DON'T LOOK IN THE DARK Review: Fear Hides in the Darkness
- 12 minutes ago
- 1 min read
By Shannon McGrew
DON’T LOOK IN THE DARK is a reminder that the found footage subgenre still has tricks up its sleeves.
Directed by Sam Freeman, DON'T LOOK IN THE DARK incorporates long stretches of darkness and fragmented visuals from a cell phone that has been secretly recording a married couple who are on a camping trip.
Starring Rebi Paganini ("Maya") and Dennis Puglisi ("Golan"), the film follows the couple as they hike in the woods and become lost after Maya thinks she sees a lone child through the trees. What unravels is a visual experience that feels like a descent into insanity.
The footage includes long moments of complete darkness. But not everything is as it seems; you can start to see something forming within that darkness. When the phone's camera captures video from the forest during the moments the couple feels watched, the footage is nothing short of unnerving.
DON'T LOOK IN THE DARK succeeds in creating a film that forces the audience's imagination to conjure up whatever terror they see in those moments of darkness. It's a slower, more immersive approach that may test casual found footage viewers, but those who appreciate this subgenre of horror will find plenty to enjoy.
DON'T LOOK IN THE DARK is currently on a festival run, so make sure to follow their account on social media for updates on when it'll be released.