The Unbinding

Like I said in the title, I knew nothing about this film before watching it. It popped up on some random Amazon Prime list when I was in the mood for a horror movie, I googled the name and saw the RT and IMDB scores were decent, and I watched it.

Looking at the reviews here, I have learned that the cast are actual real-life paranormal investigators, with a sizable fandom and a smattering of detractors (who seem to be duking it out in the reviews).

And I am very confused. I keep trying to write a review, deleting it all, and starting over.

I 100% thought it was a mockumentary. I'm still not sure that it isn't. I mean, I think it's certainly fiction, because I think paranormal stuff isn't real (sincerely sorry, not attempting to bash people's beliefs).

But, I don't know if the cast also think it's not real. I mean, obviously they think paranormal stuff is real. But did these events happen? Or are they just a story they're telling? Or are they dramatizing something that kind of happened, and they're fancying it up with little creepy vignettes?

And is this a deceptive thing? Like, are they positing that this is a 100% true story, and we're supposed to believe it's 100% true?

Or, is it a real story that's been kind of dramatized for the film, and we're supposed to know that it is?

Or, are these ghost hunters who are telling us a creepy fictional story, and we're supposed to know that it's just a fictional story?

What level am I supposed to be watching this on?!

When I thought this was a mockumentary, I thought it was pretty good. Naturalistic dialogue, great restraint with the scary parts, really believable relationships. I even thought some of the bit characters, like the Russian Studies professor, were fantastic actors.

Of course, now that I know it's real, it's really thrown me for a loop. I think that, if I were to watch it again through that lens, I might have an entirely different take on the film. When I thought these people were actors, I thought they were doing a fantastic job. Now that I know they're actual paranormal investigators, I think it's kind of embarrassing, and more than a little self-aggrandizing.

When I was still ignorant to the nature of the film, I thought all the goddess/folklore talk at the end of the movie was kind of smarmy and boring. I'm not a big fan of Horror movies that have a moralistic, happy ending. Basically, if the evil spirit gets put to rest, and the heroes live to fight another day, and we all learned something valuable, I'm not usually a big fan.

But the rest of the film was fine, so I gave it a pass.

But now, knowing that these people aren't actors, isn't that kind of....self-aggrandizing? They really believe they helped an ancient Slavic goddess? It's one thing to have a character say all this saccharine dialogue about beliefs and stuff, it's another thing entirely to just...say it.

This was a documentary that I put on and treated like a podcast at work. The title sounded interesting. This was also listed on Letterboxd as one of the higher rated horror/documentaries that was on a streaming service that I had. This also being from 2023 intrigued me. That information was enough to check this out.

We are following a married couple, Greg and Dana Newkirk. They grew up together where they were doing their own 'ghost hunting' and filming it. What was interesting there is that Greg grew up religious and then married a practicing witch. Something also interesting here is that I saw a handful of reviews online comparing them to Ed and Lorraine Warren. I can see that since they collect haunted items and also help people. To my knowledge, the Newkirks have fleeced people as of yet.

Now that I've introduced them, the major part of this documentary is them coming into possession of a strange statue from the Catskill Mountains. They found the user on Reddit who was seeking them for him and his friend who took the item. They claimed that it was haunting them. The statue was then sent to the Newkirks, who then go about trying to find out what they can about its origins and what could be lingering about it.

What I'll then say is that this is well-made. It kept my interest throughout to figure out what they would come up with. There are a few different methods that do seem to have scientific backing as well as ensuring that they're not influencing the results. Do I believe that this statue was haunted and causing disturbances? No, I do not. I do believe these people could have experienced things that they cannot explain. How this is constructed worked as well as it made me uncomfortable and I enjoyed that. It does feel like a longer and better production value than episodes of Ghost Hunter shows. I did find the couple we follow likeable. It was entertaining. I will say to watch this to make your own determination as to what you think is happening here.

This was on Tubi, so you can watch it for free with ads.

My Rating: 6.5 out of 10.

This is not a horror film, nor can it be categorized as part of the typical paranormal reality tv genre, rather it is an investigation into a series of mysterious (and creepy) events surrounding a strange figurine, and the search for answers.

The Newkirks' approach to this investigation is a deep dive into folklore, mythology, religion and witchcraft, combined with their insatiable curiosity, respect, and humor. The atmospheric cinematography, soundtrack, and audio mix draw the viewer into the Newkirk's world.

Their investigation spans several years, and the film relies on recreations from time to time to illustrate the teams' personal experiences, but the look and feel - moody, dark and eerie - is consistent throughout.

Watching this film leaves the viewer with a desire for more opportunities to travel into the Newkirks' world in search of answers - or at least insight - into the unexplainable.

"Open up your mind and let everything come through." 13th Floor Elevators

Ok. Maybe not a documentary in the true sense.

But I think these folks, and many others, believe in the paranormal, spirits and spirituality. I mean, what is religion anyway?

I thought the filming was done fairly well. No shaking of the camera. If it had been a Blair Witch attempt, I would not have spent 5 minutes on it.

I also felt the cast did a good job of explaining what they were doing without hyperbolic emotions.

Obviously, not everyone will like or care about this story, but, it's interesting for sure.

Give it a try.

This is quite blatantly a scripted, fiction film, that is- for some reason- listed here as a "documentary".

It's not.

And is quite clear about that fact.

That being said...the reasons for this become obvious when you learn who the filmmakers behind the project are: the husband and wife team of Greg and Dana Newkirk.

A couple who run a museum and podcast dedicated to haunted objects, and stories about haunted objects.

So...this is effectively just an elaborate marketing pitch, and call for you to send them your claimed to be haunted items for free...so they can put it in their museum, and make bank off it.

Now...I do believe in haunted objects...I have a painting called "Evil Man", which has a demonic entity attached to it.

So...I am by no means a skeptic.

However...the story presented here- about an effigy found in the Catskills mountain, with nails driven into the eyes, that is said to be haunted a "Crone" type entity- is quite absurd.

And backed by no evidence whatsoever...other than unfounded, unreliable, unreplicatable "ghost hunting" techniques that can easily be dismissed.

As previously noted...when all is said and done, it's actually quite clear that the whole thing is scripted.

They not only allude to this fact...but even poke fun at it.

So, as a documentary...it has zero value.

Though, as a mockumentary...you might argue it's cleverly done.

That is...if you ignore that it's mainly a feature length commercial for themselves, and their museum.

Acting as a desperate plea for you to send them your thought to be haunted objects.

So it doesn't deserve anything more than a 2.5 out of 10.

Which is being generous.