Afflicted

Afflicted is a found footage genre movie (if there is such a thing). Personally I am always suspicious with these types of movie. The paranormal activities, and blair witches are just about some cheap thrills and no plot, although they can be mildly entertaining. Afflicted is nothing like that. You aren't going to watch some found footage movie, with jump scares and no plot. This one actually has a story and an ending. (Yes, it doesn't just end with the camera falling on the floor). The plot appears to be quite simple. Two best friends go touring through Europe and document the entire journey on camera to post it on their website. One of them, stars to become afflicted with some sort of illness, and that's all I can reveal without spoiling. Although, storywise, it doesn't bring anything new and fresh, it grabs the viewer, and keeps you interested until the very end, with some competent acting. The special effects are very well done, and that's not considering it's a low budget movie, the effects are real good. All things considered, Afflicted is a surprisingly good movie, and I would recommend it to anyone who wants 90 minutes of entertaining and competent fim making.

The found footage film experiment is a success when it is enacted with precision and the proper intensity and editing necessary to make the viewer suspend disbelief. I can remember when I saw the Blair Witch Project at the theater for the first time. I was genuinely terrified. Blair was a one-time wonder that really hit the mark perfectly, hammering our deepest, darkest fears of the unknown until we could barely breathe. In a way, this was akin to Alien, with the fear of the unknown and the uncertain magnified to the highest degree. Unfortunately, many drones and copiers followed, pretty much destroying the magic of the found footage genre. Cloverfield, REC and VHS pushed the genre to new limits, with great success, but other than that there wasn't much exciting in the way of found footage (though I must admit "The Last exorcism" was a guilty pleasure). One of the newest attempts, "The Afflicted" shows us all that the "found footage" genre isn't dead. While creating a heartfelt beginning backdrop, this film slowly feeds into the terror of contagion, disease and degradation in a fresh and newly charged way unique from its predecessors. I'm not saying it's a deal changer by any means, but it is a valiant attempt, and for that reason it deserves our respect and attention. So enjoy "The Afflicted" with all the amorous and diabolical intention it so readily justifies.

I have seen an obscene amount of Horror films and a crazy amount that are Cam. I expected this film to be similar to Paranormal Activity - The Marked One which i found to be okay, nothing too special... But immediately from the start realised it was to take a much different tone, which not only was new and fresh for the Cam Horror genre but also to films in general. The film feels fun, fresh and upbeat from the start with a good use of SFX showing a real 'College Movie' vibe then quickly becomes engrossing and dark with plot twists and turns that offer something new to this over produced genre.

Would Recommend

Let's face it... 'found footage' films have been pretty terrible of late. Yes, historically, there have been a few good ones. However, with so many wannabe film-makers trying their hand at the (cheap) genre, there are an awful lot of 'duds' out there in the 'straight-to-dvd' market.

I'll say right away that 'Afflicted' isn't anything THAT good. It's hardly revolutionary and most of it you'll feel like you've seen a hundred times before (I'm assuming you're familiar with the 'found footage' genre). The first third is all about introducing us to the characters. Basically, a – possibly – terminally-ill man decides to go on a trip around Europe and therefore his mate has to film every last second of it to put up on the internet.

Unfortunately, our heroes who like talking into the camera fall foul of a local when one gets bitten by... you'll see. Anyway, bad – supernatural – things start to happen. Expect plenty of the usual found footage stuff – running, screaming into camera, falling over, shaky camera-work and yet more screaming.

However, there are a few 'set pieces' which actually left me wondering how they do that. Well... probably with the help of computer–generated technology, but, just because I know how they did it, doesn't mean I wasn't impressed with the results.

There's just enough here to warrant a watch if you're (a) not totally bored of found footage films and (b) generally don't mind horror films in general. But, don't be fooled, it's hardly anything special. Much of it you can sort of have on in the background while you idly surf the internet and you'd still 'get' what's going on. Just be sure to be watching when the really cool stuff comes on.

I saw the trailer for this movie and I was excited because I really love the found footage sub-genre. I was also a little hesitant to watch it because I heard some mixed reviews. I rented this at a Redbox and I was not disappointed. It was way creepier than I expected and the acting was much better than expected as well. It also had a TOTALLY different plot than what I had expected, but it was awesome so it's all good. :) Definitely check this out if you love found footage films or even horror film fans unfamiliar with the sub-genre will love it. This movie is pretty gory but no nudity just a few sexual references. There is some language but nothing too brutal. I'd say appropriate for ages 14+.