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Quickie Review - The Taking of Deborah Logan

As always, I don't do spoilers, so not really a review, more of a critique. Let me start by saying I normally despise the found footage genre. It is usually a hindrance to a decent idea and limits what we are allowed to see. There are exceptions, but this one stuck to its guns.

I had heard nothing about this film other than praise by friends on twitter. I gave it a try and realized instantly, it was going to be about something other than initially proposed. The premise is pretty standard, with the wrinkle being that this film appears to almost not happen. The three main characters are female and in many ways, share nothing in common, which works. Even though two are mother and daughter (Jill Larson & Anne Ramsey), you can see that there is something odd between the two. We find out later, it's a little cliche in some sense, but it doesn't bog down the plot. The interviewer/researcher Mia (Michelle Ang) is also very cute, but no nonsense. While she's not on camera often, you get the idea, she's driven, which plays well into what happens with the mother and daughter.

What works so well is that the horror is more in the confusion for the first 80 minutes. There are also extremely funny lines thrown into exceptionally tense scenes that relaxes the viewer and enhances the following fright. The idea that there is a reason for this being filmed also ties up the usual loose ends of "why," as in, why wouldn't you drop your camera and get the heck out of dodge. While I usually despise open endings, this one is wonderfully crafted, because it can be viewed as THE ending or the new beginning. I personally hope it's the ending, but we'll see. The film does seem to be getting some positive buzz on the web and that usually leads to sequels.

One thing that should be noted for horror/gore fans is that this movie might not stimulate your sense of what horror should be. The movie is extremely well acted, with the actress who plays the title character, giving a truly remarkable performance as the troubled elderly woman. The few scary, violent scenes are more mentally disturbing than visually. This plays well throughout and allows us to get comfortable in that we won't be terrified by anything we see, well, for a bit. I am very rarely more than pleasantly surprised, but this one truly stayed with me and deserves to be spoken of as one of the top five found footage films to date.

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