This is my 63rd found footage film. A glutton for punishment, I keep sifting the mountain of no-budget found films for the few gems it contains. In the process, I have seen a lot of really, really bad movies. This one is easily the worst - although Secreto Matusita, Altar, and Classroom 6 are close runners-up.
There is nothing about this "movie" that is worth your time, even if you like found footage. The acting is terrible. Its not even good enough to be amusing, as in bad-in-a-good-way. The "story" is non-existent. The footage is padded with tons of "nature" scenes, which, in this case amounts to nothing other than leaves and a spider at one point. The "twist" is a joke.
The only good thing I can think of with regards to this utterly amateur failure of a film is that it does highlight the qualities that _good_ found footage movies have. Its easy to criticize found footage for having no "script" or having "shaky" camera work. Its easy to criticize these movies for their attempts at "realistic" reactions from the "actors." But if you watch Parched and then watch any number of other found footage films, you will find that there is in fact a baseline for good vs bad. It might not be enough to convince someone who simply doesn't like the medium that found footage can be viable, but it can at least demonstrate the merits of effort - which is lacking here in every conceivable way.
