Sinister (2012)

Directed by Scott Derrickson
Written by Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill
Starring Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance, James Ransone and Nick King

A true-crime writer finds a cash of 8mm home movie reels that suggest the murder he is currently researching is the work of a serial killer whose career dates back to the 60s. But he soon learns that his research may be putting his family in harms way.

Nope! Nope, nope, nope… nope, nope… WHOLE lotta NOPE! I have a very inconsistent relationship with horror movies. I either find them boring and not very scary, or I find them very creepy and will find myself trying to think of something else so that I can sleep at night.

"Sinister" isn't the best horror movie, but it avoids certain elements that make so many of them seem interchangeable. In today's market, the horror genre is littered with jump scares, excessive gore and bad acting. I guess that's not just modern horror movies, but horror movies in general. They usually suck. But every now and then, there is one that just freaks the hell out of me.

RUN, BITCH, RUN! HE GON' GET YOU!!!

This movie is filled with intensely macabre imagery that many of the PG-13 horror movies are missing. I mean, I think dead little girls are creepy too, but there are only so many times that you see one with her hair in front of her face before you want to go out and by them a comb. Imagery is what makes this movie in my opinion. In lieu of jump scares, the directed opts for painfully long shots that don't cut away. That alone sets the tone for the entire movie in the opening shot. 

My only complaint is that this story takes place in Pennsylvania and in one of the opening scenes Ethan Hawke kills a scorpion… and doesn't think it's weird that there is a scorpion in the North East. Then, about halfway through, he tells a Police Deputy who has lived in that town his entire life about the scorpion… and the Deputy doesn't think it's weird.

For the record, scorpions are not native to Pennsylvania. And if you ever find one in your Pennsylvania home, you should immediately assume that there is a serial killer stalking you. That's what I think at least.

My Rating: 6.5/10