Dark Mountain

This movie is a cheap copy of THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, and even a line in the script referencing BLAIR WITCH about 25 minutes in doesn't do much to help it. Instead of being lost in the forests of MD, these three characters are lost in the hills of AZ, searching for an old gold mine despite the numbers of predecessors who have turned up dead or gone missing while attempting the same feat. The characters are one dimensional, the script is predictable, and the movie just plain fails. Skip it.

Dark Mountain is beautifully directed and filmed, it really took me by surprise. This isn't another nauseating, shaky-cam mess. There are a lot of terrific shots and brilliantly edited moments -- especially, the opening montage as the characters drive to the Superstition Mountains. The glitches that periodically disrupt the footage are also particularly effective.

When the characters arrive at the mountains, a growing sense of unease builds. Soon, they are lost, confused and frightened. The actors are all well-cast and give strong performances -- their descent into hysteria and madness is completely believable.

Dark Mountain is terrifying and thrilling, with memorable scares. Highly recommended.

I have been obsessed with found footage movies for a while now and will generally watch what I can find regardless of others reviews and opinions. With that being said, I though this was a good and solid movie although I wish the directors did more with the ending. There was a lot of buildup and then POOF. Nothing. Sure, this makes sense for the genre of the movie BUT let's be a bit more creative, yeah? Add a little something maybe? Don't leave us viewers going "that's it"? This usually leads to lower ratings and disappointed faces.

Just to caution viewers before they dive into this film, be aware that the footage is not necessarily the best quality. This is not to say it's bad because that's not the case either, it's just not up to par with the newer footage movies.

Overall, I would recommend this movie to those who enjoy the genre. Even if you don't like it, it is a movie to add to your "seen" list.

I absolutely love movies like Blair Witch Project or something clever this was not Blair Witch. This was more like Blair Witch 2 Bad! I mean first of all if you want it to be like a Found Footage Film you don't put in music over it or spooky noises. I have been 47 minutes into it and so far the characters are bad, the plot is very thin. At first I thought ok this might be interesting and then it's like oh no jump scare, run, scream and meh. Maybe it's just because I am jaded or bored with these kinds of movies but yeah I am not impressed with this movie at all! And the heavy metal music is seriously giving me a headache.

I caught the premiere of this movie at the Austin Films Festival last night. The experience was enhanced by the screen writers and producers being in the audience. Firstly, the cinematography was very enjoyable. Shot in Arizona by the real-life Superstition Mountains, this movie is easy on the eyes with nature shots (and Sage Howard shots) alternating with sepia scenes (for when the characters are supposedly filming on their camera phones). The film makes great use of seemingly extended pauses before any tense moment, which left us leaning forward in our seats. However, I'll admit that the jump scares and sudden loud noises got old to me after a while, because I think I jumped every time the radio came on randomly. The filming in documentary style really helped us meet the characters. I enjoyed the dilemma the main character faced in her friends' safety versus great footage for her documentary. My biggest complaint is the number of unanswered questions. Three or four plot elements were introduced and then not later addressed to my satisfaction. This added to the suspense in the case of the time warps, but in most cases distracted me because I was left curious. The ending was complete but cliché. Conclusion: Paranormal Activity with more Frights and Eye Candy.