The Devil Complex

The Blair Witch Project (1999) has a lot to answer for. Ever since its release we've been bombarded with found footage movies because of the seeming popularity and because they're insanely cheap to produce.

This British made one is set in Romania and revolves around a documentary film crew investigating the infamous Hoia-Baciu Forest. For those unfamiliar this is a forest within Transylvania that is well known for it's stories of ghosts, demons and ufos.

The first 3/4 of the movie is character establishment, when something finally happens it still doesn't. Truth be told this is less actual content or activity than Blair Witch, than Pararnomal Activity. By that I mean literally nothing happens.

It claims this is based on true events, yet again a lie. The forest is well known for stories, but no basis or evidence to support any of them.

One thing I found baffling is that the forest is well known for its central circle and distinct tree growth in some areas. They don't show any of this, why go all the way there and not film the two most impressive things within the forest? Forest, snow and some very unlikable characters. That's your lot.

The Good:

Fantastic setting

Based on something real and fairly interesting

The Bad:

Weird writing decisions

Nothing happens

What a horrible ripoff of blair witch. Like many commentors said, just follow your own foot prints?!?! And how many ff movies are going to end with someone being dragged away by something you cant see, not saying that happened here, just so I don't have to put that I have spoilers lol.... I love FF movies but their are SO MANY bad ones.

An amazing setting only can't do much for a found footage horror movie with low budget, uncharismatic actors with foreign accents and an overdone storyline. That being said, the movie misses the point of being scary and it looks like it doesn't even try. The scenes happen as they come, without momentum or a real terror content and it comes close to being just necessary chapters to respect the genre it is supposed to be, all in all weakly acted and directed. The actors are the main issue here. They just don't go together and that's obvious from the beginning. It's like none of them want to be there. I wasn't expecting much from it, but can't say I'm not somewhat disappointed about the lack of one or two well-crafted scares which would've saved something out of this lame duck movie. A missed shot.

In theory, THE DEVIL COMPLEX could have been a decent movie: the setup of a small group investigating a mysterious forest in Transylvania offers an opportunity for building an atmospheric creepy story, but, sadly, that opportunity was squandered.

The film opens with a tension-killing excerpt of the last scene, and apart from the interviews with the locals early in the movie we don't get to see much of Romanian culture or mythology. Even the landscape shots, which could have provided an opportunity for eye candy, turn out to be mediocre. There is barely a build-up of suspense, except for the creepy guide who somehow seemed inauthentic for the roIe.

I guess the conceit of this film is that the explanation of the mysterious happenings in the forest resides in the dark secrets each participant harbors, but those secrets turn out to be so extremely dark as to seem contrived (Seriously, would anyone with a history like these guys go into a forest that is even just rumored to judge and punish you for your bad deeds?).

Even after the eerie and deadly events begin, the movie is somehow not able to ratchet the tension. Disappointingly, we never even see or know exactly what is meting out the judgments on those poor souls.

This is a very bare bones movie, and I cannot shake the suspicion that the Romanian setting was not chosen so much for the historical treasure trove of story opportunities it could have provided, but simply because it was cheaper to film there. While it is not among the worst found footage horror movies, it is thoroughly unexceptional, and the only really suitable audience for this consists of those who want to see all possible variations on the basic BLAIR WITCH concept.

Despite not caring for found footage films at all usually, the advertising and poster were eye-catchy and creepy and the setting looked nice and more attractive and atmospheric-looking than settings for most found footage films. Plus the idea was not a bad one, it sounded strange and is hardly original but with the right execution, or at least competent execution, there was potential for it to be halfway unsettling and intriguing. So there was no bias against it.

'The Devil Complex' just didn't deliver. Have seen a lot worse, it's not even among the worst found footage films out of all my viewings of them (and more than enough have been watched to form that subjective opinion). It is nowhere near as creepy as the advertising and poster/cover looked. It does nothing new or interesting with its idea, one of my biggest bugbears watching films etc. is potential wastes and it is really quite frustrating.

One thing that 'The Devil Complex' did have in its favour was the setting. That actually did look pleasing to look at and did evoke atmosphere that was severely lacking everywhere else. The one thing with potential that the film didn't completely waste.

It though could have been complemented better because the photography lacked focus and did make me feel queasy. The audio is not particularly well balanced and the way it's used is obvious and not really gelling with what's going on onscreen. The direction is pedestrian at best and the writing never has any urgency and quite stop start in its flow.

While the idea was unoriginal but it intrigued, the execution of it is anything but intriguing. The dull, drawn out pacing badly betrayed the flimsiness, to a too often uneventful and padded degree, of the story. The atmosphere is bland throughout, nothing is scary and it doesn't feel like there is anything at stake. Everything is so indifferent. The characters have absolutely nothing to them and are basically just there but nothing else. The acting is equally lacking in much effort, seeming miserable and bored throughout. The interaction is stiff at best and that is only when there is signs of any, which is only marginally fleeting.

Concluding, very poor waste of potential but there are worse found footage films and films in general around. 2/10 for the setting only