21 Days

This is a little bit of the paranormal activity MARKED ONES film as well as that movie itself and GRAVE ENCOUNTERS. I gave the filmmaker credit for creating a backstory for the film so that it is a complete story instead of some jump scares and then the camera drops.

I know many filmmakers make their start in the found footage genre since it's relatively cheap to film in. So, if you're going to do a FF, then make the effort to make it different. In this case, the film succeeds. Locked in a haunted house for 21 days with cameras everywhere, how does an object move from the barn to the house? Creepy...but ultimately, why? Just the spirits/demons playing tricks and if so, on us or the characters? Nothing is really made of this event other than "WTF?" If it kept occurring, with more dangerous items being transported, it would have added a nice twist. Other than that, we get the doors closing, furniture jumping about, etc. All good stuff, always creepy, but we've seen it before.

The problem with ALL found footage is the last ten minutes. People screaming and cross talking over themselves. It's always a mess and this is no different. The good this is there is a coda that explains a bit more so your last image isn't a dropped camera.

There are some terrific ideas here that I wish had been explored more--they were different and could have taken the film in a different direction. But I liked it and enjoyed my time with it!

This is just another of these kind of a movies. It's pretty well made not counting the sound balancing that was done the worst way. The sound effects are super extra loud in the start and quieter in the end - which makes no sense and maximises the bother. Acting was 2/3 ok, the girl was just annoying. Why are you shouting and screaming "What was that" or "What is happening" if you deliberately go into a haunted house to see ghost. What do you think it is you dumb idiot. Just completely stupid and unneccessary.

All in all it's a watchable movie that copies other movies. It was a decent watch although the ending was quite annoying.

Idiots (aka Actors with a bad script) want to find out why everyone is moving out of a haunted house before the 21st day after moving in. They decide to locked themselves in and record everything and become Ghost Hunters. From there it tries to be "Paranormal Activity" but suckier. Pass on it.

The fact that I rented this from the local library for free is the only reason I'm not mad I had to fast forward to the last 30 minutes for entertainment. I watched the first 30 minutes and I couldn't take it anymore. They tried hard but yet again I ran into the fact I can't give it an A for effort. Nothing new here just the same old doors closing, blankets moving and a device going off etc... I was able to understand the end without watching the middle of the movie. It just felt like a lot of filler to me. If this was the first found footage I would have seen (this is far from my first and I typically enjoy these films) I might have liked it better. But in the end it was boring and you can find plenty more found footage movies that are a lot more worth it. I feel for you if you paid money for this I really do. The box got me with this one. I really had hopes for it and nope...

If you're looking for anything particularly original from "21 Days" don't waste your time. There really isn't much original. It's a haunted house story. The house has apparently had several owners over the century plus since it's been built. None of them have remained in the house for more than 21 days - and some have ended up dead after leaving. So three young film-makers decide to take up residence in the house, to last the 21 days while documenting their experiences. So, yes, it's also a found footage sort of movie, although it's not all found footage. But there's not really much to this. There are the traditional "things that go bump in the night" sort of events, but really nothing much frightening happens until the last 15 minutes or so. It's a little bit creepy at times, but no more than that. The cast was entirely unknown (to me at least.) I do't think I've ever seen any of the three leads in anything until this. They were all right. Nothing more.

There were some bizarre things about this movie. It opens with the three interviewing a local town historian about the house. I wondered how the local town historian had actual family photographs of the people who had lived in the house - including the most recent family. That in itself seemed a bit weird. And with the house in foreclosure why would the bank allow these kids to do this? And why would they be allowed to literally barricade themselves inside the house so that no one or nothing could get in or out. Sure it works as a plot device - but wouldn't even the local town authorities have some objections to that based on a fire code or something?

Like most movies featuring found footage, there's no real resolution to this. Just a lingering mystery. But because it's a very ho hum movie that doesn't really set itself apart within either genre (haunted house or found footage) it won't be memorable enough for the mystery to remain with you for very long.

Use it as a time waster - but it's no more than that. (4/10)