Home Movie (2008 film)

Last updated
Home Movie
Home Movie poster.jpg
Theatrical poster
Directed by Christopher Denham
Written byChristopher Denham
Produced by
  • William M. Miller
  • Andrew van den Houten
Starring
CinematographyWilliam M. Miller
Edited byJohn T. Miller
Music by Ryan Shore
Distributed by
Release date
  • July 10, 2008 (2008-07-10)
Running time
76 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Home Movie is a 2008 found footage psychological horror film and is the directorial debut of actor Christopher Denham. [1] [2]

Contents

The film received favorable reviews at Montreal’s 2008 Fantasia Film Festival. [1] Following the final screening, bids were made on the film and IFC Entertainment acquired the U.S. rights for IFC's Festival Direct Video On Demand and DVD rights Nationwide. [1] The film stars Adrian Pasdar, Cady McClain, Amber Joy Williams, and Austin Williams. [3]

Plot

Home Movie documents one family's descent into darkness through compilation of the Poe family's home-made video footage. In the remote woods of upstate New York, David (Adrian Pasdar) and Clare (Cady McClain) Poe are attempting to live an idyllic life. However, the Poe children are hiding a dark secret and something is wrong with ten-year-old twins Jack (Austin Williams) and Emily (Amber Joy Williams) Poe. To stop them, their parents must enter the nightmare of their children’s minds. As they try to regain control of the children’s lives, the pressing question becomes who will ultimately survive the battle. [4]

Soundtrack

The film's original score was composed by Ryan Shore.

Reception

Dr. Nathan of Quiet Earth said, "This truly disturbing movie, written and directed by Christopher Denham, is thus far the only TAD premiere Dr Nathan has experienced which actually, really gave me that deep-down visceral sense of dread and foreboding." [5] From Dread Central: "There’s something about home videos that brings out the worst in people. I hadn’t thought of it for years, but after seeing Christopher Denham’s disturbing Home Movie, I remembered my very own forays into family camcording" ... "is better written, more realistic and more disturbing than the forefather of the modern found footage horror movie, The Blair Witch Project . In fact, Home Movie might just be the tautest, best acted, most tightly written and disturbing 'found film' ever made!" [6]

Release

After screenings at multiple festivals, the rights to DVD distribution were acquired by IFC Films for the U.S. and Anchor Bay Entertainment for Canada. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cady McClain</span> American actress, singer, and author

Cady McClain is an American actress, singer, and author.

<i>Autopsy</i> (2008 film) 2008 American film

Autopsy is a 2008 American horror film directed by Adam Gierasch. It premiered on August 24, 2008, in the United Kingdom at the London FrightFest Film Festival and was selected as one of After Dark Horrorfest's "Eight Films to Die For". The films stars Michael Bowen, Jessica Lowndes, Ashley Schneider, Robert Patrick and Jenette Goldstein. Filming took place in Louisiana. The film received a mostly positive critical reception.

<i>Unrest</i> (2006 film) 2006 American film

Unrest is an independent horror film directed by Jason Todd Ipson and starring Corri English, Scot Davis, Joshua Alba, Jay Jablonski, Marisa Petroro and Derrick O'Connor. It was shown at the horror film festival 8 Films To Die For during the 2006 fall season.

<i>Mutants</i> (2009 film) 2009 French film

Mutants is a French science-fiction horror film based on a screenplay from Louis-Paul Desanges and David Morlet It was directed by French filmmaker David Morlet and stars Hélène de Fougerolles, Dida Diafat and Francis Renaud.

<i>Dark Night of the Scarecrow</i> 1981 American made-for-television horror film

Dark Night of the Scarecrow is a 1981 American made-for-television horror film directed by veteran novelist Frank De Felitta from a script by J.D. Feigelson. Feigelson's intent had been to make an independent feature, but his script was bought by CBS for television; despite this, only minor changes were made to the original screenplay.

<i>The Blair Witch Project</i> 1999 horror film by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez

The Blair Witch Project is a 1999 American supernatural horror film written, directed, and edited by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez. It is a fictional story of three student filmmakers—Heather Donahue, Michael C. Williams, and Joshua Leonard—who hike into the Black Hills near Burkittsville, Maryland, in 1994 to film a documentary about a local myth known as the Blair Witch. The three disappear, but their equipment and footage are discovered a year later. The purportedly "found footage" is the movie the viewer sees.

The Wild Man of the Navidad is a 2008 Bigfoot horror film written and directed by Duane Graves and Justin Meeks. It was picked up by IFC Films shortly after its world premiere at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival, and re-released in 2021 by MPI Media Group. Dread Central named it one of the "Top 10 Bigfoot Movies of the 21st Century."

<i>Philosophy of a Knife</i> 2008 horror film by Andrey Iskanov

Philosophy of a Knife is a 2008 Russian-American horror film written, produced, shot, edited, and directed by Andrey Iskanov. It covers the Japanese Army's Unit 731, mixing archival footage, interviews, and extremely graphic reenactments of experiments performed there.

<i>Paranormal Activity</i> 2007 film by Oren Peli

Paranormal Activity is a 2007 American supernatural horror film produced, written, directed, photographed and edited by Oren Peli. It centers on a young couple who are haunted by a supernatural presence inside their home. They then set up a camera to document what is haunting them. The film uses found-footage conventions that were mirrored in the later films of the series.

<i>The Hills Run Red</i> (2009 film) 2009 American slasher film by Dave Parker

The Hills Run Red is a 2009 American slasher film directed by Dave Parker and written by David J. Schow and starring Sophie Monk, Tad Hilgenbrink and William Sadler. The film was released as direct-to-DVD on September 29, 2009, and received mixed reviews.

<i>The Hole</i> (2009 film) 2009 film by Joe Dante

The Hole is a 2009 American 3D dark fantasy horror film directed by Joe Dante and starring Chris Massoglia, Haley Bennett, Nathan Gamble, Bruce Dern, and Teri Polo. The film follows Dane and Lucas Thompson, two brothers who move into their new house with their single mother, Susan. Dane and Lucas, along with their new neighbor Julie Campbell, discover a trap door in the basement, leading to a bottomless pit, and accidentally unleash a supernatural force that manifests itself into any fear of the person who looks into the hole.

<i>Dying God</i> 2008 Argentine film

Dying God is a 2008 Argentinian–French horror-science fiction film directed by Fabrice Lambot and produced by Jean Pierre Putters of Metaluna Productions France and Uriel Barros of Buenos Aires Rojo Shocking (Argentina)

<i>Do Not Disturb</i> (2010 film) 2010 American film

Do Not Disturb is an American horror thriller film written and directed by BC Furtney. The film was originally released on March 23, 2010 as New Terminal Hotel but was edited for an August 6, 2013 DVD release through Image Entertainment as Do Not Disturb. The movie stars Stephen Geoffreys as a man out to get revenge for the death of his girlfriend. The film is also known for being one of the last film performances of actor Corey Haim before his death in 2010.

The Sky Has Fallen is a 2009 American horror film, written and directed by Doug Roos. It stars Carey MacLaren and Laurel Kemper as two survivors of a gruesome apocalypse.

<i>Be My Cat: A Film for Anne</i> 2015 film by Adrian Țofei

Be My Cat: A Film for Anne is a 2015 Romanian found footage psychological horror feature film directed, produced, written by, and starring Adrian Țofei, about an aspiring filmmaker who goes to extremes to convince actress Anne Hathaway to star in his film. It is the first entry in Adrian Țofei's planned indie trilogy which includes We Put the World to Sleep and Pure. It is also Adrian Țofei's first film and Romania's first found footage horror movie.

Matt Eskandari is an Iranian-born American film director and screenwriter. His films include Victim, The Gauntlet, and 12 Feet Deep. He was also a contestant on the Fox Studios and Steven Spielberg filmmaker competition On the Lot.

<i>House of Demons</i> 2018 American film

House of Demons is a 2018 American horror film directed and written by Patrick Meaney that follows four estranged friends who reunite to spend the weekend at a remote house that was once home to a Manson Family like cult. It stars Amber Benson, Kaytlin Borgen, Morgan Peter Brown, Taliesin Jaffe, Tiffany Smith, Jeff Torres, Whitney Moore and Dove Meir. The film was released on February 6, 2018 by Smith Global Media and Sony Home Entertainment.

<i>Antrum</i> (film) 2018 film directed by David Amito, Michael Laicini

Antrum is a 2018 Canadian horror film written and directed by David Amito and Michael Laicini. The film is divided into two parts: an opening and closing frame narrative in the form of a mockumentary and a feature film. The documentary purports to tell the story of Antrum, a movie released in 1979 that supposedly has deleterious effects on those who watch it; the bulk of the movie is allegedly the only known print of the film, which has itself been altered by an unknown third party.

<i>The Feast</i> 2021 British film

The Feast is a 2021 Welsh folk horror film directed by Lee Haven Jones from a screenplay by producer Roger Williams. Filmed in the Welsh language, the film stars Annes Elwy, Nia Roberts and Julian Lewis Jones. It premiered at the Official Selection of the 2021 South by Southwest and the same year was screened at the Fantasia International Film Festival.

<i>Camera Obscura</i> (2017 film) 2017 film by Aaron B. Koontz

Camera Obscura is a 2017 horror film directed by Aaron B. Koontz in his feature film directorial debut, with a script written by Koontz and his writing partner Cameron Burns. It stars Christopher Denham, Nadja Bobyleva, Noah Segan, Catherine Curtin, Chase Williamson, and Andrew Sensenig.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Davies, Steven (23 July 2008). "IFC Entertainment Acquire 'Home Movie', Horror Movie Entertainment News and Reviews". Horror-asylum.com. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  2. "Toronto After Dark Film Festival - Feature Films". Archived from the original on 2008-11-21. Retrieved 2008-12-31.
  3. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2008-11-20. Retrieved 2008-12-31.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. "HOME MOVIE and THE BUTCHER (Film Reviews)". Fangoria.com. Archived from the original on 18 October 2009. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  5. Quiet Earth, by Dr. Nathan (October 24, 2008), "TAD 08: Review of Christopher Denham's HOME MOVIE", Quietearth.us, accessed 12-30-2008
  6. "Home Movie (2008) | Horror Movie, DVD, & Book Reviews, News, Interviews at Dread Central". Archived from the original on 2008-10-06. Retrieved 2008-12-31.