13 Days of Halloween: CREEP (2014)

'Creep' is a found footage film from 2014. It ran through various festivals and has received critical and viewer praise since. Does it live up to the hype? Well, I guess that depends on what you're looking for. The film does follow a lot of the usual tropes associated with found footage but it does take enough twists and turns throughout in order to distinguish itself from the others. The basic idea is this: a young man (played by the writer/director) answers a Craigslist ad to film a video for a lonely man up in the forest. The idea behind this video is because the man is dying of cancer and would like to leave a memento of himself to his unborn son. The man is a little eccentric and odd but charming and in some ways very sad and for the first few sessions everything goes well until the man starts to exhibit stranger and more sinister behavior.

A big reason I like 'Creep' is that its completely grounded in reality which is rarely portrayed in these found footage films. It's such a basic idea to film a real psychotic individual and yet it's never really done so you could say that 'Creep' is unique in that aspect. I also like the slow build up with some actual payoff which is another big flaw with these type of movies. Films like 'Blair Witch' or 'Paranormal Activity' will abruptly end with no real payoff or momentum to speak of, leaving many viewers annoyed and frustrated. 'Creep' also gets the gold for being the only found footage film that has good performances between the two men. I am engaged in these characters the moment they meet and want to see how everything plays out. Really, how many found footage flicks can you think of that have engaging and interesting characters? Even in good ones like 'Blair Witch Project' that department is sorely missing.

The main drawback that may divide a lot of viewers is that the film is a little slower paced than those other films and some may find the titular creep in question more annoying than scary and that's understandable. He feels more like a troll or prankster for a lot of the movie which may have people shaking their head wondering 'is he trying to be scary or funny'?  Other than the small issues I have 'Creep' was a big surprise when I caught it on Netflix a couple months ago. It's different enough from the crowded found footage genre that it stands out as a gem.

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