As a life-long fan of Found Footage, I’ve learned that the genre is usually at its best when divorced from the over-the-top narratives that we tend to see in regular movies. I mean, even when we’re aware that these are Hollywood productions with scripts and actors, it’s that 1% chance that this could be real that makes these films so interesting. That’s why I’d describe the ideal Found Footage movie as a hoax created with the purpose of telling a good story.
With that in mind, we’ve decided to compile a list highlighting six of the most convincing Found Footage movies for your viewing pleasure! After all, in a genre chock-full of stories about ghosts, ghouls, and cryptids, it’s the more down-to-earth scares that tend to stand out.
For the purposes of this list, we’ll be defining “convincing movies” as productions that obviously cared about authenticity and overall realism (i.e., no fake digital filters or impossible camera angles). That being said, this is by no means a comprehensive list of every single realistic Found Footage movie, so don’t forget to comment below with your own believable favorites.
With that out of the way, onto the list!
6. Zero Day (2003)
We’ve already featured Zero Day on a previous list highlighting True Crime horror movies, but how could we avoid revisiting one of the most disturbing Found Footage flicks ever made? An extremely realistic depiction of teenagers falling down a violent rabbit hole in the months leading up to a school shooting, Ben Coccio’s debut film manages to terrify without feeling exploitative.
While we do eventually get to see a portion of the climactic shooting, it’s really our main duo’s journey towards the massacre that makes the experience so disturbing. In fact, the film looks so much like a real video diary that you might find yourself feeling guilty for watching it, which I think is exactly the point.
5. Exhibit A (2007)
I was lucky enough to stumble onto Dom Rotheroe’s Exhibit A in the back of a seedy old video store back in the day, and I’m really glad that I did. A slow-burning psychological thriller that gets downright disturbing by the end of the experience, I find it baffling that this British gem isn’t better known among Found Footage fans.
Of course, the obscure nature of the film might even work in its favor, as you’ll definitely enjoy the story a lot more if you go in blind. Just rest assured that even seemingly pleasant moments shared by the King family are building up to a chillingly memorable finale.
4. Out There Halloween Mega-Tape (2022)
The WNUF Halloween Special has become a staple of seasonal movie marathons in my household, and I’m pretty sure that I’m not the only one who revisits this retro passion project whenever spooky season rolls around. Unfortunately, the movie’s follow-up doesn’t get the same amount of love simply because it’s a little harder to track down. This is a real shame, as I’d argue that 2022’s Out There Halloween Mega-Tape is just as believable as its predecessor!
A faithfully recreated slice of 90s TV programming (complete with period-accurate commercials), the Mega-Tape is a bootleg masterpiece that you’re sure to enjoy if you liked the filmmakers’ previous retro endeavor. And much like WNUF, some segments of the tape are so realistic that you may find yourself briefly wondering where they found all this absurd footage!
3. Lake Mungo (2009)
Depending on who you ask, Joel Anderson’s Lake Mungo is either one of the scariest films ever made or one of the most boring movies in the entire Found Footage genre. While I can understand why some people don’t appreciate this subtle approach to existential terror, I’d also argue that it’s precisely the film’s realism that makes it so effective.
Think of it this way: if this were a real paranormal documentary, it would easily be considered the scariest one in existence. The problem is that people usually compare it to other horror flicks instead of what Anderson is actually attempting to emulate. Of course, the only way to know if you agree with this assessment or not is by actually watching this slow-burning gem!
2. The Blackwell Ghost (2017)
If Found Footage movies are at their best when telling minimalist stories about down-to-earth perils, it makes sense that indie filmmaker Turner Clay was able to turn a simple mystery into a bona fide cinematic universe. While I’m of the opinion that later entries in the series are a little too over-the-top to be scary, the original Blackwell Ghost remains an eerily convincing favorite.
Not only is Clay a natural-born showman, being able to extract tension from details that would just be background noise in any other movie, but you get the feeling that he’s having just as much fun making these movies as we are watching them. If you like this first film, I’d also recommend checking out its first batch of sequels.
1. Banned From Broadcast: Saiko! The Large Family (2009)
The most obscure film on this list by a wide margin, Saiko! is a feature-length spin-off of Japan’s Banned from Broadcast television series. However, you don’t need to have seen any episodes of the show in order to appreciate Toshikazu Nagae’s puzzle-like mockumentary – and I’d actually recommend that you go into this one knowing as little about it as possible!
In the film, Canadian documentarian Veronica Addison travels to Japan in order to introduce us to the unusually large Ura family. While the Uras initially seem normal enough, strange events and subtle context clues steadily unveil an eerie conspiracy surrounding the disappearance of the family’s previous patriarch. I won’t get into any more details in order to avoid spoilers, but suffice to say that this flick is so realistic that you might not even notice that it’s a horror movie the first time you watch it.
Hell, the film’s IMDB page even lists Addison as the director instead of Nagae, proving that the filmmakers knew exactly what they were doing when crafting this grounded little thriller.
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