Heidi

This wasn't anything we haven't seen before but I enjoy FF movies so I wanted to give it a try. The cast is likable and fun, they prank one another so there's no reason to believe them when things go bad.

However, the plotting is a little too clunky. The doll Heidi is locked up, gets loose. But the reactions aren't "OMG!!!" It's more like, "Wtf?" And then it happens again. And again. And again. There's never the sense that something truly out of the ordinary has happened. Even when they throw it out a couple times and it comes back...still not much reaction.

Then for some reason, some people are murdered and the film just sort of loses its focus. (Animals are killed too, and that always bugs me more than the humans!) And I started to lose interest. They hire a psychic to find out what's going on and she's no help, Google is no help...and I gave up. Didn't watch the last 20 minutes--which shows that I really did lose interest!

I don't usually write reviews but giving in on this one. I LOVE horror movies and while this isn't grade A, big budget, fare, it was completely entertaining.

The lead actor, young and definitely not a pro - was great to watch, fit the role and I think, really helped this movie along as he was so likeable.

Again, definitely not big budget, but they made fine work with what they had and didn't have to rely on useless gore or cheesy affects. The doll 'Heidi' was sufficient to give the necessary chills.

This wasn't a total slow burn, but also didn't rely on jump scares - it was just genuinely creepy and a fun watch.

Definitely one of the better films in the FF genre.

I admit that I thought this was going to be awful after the irritating opening scene. My low expectations dipped when they found the doll, predicting a series back and forth shots where it's moved or disappeared. Instead it became more creative and creepy.

It was visually interesting, and actually quite varied in terms of locations and events. Yes the pacing stumbles at times, but it picks up in the third act. The ending (not the mid-credit scene) was genuinely unsettling. At the same time it added a bit of logic to the events of the film (I.e, how does a little doll actually do this stuff).

The acting is a mixed bag, and it's a bit worrying seeing children and animals looking distressed for real. It's certainly not without its problems, but it ends up being a fairly satisfying and unsettling story with characters generally behaving realistically.

I had the privilege of seeing Heidi at the 2014 Pollygrind fest. I knew nothing but the title of the film, and that it was a packed house. That was it. Unlike allot of the internet, I enjoy a good "found footage" film, the genre has an immediacy and and honesty in it's scares that just works for me. From the first act of the film I could tell that this wasn't just another kids go missing in the woods affair. The film had an instant charm that really doesn't let up. Speaking of not letting up, the increasing sense of danger this tiny doll imposes as the film rolls. This film was made BEFORE Annabelle BTW, and honestly shares pretty much nothing other than a haunted doll at their core. Either way, the film runs us through a series of very well done set pieces meant to do one thing, be scary and build the danger that lead to a climax that unlike allot of FF films, doesn't just peter out. These sequences really show the film makers clever side, utilizing the approach in such different and unique ways, it's hard not to get sucked into the fun of the whole affair. I truly hope Heidi gets a nice fat distribution deal because say what you will about found footage, this movie rocks what its got and then some, and seeing some of the dribble that hits big screens representing the genre, it would nice to see something so well crafted and with so much heart behind it up there of the marquee.

I am not a fan of found footage but I do enjoy the killer doll trope. This film has most of the usual found footage clichés, the biggest offender of course being that this didn't need to be a found footage film. Your main characters are Jack and Ryan, two internet pranksters who switch from being the most monotone narrators to terribly obnoxious and unlikable. The films pacing is fairly slow, and while events are occurring through out the film they are often lacking any real content. The main character seems to switch between believing the doll is evil and defending the supernatural events as coincidence. The movie is relatively low on gore and has little to no jump scares, both of which I consider plus 1's , though different people have different tastes so I will let you decide if that makes you want to see the film more or less. Quick Summary: Outside of detective Harris, the acting was all around poor, it lacked any real scary moments, the story feels empty, the sound work can switch from quiet talking to loud static sound effects blasting your speaker, and the camera-work is... well it's found footage.