So this found footage film, slipped by me. But when I came across it on streaming, I figured I would dig in. Once again, the phrase found footage doesn’t help to sell this one. It’s actually designed, production-wise to look like a well-made true crime documentary. The details to make it feel like a doc lend the film a solid authenticity, and I was blown away by how it all played out.

We are given talking heads, and after the fact interviews with police officers (okay actors playing police officers) about the hunt for a serial killer.

Officers are called to a brutal crime scene where an entire family has been bound, posed and exsanguinated. On the ceiling of the dining room is a symbol, one that hasn’t been on a murder scene for a number of years. There’s a serial killer on the streets.

The killer, referring to himself as Mr. Shiny (Jessee J. Clarkson) picks his victims, and sends taunting letters to the police. He mentions some strange names, and the symbol and more seem to hint at something otherworldly at work. Which makes the serial killer all that more terrifying. Is he completely crazy? Or is he working in service to something else?

The homicide scenes, and crime scene photos are incredibly graphic. The practical and makeup effects look top-notch. There’s a couple things that don’t work, but they are only minor details that didn’t eject me from the film.

It comes across as smart and terrifying. It’s doubly scary because you can’t quite figure out what Mr. Shiny’s endgame is. What he’s up to. All we have are his cryptic messages and the troubling climax.

I really dug this one. As the police dig deeper, they try to ground as many things in facts as they can, but the evidence begins to lead to the impossible.

For a ‘found footage’ film, I found this one entertaining, well-plotted, incredibly well-produced, and combines serial killers with a little cosmic horror – which is a great match.

I hadn’t even heard of this one until a short time ago, and now, I feel it’s arguably one of the best found footage films I have seen in quite some time. I love the symbolic and ritualistic nature of Mr. Shiny’s work, and the way the police try to puzzle out what his letters mean as they follow up leads that bring him closer and closer to being caught.

Really enjoyed this one. But wow is it graphic, brace yourself. And oh yeah… watch out for thee leeches.