they don't contain spoilers I would suggest not to read them :-) The acting was great and I really loved the horror scenes, they were amazing. Have a great horror night!

Say what you will about the varying quality of their releases- popular horror film production company Blumhouse really has a good thing going these days. With micro-budget features like the "Insidious" and "Paranormal Activity" series that are reliant on genuine scares over effects, and some very decent and high-quality releases under their name, its a modern day rags-to-riches story like few others. A company that has flourished without having to spend the hundreds of millions that bigger studios throw around. And one of their more fascinating releases of the past few years has most certainly been director Scott Derrickson and co-writer C. Robert Cargill's atmospheric and unsettling freak-show "Sinister." It has all the trademarks of an inferior film- plenty of jumps, lots of blood-'n-gore that is questionable, a blaring soundtrack. And yet, I feel it rises above many other films because of one thing- expert building and payoff of atmosphere.

We follow the story of true-crime writer Ellison Oswalt (Ethan Hawke), who moves his family into a new house... though his wife and children are unaware that their new home is also the location of an infamous unsolved murder, which Ellison is hoping to use as the basis for a new book. Soon enough, while doing research, Ellison discovers a mysterious box packed away in the attic that houses a collection of 8mm film strips appearing to depict almost ritualistic murders, all with one thing in common- the death of an entire family. As Ellison tries to solve the mystery of these dark and devious film-strips, his family soon finds itself haunted by strange happenings and unexplainable events... which may very well be tied the spirits of the slain victims and a demonic figure that Ellison begins to recognize as he continually appears again and again during his investigation...

A great deal of why the film works lays in the capable hands of the creative minds behind it. While I have taken issue with some of director Derrickson's films in the past (including the woefully misjudged "The Day the Earth Stood Still" remake), I've very much admired his work in the field of horror, in addition to his recent return to the mainstream with the delightful "Doctor Strange." And despite a limited budget, he shines through with wicked visual direction and a wonderfully disturbing sense of dread in "Sinister." This is one eerie, unsettling film, and his keen use of darkness, composition and suggestive camera angles lends a lot of fear to the proceedings. You can feel the tension growing with each and every passing moment, and at any time, you feel like everything is going to fall apart. I also very much admired how he handled the many "snuff films" we see peppered throughout the runtime... they are deliciously evil and twisted in all the right ways to give you the best of goosebumps.

The story Derrickson and Cargill craft is just a blast and a half, with extremely likable characters (archetypal though they may be) and a good structure that builds at a gradual but consistent pace. It's a very well-written film for the most part, and it does its job wonderfully in setting up the insanity to follow. Combine that with top-notch performances, and you got the recipe for a great little horror film. Ethan Hawke is absolutely marvelous as always, and it's nice to see him doing just a fun, old-fashioned horror flick. Supporting roles by the likes of Juliet Rylance, James Ransone and Clare Foley are also extremely well-played. And hey... we even get a small, uncredited turn from the fantastic Vincent D'Onofrio as a professor who repeatedly works alongside Oswalt via Skype chat. It's a small role, but it's also a lot of fun.

That being said... Oh, boy is there one glaring issue that does drag the film down quite a bit, and it's where it loses some major points for me. And that is the third act. While I will not spoil anything, be prepared for a bit of a let-down with a final reel that feels hastily patched together and has a fair share of moments that stink of studio interference. The first hour is so well assembled, that it's actually pretty mind-blowing how much of a mess the final thirty or so minutes are. With a rash of mind-numbing moments, repeated sloppy exposition dumps and a final sequence that is more likely to illicit unintentional giggles than genuine shocks... it doesn't go out with a bang so much as a whimper.

Still, it's not enough to ruin the film. Because outside of that messy, clunky finale, the rest of the film is incredibly strong and it is still a tale well-worth checking out. It's absolutely awe- inspiring sense of primal fear, wonderful performances and wicked entertainment value make it a great go-to for Halloween-night viewings or checking out with a big group of friends in the dark. It's not a perfect film. But it's a very solid and scary experience that I completely recommend to all fans of horror.

I give "Sinister" a very good 8 out of 10.