Recent reviews

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  The Reef 2010

  ★★½ Watched 08 Nov 2023

  This movie is perfectly middle-of-the-road, mediocre shark movie fare. I'm left surprised by the positivity surrounding this movie - it has decent visuals, and using actual shark footage rather than relying on special effects added something, for sure. But ironically I feel like this movie, like Open Water, really lacks tension. The fear in most shark movies for me comes from oscillation between safety and death; out of the water, in the water. Whether it's in a boat or some…

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  [REC]² 2009

  ★★★★ Rewatched 02 Nov 2023

  I didn't remember a lot about this movie going in for the rewatch, it having blurred a little with the other entries in the franchise. I found it a little odd that scenes from this movie weren't in the first, and that scenes from the fourth weren't in this. I would say it is perhaps the least memorable of the movies, not as outstanding and smoothly executed as its predecessor nor as delightful or climactic as the third and fourth…

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  Grave Encounters 2 2012

  ★★★ Watched 25 Oct 2023

  Bless this mess. It goes very much off the rails from the first movie's solid and frightening premise but has some cute ideas and moments that still make it a fun watch. Best viewed with friends and in mind for a bit of a laugh if you like the first movie.

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  [REC] 2007

  ★★★★★ Watched 25 Oct 2023

  I rewatched this movie recently so I'm adding it now. I think I can say without hyperbole that this the best found-footage horror movie (that I've seen) and fully utilises that delivery method to its benefit rather than capitalising on a trend. It remembers that the strength of found-footage is creating authenticity and grounding the characters and environments in reality, and it certainly feels real. Excellent performances add to the rising intensity by showing a variety of genuine responses to…

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