The Follower

The set up is quite good. YouTuber films a haunted house type of thing.

However, the writing is a problem. The main female character is either badly acted or written or both. Kind and apologetic one minute whilst being angry and psychotic the next.

The structure of the movie is decent enough but there are several contrived parts to the story such as, we never find out what is in grandma's room and the ending gets air dropped from out of nowhere.

With more time and money and more structure to the plot this could hav3 been something. Unfortunately, it mostly comes across as a hobby movie for film graduates.

Tired found footage film. Is there something supernatural? Where does the film go with this? Can the lead actor voice what his motivations are to help him deliver any line convincingly? I'll answer the last question: no. Too bad that this is who they picked to star in this film. The actor is unconvincing in the title, tended to read his lines as if he was also explaining the stage directions of the script and piecing together what his motivation was to speak the lines he had. The script did little to help him be able to offer any acting chops, but I doubt he would have done well if there was a better script. Maybe it was one of the minimalist scripts that just set the stage and then allow the actors to be in the moment in character. Who knows. Oh, the movie and its plot and conclusion. Yeah, it was that important.

Wow. See all of those other one star reviews? Believe them. This movie is really that bad. You could pick any five people at random, with no experience in making movies whatsoever, give them a video camera, and they would come up with something better than "The Following".

The acting is absolutely God-awful, even by zero-budget horror movie standards. This is a movie that starts out stupid, and picks up momentum like a snowball rolling downhill and turning into an avalanche, and turns imbeciles.

Anyone and everyone who had anything whatsoever with the production of this movie should be barred from ever making another movie in any capacity whatsoever.

If you head into director Kévin Mendiboure's new found footage venture The Follower expecting more of a slow-burning thriller over a jump scare heavy horror, then this solid attempt at crafting a different spin on the usual genre tropes that have plagued other found footage films will be a screening worth taking.

Shot on a shoe string budget with a tiny cast headlined by Nicolas Shake's blogger/internet personality David Baker who has a keen interest in the supernatural but starts to wish he didn't after Chloé Dumas's fan and keen follower Carol Anderson invites David to her isolated homestead to experience some odd supernatural occurrences, The Follower in many ways walks in the line of many other films of the same ilk yet overcomes a poor performance from Dumas, some at times weak scripting and a pace that crawls at times to a snail's pace to be a film that shows promise for Mendiboure as a filmmaker with his ability to turn expectations on their heads in the films finale.

After a long-winded build up where David finds himself troubled at home after his stay with Carol, the true nature of what is occurring at the Dumas property becomes apparent and The Follower ups the ante considerably as both David and the audience become acutely aware on what is transpiring for our protagonists.

It's a shame then for the film that has such a strong last act that so much of what comes before doesn't quite match it. Shake's performance is solid (even if you can't help but feel Justin Long has a clone) and Mendiboure doesn't over-do shaky or grainy footage that can so often infest these type of experiences but the film was crying out from a few more scares, stronger character development and a more expertly polished script, all elements that if prevalent, would've made The Follower a genuine indie must-see.

Final Say –

The Follower leaves a lot to be desired but there's also enough promise here to suggest Mendiboure has the potential to be a filmmaker of note. Not one for horror buffs due to the lack of genuine chills and blood spills, The Follower is however a solid low-budget affair with a particularly neat sleight-of-hand that should catch unsuspecting viewers by surprise.

2 ½ movie posters out of 5

Watching this is a waste of time. Doing anything else with your time is better than watching this movie