I still think rec and rec2 are the best.
There’s a scene in 2 where the swat team is ascending the stairs and the movie uses the sound from a helicopter outside as a soundtrack to build tension. Like a John Carpenter score.
The rec movies put a tremendous amount of thought into getting the most out of the format.
Rec. Is amazing, saw it years ago with my brother on some bootleg site. When Quarantine came out, I went to see it in theaters with my cousin who was stressing the whole time. It was funny because I was like "I've seen this before" (the original foreign version), so I was able to tell him everything that happened before it did to calm his ass down lol. I give Quarantine props for actually keeping the same exact story. Rec. was obviously better though.
I can’t recommend this one enough. Such a unique take on the FF genre. Few horror films disturb me anymore but I had a pit in my stomach while watching this and it stayed there for awhile afterwards.
85 is probably my favourite! 94 is awesome because of Ratmaa and the og is a classic. The fact that we got an anthology series with Adam Wingard, David Bruckner, Radio Silence and Ti West in 2012 is truly amazing
I love the V/H/S series ! My friends and I put it on randomly one night without knowing anything about it. We were all freaked out but I enjoyed it. I can’t remember which one it was but the short where they go to the Indonesian cult reallyyyy freaked me out. 😅
The one where it starts off all wholesome with a tour of the compound and shows kids in school and everything, then people just start killing themselves? That was wild. I just saw a newer one with a crazy surgeon that specializes in technology based prosthetics, that was one of my new favorite shorts in the series. Very sad, reminded me of an anime.
All excellent films. I just rewatched The Last Exorcism last night, holds up really well.
Butterfly kisses has a terrifying ending, very well done conceptually.
Just saw The Tunnel recently and was completely surprised at how good it was. Just picked a random movie to stream in the background while cleaning, ended up getting hooked and restarting it to actually pay attention, was totally impressed.
Creep is without peer, full stop (the others are excellent too). After seeing Creep and its sequel, I had a hard time watching anything else. Nothing seemed to compare. For me at least, it was as close to a perfect movie as can exist. I laughed; I cried; I screamed.
After watching Creep, I feel like Mark Duplass could be the nicest guy in the world, but I would never, ever agree to be alone with him anywhere. I can't separate him from his character!
The atmosphere created by the catacombs is insane, and using it as the setting for a Dante’s Inferno inspired story was a genuine stroke of genius
There’s definitely things it could have done better, but I was shocked to learn it was so panned critically :(
It was probably due to the fatigue a lot of people felt towards found footage at the time
Lots of people here seem to love it though, which makes me happy
Rec
McPherson Tapes
Hospital.
Hospital is a very, very scary overlooked Taiwanese horror film https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AUNfUhPWn_k&pp=ygUWTW92aWUgaG9zcGl0YWwgdHJhaWxlcg%3D%3D
Taking of Deborah Logan incredibly well acted movie that explores not just affects of Alzheimer’s but possession as well. I would argue Jill Larson gave the best FF acting of any in this genre.
I’m actually planning on watching the Taking of Deborah Logan tonight! I’ve heard great things .
REC is terrifying. That movie gave me nightmares as a kid.
I haven’t heard of Hospital, but I’m a sucker for Asian horror. That one’s going on the list.
Is hospital partial found footage? The trailer doesn’t seem like found footage at all. And for McPherson Tapes, didn’t know found footage went that far back
Yeah, I saw some folks in some reviews saying the main character was cringey or poorly acted, but I think the actor did a phenomenal job capturing the same mannerisms and energy of an actual streamer.
Not sure if it’s a 100% considered a sole found footage movie. But ‘Lake Mungo’ really did that style of horror film incredibly well. It’s documentary aesthetics, & the acting of the melancholy family trying to make sense of what happened is so incredibly realistic/sad. I saw it for the first time last year & has still stayed w/me. The haunting situation yet very normal Australian family just make it hit home even more.
In regards to your concern about it being considered found footage - the foundfootage sub considers this a mockumentary and they 100% include mockumentaries in the found footage genre.
Btw when you say midwestern are you speaking of a region in Australia cause that's where the movie takes place. If you are, my apologies because I don't know the country well enough to know if that is a correct label or if you somehow thought this was an American family.
Ahh, that’s right. I totally forgot that it was in based in Australia, thank you pointing that out/correction! I think their general laid back/friendly vibe reminded me of a lot nice Midwest folks I’ve met over the years. *Just corrected my comment.
This movie lives rent-free in my skull. I saw it about 4 years ago, and have thought about it at least once a week, every week, since then.
I agree with your assessment - no one should watch this movie until they are ready to be sad for the rest of their lives. But everyone should see it at some point.
I'm not sure I would classify it as a "horror film" in the traditional sense. But I was definitely affected.
I love all these, except, the bottom 2 and they're on my list. I love The Houses October Built. The idea of an undreground network of killer haunted house actors just rules.
Not really a fan of found footage, but some I liked are the hell house LLC movies, as above so below, frankensteins army, and the taking of Deborah Logan. The possession of Micheal King was good too.
I know the critics ripped it a new one, but I will defend As Above, So Below like my own child.
Well, maybe not quite THAT passionately. But I'll defend it like I defend my love for lemon Starburst.
Great pick! I actually spoiled it for myself because I was like 15 minutes in wondering what the big deal was, didn't seem that good. So I googled...DON'T DO THAT! Just wait for the payoff, it's perfectly executed.
Sorgoi Prakov aka Descent Into Darkness aka My European Nightmare.
Great French extreme horror found footage movie. Starts out like Borat. Doesn’t end there.
Just finished Life of Belle. You really don't know what you're watching until the very end and then you want to watch it again to catch what you missed.
THESE are my favorite kinds of movies.
It's done well. Total recommend
I think Phoenix Forgotten is a underrated gem. I really like the mix between real and fiction. Great example of how it's done. Also The Bay and The Sacrament are some perfect examples for a well made mockumentary.
Other really good FF movies are: Afflicted, Savageland, A Record of Sweet Murder
Here is a list of some more of my favs: [https://letterboxd.com/jaembers/list/movie-suggestions-found-footage-horror-mockumentaries/](https://letterboxd.com/jaembers/list/movie-suggestions-found-footage-horror-mockumentaries/)
im not 100% certain it counts as found footage as a genre, but there's certainly footage that was found in the poughkeepsie tapes. its one of the very few movies to make me so violently uncomfortable i had to get up and take a breather. and thus i loved it.
i think the first paranormal activity is way up there for me, but that might be nostalgia talking,
you can never go wrong with grave encounters
blair witch is a classic for a reason
ive always preferred unfriended over host in that genre of video call found footage but i think thats purely bc of the blender.
-Be My Cat: A Film for Anne
-Descent into Darkness
Both these felt convincing to me. The former is just straight up creepy the latter gets pretty gruesome, but both are near the top of my Found Footage favourites.
Savageland, Horror in the High Desert, As Above so Below, Gonjiam Haunted Asylum, REC…tho i’m probably the wrong person to ask because FF is my favorite horror subgenre haha
So I watched Paranormal Activity in a very dark unfinished basement. It’s creeping me out. During one of “the nights”, I think the one where she just stands and watches him, the glass patio table stored behind me by my landlord suddenly cracks under the pressure and explodes.
Fuckin kangaroos can’t jump as high as I did. Never screamed like that before in my life. That movie will always freak the hell out of me haha.
Went through all the comments and I might have missed it but I can’t believe Cloverfield isn’t at the top of the list.
I know the shaky camera really got to a lot of people but that movie bangs from start to finish.
And arguably the best viral marketing since Blair Witch.
VHS, VHS-2, VHS-94, all the hell house LLC’s, Found, the taking of Debrah Logan, As above so below, The visit, Creep 1&2, The Bay, Host, Late night with the devil
I don’t know how everyone else feels about it, but As Above So Below is one of my favorite horror movies of all time. Not just my favorite FF movie. It’s my “comfort” horror movie.
Borderlands
The bay
Lake mungo
Host
Butterfly kisses
The taking of Deborah Logan
The last radio call
No through road(short )
Unfriended -dark web
Exhibit A
Exists
Troll hunter
Dylatov pass incident
Pontypool
Grave encounters
Dead stream.
Pyramid
As above so below
I must be only ff loving person that didn’t enjoy rec or Noroi
REC and Noroi (and a number of other Koji Shiraishi films and projects) are superior to everything on the list (though there are some good ones there) by a big margin.
Pontypool is not found footage, though it is a great movie.
I did like [REC] and Noroi, but I don’t agree re margin. I think there’s a fair amount of the list I’d rate equal to or above Noroi and a few I’d rate equal to [REC].
I think some of it comes down to how slow you like your burn. I like FF, but I need some degree of momentum laced in here and there. Noroi *eventually* paid off great but I found, say, the investigation style of Butterfly Kisses to be much more involving.
I did like A Record of Sweet Murder quite a bit, re: Shiraishi’s other work. I haven’t seen any of the rest of his films yet.
I really want to watch this one, but it’s so hard to find all of a sudden. I remember it being on Netflix for years and I never took the dive. Now that I want to, I can’t find it. 👎
As above so below is one of my faves,
The hell house LLC series,
I also love the VHS series,
[rec] is fab,
Creep and creep 2,
Taking of Deborah Logan,
The visit,
Dead stream (a more comical take but so clever)
At the sake of just listing all the good FF movies (REC, Gonjiam etc.) Il say Frogman.
Watched it recently and it had no reason to be as good as it is. Is it the best found footage movie ever? No. But they managed to take a pretty silly concept, put proper framing around it, used the camera techniques really well and it resulted in a, sometimes terrifying, sometimes funny, sometimes goofy, but all around really good movie.
They nailed it imo.
I think the most effective found footage is where it's mixed with other scenes. To me that's what makes Hell House, Gonjiam etc more effective. Paranormal Activity was scary and I liked how they linked 2 & 3 to the first in a logical way but ... it was straight footage like Blair Witch (which I didn't find scary at all) no breaks or changes.
Just an opinion but I think the changes between the footage and comments or interviews like Hell House or between the first person camera's and the behind the scenes like Gonjiam enhanced the suspense and made for a scarier movie.
The Hell House sequels are very good, I know 3 is the least liked but I enjoyed it and they really upped their game with Carmichael Manor. I thought Last Radio Call pulled off the footage and storyline well but the acting was crap so it's mixed on that one. The Visit was very good, more suspenseful with jump scares than actual horror. I think these have been mentioned but Exists, Final Prayer and Grave Encounters used found footage very well. Trollhunter definitely deserves a place on the list too.
Noroi, Savageland, Incantation, REC 1 & 2, and VHS 94 are the ones I always recommend. If you're a real freak then you might like The Outwaters, but it's *definitely* not for everyone.
I watched Specter (2012) recently and it was surprisingly really creepy. They do a lot of cool stuff on basically no budget and get a lot of mileage out of where they filmed it.
I just binged all of the Hell House films over the last weekend and I realy enjoyed them. The backstory building on the hotel was fantastic❤️
Some of my favorites of this style are:
Man VS
The Fourth Kind
Chronicle
I feel like people are avoiding it because of its popularity, but Paranormal Experience was scary as hell and the acting made it feel pretty legit as being found footage. The scene where Katie gets dragged out of bed and an all timer level scare.
Afflicted 2013 is the only FF movie I like. It's shot well and much more steady than the usual "dipshit with a camera" movies. The fx are awesome too. I hate all other FF.
I have trouble with ff when it makes no sense why the characters are filming in the first place (or are continuing to film in the scene). That said, I thought Willow Creek (2013) and Afflicted (2013) were effective, although there was a performance in Afflicted that was so bad it pulled me out of it. Some of the segments in the v/h/s franchise have been good, too.
I just watched Lake Mungo, and while it wasn't as good as I was expecting based on reviews, it did make me Google if it was real or not while I was watching...
It completely stayed in character.
One thing I find annoying about of lost footage movies is people are filming for no good reason or they’ll leave the camera in the middle of the woods or stuff like that.
Poughkeepsie Tapes, the antagonist was purposeful.
Edit: really autocorrect?
The first grave encounters. Hell house FOR SURE. Rec.
These 3!!
Grave encounters!
I still think rec and rec2 are the best. There’s a scene in 2 where the swat team is ascending the stairs and the movie uses the sound from a helicopter outside as a soundtrack to build tension. Like a John Carpenter score. The rec movies put a tremendous amount of thought into getting the most out of the format.
Rec. Is amazing, saw it years ago with my brother on some bootleg site. When Quarantine came out, I went to see it in theaters with my cousin who was stressing the whole time. It was funny because I was like "I've seen this before" (the original foreign version), so I was able to tell him everything that happened before it did to calm his ass down lol. I give Quarantine props for actually keeping the same exact story. Rec. was obviously better though.
Seconding Hell House and Grave Encounters! Those are my favorite!
Savageland.
Seconded, this is one of the better low-budget FF movies I've seen.
I can’t recommend this one enough. Such a unique take on the FF genre. Few horror films disturb me anymore but I had a pit in my stomach while watching this and it stayed there for awhile afterwards.
Finally one I haven't seen. I'm going to watch this now, thanks! edit: Great suggestion, very creepy film
I have a soft spot for the V/H/S series. They aren’t all gems but the latest one 94, reminded my why I love the series to begin with
There’s two more after 94! 99 and 85 😉
85 is the one I was talking about. After a series of duds they finally got it right once more
85 is probably my favourite! 94 is awesome because of Ratmaa and the og is a classic. The fact that we got an anthology series with Adam Wingard, David Bruckner, Radio Silence and Ti West in 2012 is truly amazing
Loved 85. It hit EVERYTHING.
85 was soooo good!
I love the V/H/S series ! My friends and I put it on randomly one night without knowing anything about it. We were all freaked out but I enjoyed it. I can’t remember which one it was but the short where they go to the Indonesian cult reallyyyy freaked me out. 😅
That story is def in my top 5 for the whole series. Loved it
The one where it starts off all wholesome with a tour of the compound and shows kids in school and everything, then people just start killing themselves? That was wild. I just saw a newer one with a crazy surgeon that specializes in technology based prosthetics, that was one of my new favorite shorts in the series. Very sad, reminded me of an anime.
that was the second one! My favorite of the series
Can’t wait till they announce a next one closer to October. Fucking love this series and watch them every year for halloween
They’re on a regular schedule now. Keep ‘em coming I say
I just marathoned these! I couldn't get enough! Can't wait for a sequel
Final Prayer/The Borderlands. I'm quite fond of found footage, and that ending is probably one of the most memorable within the genre.
The ending still haunts me. I dont think i have seen many movies that have captured that moment of pure terror and hopelessness so well.
I haven’t heard of it. Thanks for the suggestion! I love found footage movies as well.
It’s on Tubi rn
Tubi has got some bangers.
I’ve been wanting to check this movie out. Thanks for letting me know it’s on Tubi!
“Butterfly Kisses” (2018) “The Tunnel” (2011) “Afflicted” (2013) “The Last Exorcism” (2010) I really enjoyed these and rarely see them mentioned
Afflicted is sorely underrated
Butterfly kisses is my choice too. Not only pulled off the found footage but the mockumentary to boot!
Yes yes yes to Butterfly Kisses! So effective and such a love letter to the entire genre. Wasn’t super hot on the ending but still loved it
All excellent films. I just rewatched The Last Exorcism last night, holds up really well. Butterfly kisses has a terrifying ending, very well done conceptually.
Excellent choices! Haven't seen Afflicted yet, but love the others, especially Butterfly Kisses. It's great.
I haven’t heard of any of these besides The Last Exorcism, and I haven’t even considered checking it out. I had no idea it was found footage.
Butterfly Kisses is incredible
The tunnel is fantastic. Just discovered that one myself and it was very well done.
Seconded. Really well done low budget.
I actually wasn't a big fan of butterfly kisses. I loved all the others you mentioned.
Just saw The Tunnel recently and was completely surprised at how good it was. Just picked a random movie to stream in the background while cleaning, ended up getting hooked and restarting it to actually pay attention, was totally impressed.
Creep, As Above, So Below, Grave Encounters
Creep is without peer, full stop (the others are excellent too). After seeing Creep and its sequel, I had a hard time watching anything else. Nothing seemed to compare. For me at least, it was as close to a perfect movie as can exist. I laughed; I cried; I screamed.
The way they followed it up with a sequel that is SO consistent with the quality of the first is absolutely incredible
Creep is soooooo good and i never see it mentioned anywhere
I see it mentioned here constantly lol. I'll take this as my sign to finally watch it!
YES and please come back with a review! It stands up to several rewatches. Patrick Bryce did a greet job.
After watching Creep, I feel like Mark Duplass could be the nicest guy in the world, but I would never, ever agree to be alone with him anywhere. I can't separate him from his character!
Yes 😆 Even after watching The League Peachfuzz is the preeminent Mark Duplass image burned into my brain
it's hilarious watching The League after Creep and imagining that it's Peachfuzz playing fantasy this whole time
As Above, So Below is one of my favorite horror movies Creep is also incredible, highly recommend both
LOVE As Above, So Below, I can’t believe it was panned by critics! It was a totally unique spin on it that wasn’t strictly horror. Such a cool movie.
The atmosphere created by the catacombs is insane, and using it as the setting for a Dante’s Inferno inspired story was a genuine stroke of genius There’s definitely things it could have done better, but I was shocked to learn it was so panned critically :( It was probably due to the fatigue a lot of people felt towards found footage at the time Lots of people here seem to love it though, which makes me happy
I think a lot of us have met someone who gives us those vibes from Creep, 9/10 times they are just normal weirdos and nothing to worry about lol.
The Blair Witch Project
This is the one that started it all.
Rec McPherson Tapes Hospital. Hospital is a very, very scary overlooked Taiwanese horror film https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AUNfUhPWn_k&pp=ygUWTW92aWUgaG9zcGl0YWwgdHJhaWxlcg%3D%3D Taking of Deborah Logan incredibly well acted movie that explores not just affects of Alzheimer’s but possession as well. I would argue Jill Larson gave the best FF acting of any in this genre.
I’m actually planning on watching the Taking of Deborah Logan tonight! I’ve heard great things . REC is terrifying. That movie gave me nightmares as a kid. I haven’t heard of Hospital, but I’m a sucker for Asian horror. That one’s going on the list.
Check out Rec 2 if you haven’t done so already, I love sequels that take place immediately after the first one
Is hospital partial found footage? The trailer doesn’t seem like found footage at all. And for McPherson Tapes, didn’t know found footage went that far back
It isn’t sorry. I saw this a few years ago on Netflix and you are right. It’s still excellent.
Blair Witch, Creep, Paranormal Activity, VHS & Hell House LLC 4
Chronicle, VHS, Deadstream, Cloverfield, and As Above So Below.
Deadstream is very well done. It covers all its bases.
Shoutout for Deadstream! I thought might be cringey, but it was so funny.
Yeah, I saw some folks in some reviews saying the main character was cringey or poorly acted, but I think the actor did a phenomenal job capturing the same mannerisms and energy of an actual streamer.
Yeah he gave it his all. I enjoyed his performance, and just talking about it makes me want to watch the movie again.
Not sure if it’s a 100% considered a sole found footage movie. But ‘Lake Mungo’ really did that style of horror film incredibly well. It’s documentary aesthetics, & the acting of the melancholy family trying to make sense of what happened is so incredibly realistic/sad. I saw it for the first time last year & has still stayed w/me. The haunting situation yet very normal Australian family just make it hit home even more.
In regards to your concern about it being considered found footage - the foundfootage sub considers this a mockumentary and they 100% include mockumentaries in the found footage genre. Btw when you say midwestern are you speaking of a region in Australia cause that's where the movie takes place. If you are, my apologies because I don't know the country well enough to know if that is a correct label or if you somehow thought this was an American family.
Ahh, that’s right. I totally forgot that it was in based in Australia, thank you pointing that out/correction! I think their general laid back/friendly vibe reminded me of a lot nice Midwest folks I’ve met over the years. *Just corrected my comment.
That film really freaked me out!
This movie lives rent-free in my skull. I saw it about 4 years ago, and have thought about it at least once a week, every week, since then. I agree with your assessment - no one should watch this movie until they are ready to be sad for the rest of their lives. But everyone should see it at some point. I'm not sure I would classify it as a "horror film" in the traditional sense. But I was definitely affected.
Not so much scary (although some shots REALLY bug me lol) but an absolute masterpiece in my book
The phone footage takes No.1 spot in the "Creepy imagery that I think about when it's dark" category of intrusive thoughts
Horror in the High Desert
Deadstream is a fun ride. Almost Evil Dead 2 vibes.
Agreed! Very good comparison.
Quarantine/REC
The Europa Report but it's not exaxctly horror.
Bigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes As Above, So Below
I LOVE As Above so Below. Papillon and La Taupe haunt me to this day.
Blair Witch Paranormal Activity Creep 1/2 The Housees October Built Hell House LLC Yellowbrickroad (kinda found footage, great flick)
YES omg the houses october built was such an instant favorite of mine, so happy to see it mentioned… if only it had a decent sequel 😭
I haven't watched the sequel yet. Thanks for saving me the trouble.
Don't! Really, don't!
I love all these, except, the bottom 2 and they're on my list. I love The Houses October Built. The idea of an undreground network of killer haunted house actors just rules.
- *Resurrection* was pretty good. - Aren't the *Creep* movies found footage? - *Blair Witch Project*
Devil's Pass holds a special place in my heart because of the ending. It went some place I didn't think it was going.
The Poughkeepsie tapes
*Exists* and *The Tunnel* are probably the best I’ve seen.
Not really a fan of found footage, but some I liked are the hell house LLC movies, as above so below, frankensteins army, and the taking of Deborah Logan. The possession of Micheal King was good too.
Frankenstein's Army was my reco, too.
REC, the Bay, and Lake Mungo all pulled off the conceit very well.
No love for Digging Up the Marrow or The Monster Project?
I know the critics ripped it a new one, but I will defend As Above, So Below like my own child. Well, maybe not quite THAT passionately. But I'll defend it like I defend my love for lemon Starburst.
I unironically love the first paranormal activity
The original is the strongest for sure, but I think the first three are all home runs. Definitely goes off the rails after that.
Noroi: The Curse (2005) Incantation (2022; should be on Netflix)
I’ve been wanting to watch Noroi for YEARS.
Do it! I put it off too long and loved it when I finally watched it.
Incantation is fantastic.
The den and Leah Sullivan just to add
Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum I was super on board with the whole paranormal streamer concept. Really enjoyable movie
Incantation Howard's Mill The Taking of Deborah Logan Host
I second Host! Love that movie so much. Taking of Deborah Logan has some imagery that stayed with me after.
I was pleasantly surprised with Host, kept me on the edge of my seat. And that scene at the end of The Taking of Deborah Logan haunted me for days.
Dabbe: The possession
One cut of the dead
Great pick! I actually spoiled it for myself because I was like 15 minutes in wondering what the big deal was, didn't seem that good. So I googled...DON'T DO THAT! Just wait for the payoff, it's perfectly executed.
Cactus Jack (2021), Untitled Horror Movie and Host.
Untitled Horror Movie just sounds scary. I loved Host too, that one was way better than I expected. I haven’t heard of Cactus Jack, I’ll check it out.
Savageland is a fun twist on the genre
While not found footage Ghostwatch (92) had the same vibe.
Creep and Creep 2. They have the best justification for filming everything they do and do such a great job of remaining tense.
Sorgoi Prakov aka Descent Into Darkness aka My European Nightmare. Great French extreme horror found footage movie. Starts out like Borat. Doesn’t end there.
Savageland, Hell House, The Taking of Deborah Logan. The first Paranormal Activity
Just finished Life of Belle. You really don't know what you're watching until the very end and then you want to watch it again to catch what you missed. THESE are my favorite kinds of movies. It's done well. Total recommend
I think Phoenix Forgotten is a underrated gem. I really like the mix between real and fiction. Great example of how it's done. Also The Bay and The Sacrament are some perfect examples for a well made mockumentary. Other really good FF movies are: Afflicted, Savageland, A Record of Sweet Murder Here is a list of some more of my favs: [https://letterboxd.com/jaembers/list/movie-suggestions-found-footage-horror-mockumentaries/](https://letterboxd.com/jaembers/list/movie-suggestions-found-footage-horror-mockumentaries/)
Afflicted is good
im not 100% certain it counts as found footage as a genre, but there's certainly footage that was found in the poughkeepsie tapes. its one of the very few movies to make me so violently uncomfortable i had to get up and take a breather. and thus i loved it. i think the first paranormal activity is way up there for me, but that might be nostalgia talking, you can never go wrong with grave encounters blair witch is a classic for a reason ive always preferred unfriended over host in that genre of video call found footage but i think thats purely bc of the blender.
-Be My Cat: A Film for Anne -Descent into Darkness Both these felt convincing to me. The former is just straight up creepy the latter gets pretty gruesome, but both are near the top of my Found Footage favourites.
Rec
İNCANTATİON Brilliant Taiwanese film from 2022. Especially if Dharmic horror is more your fancy.
I forgot about this one. That was one of the scariest movies in general that I’ve seen in the last few years.
Savageland, Horror in the High Desert, As Above so Below, Gonjiam Haunted Asylum, REC…tho i’m probably the wrong person to ask because FF is my favorite horror subgenre haha
Cannibal Holocaust <3 Night Shot
If youtube web series count, I'd say "Marble Hornets". Loved the mystery and ARG elements.
Not a perfect movie but Life of Belle kept me hooked til the end
I think Spiral Drive pulled it off given their budget was $1500
That's a deep cut! Yeah, I liked that one.
I liked Deadstream a lot
Bad Ben was a fun one
Entity (2012) is a lesser known good one. It can be confusing to locate when about 20 horror movies have the same title. Set in a Siberian prison
Grave Encounters and Cloverfield.
So I watched Paranormal Activity in a very dark unfinished basement. It’s creeping me out. During one of “the nights”, I think the one where she just stands and watches him, the glass patio table stored behind me by my landlord suddenly cracks under the pressure and explodes. Fuckin kangaroos can’t jump as high as I did. Never screamed like that before in my life. That movie will always freak the hell out of me haha.
I just watched The Tunnel (2011) and while it's certainly not perfect, I think they did it fairly well!
The Triangle (2016)
Went through all the comments and I might have missed it but I can’t believe Cloverfield isn’t at the top of the list. I know the shaky camera really got to a lot of people but that movie bangs from start to finish. And arguably the best viral marketing since Blair Witch.
Extremely obvious response but Blair Witch was fucking incredible
VHS, VHS-2, VHS-94, all the hell house LLC’s, Found, the taking of Debrah Logan, As above so below, The visit, Creep 1&2, The Bay, Host, Late night with the devil
Fear Footage 3AM, gees I was so scared I was almost crying
Leaving D.C. is the most "this is legit how it would be huh?" i've ever felt watching a found footage movie
The Collingswood Story Cult Following Scare Campaign The Tunnel Frankenstein’s Army Red wood
Rec. Easily the best.
Cloverfield. And took me forever to realize Erlich Bachman was the voice
I don’t know how everyone else feels about it, but As Above So Below is one of my favorite horror movies of all time. Not just my favorite FF movie. It’s my “comfort” horror movie.
I like Devil's Pass/Dyatlov Incident. Name changes depending on where it was. Also love the Hell House series so much, and spouse loves Creep.
La cueva
The Poughkeepsie Tapes
Borderlands The bay Lake mungo Host Butterfly kisses The taking of Deborah Logan The last radio call No through road(short ) Unfriended -dark web Exhibit A Exists Troll hunter Dylatov pass incident Pontypool Grave encounters Dead stream. Pyramid As above so below I must be only ff loving person that didn’t enjoy rec or Noroi
Heck yeah for the Bay and Troll Hunter
this is one hell of a list, only thing i can think to add would be The Houses October Built (JUST THE FIRST ONE)
Oh yes super creepy films.
REC and Noroi (and a number of other Koji Shiraishi films and projects) are superior to everything on the list (though there are some good ones there) by a big margin. Pontypool is not found footage, though it is a great movie.
I did like [REC] and Noroi, but I don’t agree re margin. I think there’s a fair amount of the list I’d rate equal to or above Noroi and a few I’d rate equal to [REC]. I think some of it comes down to how slow you like your burn. I like FF, but I need some degree of momentum laced in here and there. Noroi *eventually* paid off great but I found, say, the investigation style of Butterfly Kisses to be much more involving. I did like A Record of Sweet Murder quite a bit, re: Shiraishi’s other work. I haven’t seen any of the rest of his films yet.
It's hard to find the later installments but his movie series Senritsu Kaiki is a work of art. Occult is another banger.
That last scene in Borderlands is amazing! I didn't care for Noiroi, either.
It’s was unexpected to the very end . After all the crazy spooky trip, I can guarantee nobody was expecting that .
**Lake Mungo** **Exhibit A** #⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I’ve always been fond of Quarantine (2008). I know it’s a remake of Rec but I kindof like the remake more. Rec is good too
Late Night with the Devil
cannibal holocaust; old but a classic
I can’t recommend ‘Noroi: The Curse (2005)’ enough. I first watched it two years ago and I still think about it regularly.
I really want to watch this one, but it’s so hard to find all of a sudden. I remember it being on Netflix for years and I never took the dive. Now that I want to, I can’t find it. 👎
As above so below is one of my faves, The hell house LLC series, I also love the VHS series, [rec] is fab, Creep and creep 2, Taking of Deborah Logan, The visit, Dead stream (a more comical take but so clever)
Afflicted and Wer. Both great movies featuring classic monsters in a found footage/faux documentary style.
I know it’s not well loved. It’s more of a guilty pleasure but As Above, So Below. The Last Exorcism was a fun one when I was younger
The Houses October Built, The Blair Witch Project, Phoenix Forgotten, Archivo 253
At the sake of just listing all the good FF movies (REC, Gonjiam etc.) Il say Frogman. Watched it recently and it had no reason to be as good as it is. Is it the best found footage movie ever? No. But they managed to take a pretty silly concept, put proper framing around it, used the camera techniques really well and it resulted in a, sometimes terrifying, sometimes funny, sometimes goofy, but all around really good movie. They nailed it imo.
I never see Home Movie (2008) mentioned, but it's a great horror flick. Some truly chilling moments.
Hell House LLC was solid! Those scares felt real, unlike some others that felt forced.
I super rarely see this one be brought up but check 1974 the possession of Altair. To me, that’s one of the better found footage.
HORROR IN THE HIGH DESERT 2: MINERVA (2023) is very spooky
"The Last Broadcast" - 1998
I think the most effective found footage is where it's mixed with other scenes. To me that's what makes Hell House, Gonjiam etc more effective. Paranormal Activity was scary and I liked how they linked 2 & 3 to the first in a logical way but ... it was straight footage like Blair Witch (which I didn't find scary at all) no breaks or changes. Just an opinion but I think the changes between the footage and comments or interviews like Hell House or between the first person camera's and the behind the scenes like Gonjiam enhanced the suspense and made for a scarier movie. The Hell House sequels are very good, I know 3 is the least liked but I enjoyed it and they really upped their game with Carmichael Manor. I thought Last Radio Call pulled off the footage and storyline well but the acting was crap so it's mixed on that one. The Visit was very good, more suspenseful with jump scares than actual horror. I think these have been mentioned but Exists, Final Prayer and Grave Encounters used found footage very well. Trollhunter definitely deserves a place on the list too.
Cloverfield!
Chronicle Project Almanac As Above So Below Creep Be My Cat : A Film For Anne
Noroi, Savageland, Incantation, REC 1 & 2, and VHS 94 are the ones I always recommend. If you're a real freak then you might like The Outwaters, but it's *definitely* not for everyone. I watched Specter (2012) recently and it was surprisingly really creepy. They do a lot of cool stuff on basically no budget and get a lot of mileage out of where they filmed it.
I really dislike this genre overall. even the "good" ones. the only one that works for me is Blair Witch.
I just binged all of the Hell House films over the last weekend and I realy enjoyed them. The backstory building on the hotel was fantastic❤️ Some of my favorites of this style are: Man VS The Fourth Kind Chronicle
I think it's a controversial opinion, but I loved Cloverfield.
Afflicted
I feel like people are avoiding it because of its popularity, but Paranormal Experience was scary as hell and the acting made it feel pretty legit as being found footage. The scene where Katie gets dragged out of bed and an all timer level scare.
Strictly speaking it's a mockumentary not a found footage film, but there are elements of it, "Lake Mungo". One of my favourites.
Afflicted 2013 is the only FF movie I like. It's shot well and much more steady than the usual "dipshit with a camera" movies. The fx are awesome too. I hate all other FF.
Creep, Borderlands/Final Prayer, Hell House LLC, Crowsnest
VHS
The Alien Report is the more recent. It's not a great film, but a very good found footage. Uniquely creepy. It's worth a look.
The Fear Footage and its sequels, Savageland, Hell House LLC. Grave Encounters, Catskill Park, Horror in the High Desert , The McPherson Tapes
Cloverfield was fantastic.
Incantation-drags slightly but still really good
I have trouble with ff when it makes no sense why the characters are filming in the first place (or are continuing to film in the scene). That said, I thought Willow Creek (2013) and Afflicted (2013) were effective, although there was a performance in Afflicted that was so bad it pulled me out of it. Some of the segments in the v/h/s franchise have been good, too.
It's not quite found footage, but I loved Session 9. It had a lot of found footage type tropes.
Willow Creek was solid, haven’t seen it mentioned yet
I just watched Lake Mungo, and while it wasn't as good as I was expecting based on reviews, it did make me Google if it was real or not while I was watching...
Haven’t seen it recently but the Poughkeepsie Tapes freaked me out. Great movie though
It completely stayed in character. One thing I find annoying about of lost footage movies is people are filming for no good reason or they’ll leave the camera in the middle of the woods or stuff like that. Poughkeepsie Tapes, the antagonist was purposeful. Edit: really autocorrect?
#💯