Grave Encounters (2011) (10th Anniversary Edition) (Blu-ray Review)
Directed By: The Vicious Brothers
Starring: Ben Wilkinson, Sean Rogerson, Merwin Mondesir
Rated: UR/Region A/1:78/1080p/Number of Discs 1 (BDr)
Available from Giant Interactive
Lance Preston and the crew of “Grave Encounters”, a ghost-hunting reality television show, are shooting an episode inside the abandoned Collingwood Psychiatric Hospital, where unexplained phenomena has been reported for years. All in the name of good television, they voluntarily lock themselves inside the building for the night and begin a paranormal investigation, capturing everything on camera. They quickly realize that the building is more than just haunted – it is alive – and it has no intention of ever letting them leave. They find themselves lost in a labyrinth maze of endless hallways and corridors, terrorized by the ghosts of the former patients. They soon begin to question their own sanity, slipping deeper and deeper into the depths of madness, ultimately discovering the truth behind the hospital’s dark past…and taping what turns out to be their final episode.
One of the best things about Grave Encounters is how well it parodies legit TV shows of this same nature. The lead in this film seems to remind me a LOT of Ghost Adventures leader, Zak Bagans. Which really works well because I think that dude is such a tool, and our lead here follows his lead in his role of Lance Preston perfectly. Lance is your typical ghost show host. He has the look, he has the attitude, and he for sure has the d-bag qualities. It’s also a nice twist on things as the movie rolls along and we learn that he probably doesn’t believe in this stuff as much as he wants the viewers to believe. This is probably a common thing with real hosts of shows like this, I love seeing it brought up here. Now Grave Encounters does fall into the category of giving us the same tricks we’ve already seen in these types of films.
Things happen in the shadows, things move, creepy sounds are heard, and it’s really nothing new that we haven’t seen before for the most part. But where it separates it’s self from the pack is with the way it does things. It does things better than the majority of those films and it even tops Paranormal Activity 3 in more ways than one. There are some very creepy moments and a few of those might just make you jump out of your seat a little, or at least wiggle. I just wish the film was shot in the same quality as real ghost hunting shows on TV. That’s isn’t just an issue with this film, most make the same mistake. The camera quality is always too good to be taken legit by anyone. This could have been even better with a lessor quality camera filming the action. I have heard a few people say that the film’s ending rips a little of the ending from House on Haunted Hill. Maybe so, but it still works pretty well for how the film is presented. All lost footage films pretty much have the same types of endings, so it’s not that we don’t know where we are going, it’s how we get there. And I would say that the film does a very fine job of presenting it’s self as fresh, even if a lot of it’s tricks and ideas have been used a time or two before. I liked Grave Encounters, maybe more so than some. I wouldn’t toss it on a 2011 Top 10, but I’m sure if I took the time to write out a Top 20 it would find it’s way on the list.
Extras
- Interview with Director’s and Producers
- The Making of Grave Encounters
- Sasha and Houston Interview
- Behind the Scenes
- Deleted Scenes
