Review of The Gallows (2015) by Super8Mm — 27 Jul 2015

I walked into "The Gallows" with pretty low expectations. The found footage genre only has a few greats, such as, "The Blair Witch Project", "Paranormal Activity", "Rec", and "As Above So Below".

However, this movie was quite a surprise. From the originality to the story, to the execution of the masked killer, a.k.a. Charlie, the film did an excellent job. Horror movies aren't about the jump scares, they are about how the director(s) build up the atmosphere.

Even though this film did have some jump scares, I was really impressed by the way the atmosphere was created. It takes place in a high school during the dead of night. I never realized how terrifying that could be.

The use of the exit signs illuminating the halls with its blood red glow really stood out to me. I also enjoyed the fact that it wasn't just told from one point of view. There were multiple cameras that allowed the viewer to move deeper into the story without having to be subject to just one point of view.

Each character had their own personality, which is hard to come by nowadays. And, Charlie, scared the hell out me. Now, it wasn't the best horror film I've ever seen, but it was effective and I would recommend it to all of you hardcore horror fans.