Nakani

This film is not what I expected walking into the auditorium. With all of the new horror films coming out going into the fall, I was expecting more of that. Take a group of people and have a monster pick them off one by one in new and creative (and probably disgusting ways) right?

Wrong. Nakani is not that film.

Its a story of circumstances that take us completely out our comfort zone and drop us into something totally unfamiliar, and malevolent. An almost nightmarish descent into the obscure, the unfamiliar and the horrible.

It had an excellent and sustained tone and feel that was completely about what really scares us. The unknown.

Being lost in the forest is frightening enough. But when you add an undefinable threat into that fear it gets amplified tenfold. There is something there, just out of view, hiding in the dark, and it wants to hurt you. That's Nakani.

The dismal atmosphere, and tension wearing down on the characters, and the complete lack of solutions is what makes this film work. The sense of dangerous mystery that is consistantly following makes the hair on the back your neck stand up.

I won't explain what Nakani is, but its something that everyone hopes they will never encounter. Something inside that assignes blame, and executes judgement.

It was a really good movie so don't get me wrong, and the over all idea of the movie was genius but it just really wasn't that scary for me.

I've been into horror movies as long as I can remember, so maybe I'm desensitized, or what I find scary is different than you.

When I decided to go see it, it wasn't what I had hoped. This is the problem with horror, it is very rare that everyone agrees if something is frightening. BUT I will say that I'm giving this movie a 7 out of 10 because the ending WAS exceptional and did make me jump. The ending was the terror and fear that I wanted all the way through. The conclusion was quite well done.

I saw this at the Midnight showing in the Switzerland Summer Festival, and was very impressed with this submission. I'm not really a fan of Horror Films, however I must say, this film was very impressive.

A strong story, with a polished introduction to the themes portrayed, from the mystical words of a tribal elder. I'm not sure why, but when someone from an unfamiliar culture tells a story in his own language, it lends an air of wisdom and warning that holds your attention.

This warning unfolds over the next 140mins with a cast of unwitting characters who dismiss it as superstitious fairytale.

The film has a sustained tension and curiosity that makes it so watchable. Each character finds thier strength and reveals thier own weakness, as the bizarre starts to control thier reality.

Nakani is this nebulous terrible 'something' that is just beyond what we understand, but it is always there, and you can't wish it away no matter how hard you try.

This film was very well done, and I wish there were more just like it. It seems to tap into a core human fear that we all have. Simply put, the unknown, and that unknown doesn't like you.

The end of this film was terrifying. When all the storytelling breadcrumbs suddenly make sense, and the shape behind the shadow is realised.

This was good!

I love horror movies! And I loved this! There are very few horror films that can immerse an audience into a world, and sustain it for 2 hours.

I loved watching this, because I didn't know what to expect. It avoided formula, and made its own thing. Thats what I loved.

It strived to intensify, rather than terrify. To magnify rather than horrify. And by doing that, it created a sense of being totally out of the ordinary. Then when the moments of terror and horror hit, they explode out! It was great!

There was a rising sense of dread, until nakani is revealed, and I jumped right out of seat! Turn left, turn right...you can't get out! Those of you that have seen this movie know exactly the scene I'm talking about.

I left the theatre feeling totally satisfied as a film goer and horror movie lover.

...comes to the screen. First seen at limited engagements for 5 showings only, the reaction from audiences was varied. Many enjoyed it immensely for some very spooky stuff, while others thought it mediocre and too experimental.

This reviewer enjoyed it very much, and had all of the elements required to tell an excellent ghost story.

While its premise was simple, there was a very complex idea that made it a refreshing experiment in cinema storytelling. There were many new faces on the screen, and some very effective use of the camera, that made Nakani a very dark and troubling addition to the genre.

An indigenous native legend comes to the screen, with some very genuine scares, and tension filled scenes. An excellent build up that led to a very unsettling conclusion.

Good horror. 7/10.