To this day I’ve never seen a horror movie with more unnerving music. My heart faces every time I hear it, especially the bbq one

The lawnmower scene is the scariest shit I’ve seen in my life. It has beaten all other jumpscare in my opinion, but here the thing you know exactly what’s coming it’s the music that gets you

A terrifying little detail is the car shaking while it burns.

Soundtrack is unmatched in horror history, truly terrifying

the bbq tape is probably the scariest bit from a horror movie ive ever seen, theres just something with its soundtrack that is infinitely scarier than anything ive seen/heard in my life.

The lawnmower scene was literally the scariest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.

I feel the same about The Ritual. When they're just lost in the woods and you can't really see the monster, it feels extremely creepy and disturbing. In the second half, when the main character is abducted and is going to be sacrificed, and they show the monster and explain that it's a child of Loki, I lost all interest. Explaining the existence of the monster and showing its full body completely got rid of the unknown scary factor.

I thought the same thing about the supernatural part. It would have been more frightening if the kids were killing their families and the demon was actually a kid leading the charge or a crazy adult who brainwashed the kids to kill their parents.

They should have just had the protagonist continue to watch films. Maybe he finds out about the connection between the murders but nothing more and then the film ends with his super 8 film where they finally reveal his daughter behind the camera and a vague depiction of the demon behind her. That’s more than enough for the audience to put everything together while continuing to build on the suspense from early on and providing a good payoff with a bit of shock value.

I didn't know Slipknot made a movie lol

The found footage bits really made the movie, they were by far the best parts of the film. The buildup with Ellison watching the tapes was great as well. The film really starts falling apart when Exposition Man (Vince D'Onofrio) shows up and all the stuff with Baghuul from there is really mediocre. I still love the film but it could have been an all time classic if that third act had been done right.

This film to this day is the scariest/most unsettling horror movie I’ve seen. That is actually good. The found film footage aspect and the soundtrack, everything about it just makes it all the more unsettling. I love it.

You can't tell me Baghul wasn't at least partially inspired by Slenderman. Blank face, well dressed, associated with children and cameras, and the year of release matches when the character was at peak popularity

i can’t even think of the song that’s played at the bbq film without being creeped tf out. it has stuck with me for years!!!

Tbh that demon looks like MJ in his late 40s

As someone who’s a huge fan of this movie and has seen it several times, your take on it is totally valid!! I think when and how to reveal the monster is something a lot of horror movies struggle with. If you don’t reveal it at all, it can feel unsatisfying (Blair Witch) but if you do it too soon, it takes away the mystery (The Ritual, as someone mentioned below). It’s also worth noting, Bughul isn’t very scary looking - the jumpscares get you the first time, but after awhile that’s just a dude with a mask on. I remember on Foundflick’s video on this movie, ppl said he looked like a lost member of Slip Knot LOL. Anyhoo, I think it’d be cool if you did more mini analysis videos like this along with your hilarious commentary!! :D

they really had us in the first half ngl

I’ve watched every horror film out there and rarely get scared anymore. This is the only film I’ve ever turned off. But, it’s exactly as you said. I rewatched it and stuck through the snuff footage parts and found myself not scared at all by the end of the film. All the tension and terror in the first half is completely negates by a lack of payoff.

Sinister was one of my all-time favorite horror films at the time. The soundtrack was definitely a huge, huge contribution to that. Also, that lawnmower scene is probably the only jump-scare, ever, that got me twice. That said, i did really dislike the kids part. Felt cheap. But I'd still recommend it to anyone that hasn't seen it yet.

The sighting of Mr boogie in the pool made me freeze on my couch no kidding

Dude you are so totally right. What scares me most in horror movies is the ambiguity of what's causing all of the terror, and once that terror is revealed, the movie becomes less scary. I have a total phobia of horror movies, but have been watching them because my girlfriend is a fan, and we've watched Sinister and Insidious together. I think both of these movies are incredibly scary, however, once the curtain has been drawn and we learn more about what supernatural elements are at play, the movie gets way less scary and more tolerable. I think, for me, a true horror film would show us a bunch of 'sinister' things, but only tease us with the behind the scenes elements to the horror rather than completely spoiling them and ruining the fear.

I can’t get scared of the demon because it reminds me of mick Thomson’s mask from slipknot

Btw thanks for including jumpscare warnings

Definitely getting a clearer look made him less scarier even when I had first watched the movie his mystery vibe in the beginning scenes was what had me

I haven’t seen anyone explain my exact feelings about this movie more perfectly

Your video quality is insane. When i discovered your videos i was sure u were like some big channel doing this for a living. Keep up the good work

Sinister is one of the few really popular and successful movies I feel deserve a remake. I am generally opposed to the idea of remakes, especially of well-known and beloved films, but few are as flawed as Sinister. They can give it a second shot.

Fun little detail - in the footage recording the family from outside, one of the children is shown passed out after taking a sip of the sedative. It’s only shown for a few seconds and it’s so easy to miss but it hints at the finale.

Just binged a load of your videos and am so shook to see you dont have more subs top tier content

Personally, when I first watched the movie I think the part with the kids running around in the house was the scariest part. I really had trouble getting through that segment when watching the movie alone. That and the lawnmover scene which literally made my heart stop.

Yeah, the ghost kids really toned back the horror. Especially being their makeup gave ‘Thriller’ vibes

The BBQ soundtrack fucked me up for so long. And the best thing about that scene is that no real imagery is being shown. You're just extremely scared because you want it to end.

Great Video, and I really appreciate the Jump Scare warnings - keep it up!

I remember the first film being good but the end was so rushed and shit that it ruined the whole film. It felt like they spent too much time on the rest of the film and they were like “fuck we got to end it but we have two days left and I haven’t written how it ends either!” Lmao. Biggest disappointment.

I'm glad someone else thinks the track playing during the BBQ film as insanely unnerving.

I totally agree about the underwhelming treatment of the demon. When I saw the trailer originally, the demon turning around in the pool was CHILLING and so was the part where it turns to face the character on the laptop. But by the end, he didn’t scare me at all.

Omg the quality of this video is so good! I cant believe this channel doesnt have that much subscribers. U gained a sub sir❣️.

I remember absolutely loving this movie when I watched the first few times. Looking back on it though and after rewatching it and now seeing this video you’re completely right. The first half is terrifying but is just kind of goofy on the back end. I do think this movie had the potential to be one of the greats but just fell on its face unfortunately. Great video though!!

Just found your channel man, a true gem, love the content and how engaging the video was

Broooo love the content alot man, im glad ive discovered your page. Someone i could actually relate to the horrors ive watched. Love from trinidad 🇹🇹 ❤️

Lawnmower scene got me so bad I pissed a lil bit. But truthfully the movie doesn’t hold up well. It’s a shame. Premise was there, but it really fumbled itself about halfway through

"Bughuul and the Ghost Kids" sounds like a 90s alt rock band

Found footage stuff was amazing. That ladder jump scare however, was one of the worst I've seen. I laughed during that part - not what you want from your serious horror movie.

The audio in this movie especially what you hear during the recordings of the victims is just genius and it made the movie what it is, i still can feel what i felt when i first heard it i know it sounds dramatic but i'm being genuine haha.

I’m currently writing an outline for a horror movie I hope to make soon, and your critique on Sinister has really helped a lot. Thank you for making this!

this! you nailed it. i thought the same thing, where "i wanna watch sinister and be supa creeped out but stop at the halfway point cause it gets stupid and not scary." same thing happened in "mama" and from 15min in to 6min before the end credits of "the ring." also i never knew that about the soundtrack, they pulled the same thing off in "high tension" where there is no music, only ambient noises without using actual instruments like a nin instrumental mixtape.

i saw this movie when i was about 13 or 14 and i always liked it and even though a lot of people think that the lawn work tape is the scariest out of the films, the one that really got me was sleepy time. just the music and the realness that the film had made me honestly have nightmares for weeks. the thought of thinking that a happy family with a child could all be slaughtered in the middle of the night was terrifying to me.

the film "the poughkeepsie tapes" has the same first half as sinister but ditches the demons in the second half for something way more realistic / plausible, making it one of the most unsettling films I've seen. Sinister's ending kinda ruins the scariness but lets the general audience it was marketed towards sleep at night

Part of the soundtrack is from a one-album band called Aghast, I've known them since I was in highschool so watching the movie and seeing they used one-two of their songs was amazing

I always loved the scene where he holds the picture to the bushes and then baghull apears there irl. My fave jump scare. so ominous

Good breakdown! First vid of yours I’ve watched-diggin it. Not bouta be the last, you can bet

Baghuul is cool I think if they would’ve taken the approach of having the ghost children and the demon barely visible in scenes instead and never revealing them until that very last scene would’ve made it so much more impactful

Bro for YEARS I have said that BBQ scene music is one of the most unnerving and unbearable things I have ever listen to - I’m not one to normally get scared or freaked out but something about it makes me skin crawl

I completely get your point. I don’t think I have an issue with the supernatural elements, just how they were handled! I like the idea that if what they’re dealing with is supernatural, there is zero chance of winning / escaping from this. The family was doomed from the moment Ellison views the first tape. From what I remember I think they abandoned the mystery of it and gave us too much information too soon. Perhaps all we really needed to know was that this bughuul was not of this world without the detailed backstory. That way there still would have been some mystery / ambiguity about it. I completely agree about the ghost kids scene. For me, all of that really effective tension and mystery that had been building was broken with that scene’s cheap jump scares. Still love this movie though.

Hidden gem of a channel. May the algorithm Gods bless you with more eyeballs good sir. Until then, I'll subscribe to see more.

I saw this movie when it came out when I was in 5th grade. I've been desensitized ever since. No horror movie will ever come close to what I experienced that day.

It’s not about the supernatural aspects, it’s just how they are presented, keep it vague like Hereditary did it, pool scene is perfect, keep Bagool looking like some sort of vague shape, might be a man, might be wood puppet that’s floating in there who knows?? it’s start getting goofy when he’s CGI when he looks like a dude in a costume. Keep the entity true shape unknown.

To this day this hands down one of my favorite horror films. And like you said it's the soundtrack. It's so far beyond unnerving

I remember seeing Sinister three times in theaters. I loved the atmosphere exactly for the reasons you mention. I’m totally with you on all points you make. It also shows that the urge to always find out what the source of evil actually is often destroys everything in (american) horror moves.

if it wasnt for the music, i probably wouldnt find it as scary

Cinema student now subscribed love your videos man!

Agreed for the most part. The unknowns are more scray. Once the reveal happens it misses the suspense. Additionally, the kids bit while well filmed felt out of place.

Great video bro! 👍

Totally agree with You, Nice video

you have the best video quality i have ever seen from a chanel undef 50k. very impressive and keep up the good work

Great work on this!

It’s so funny, I just rewatched this a couple nights ago after remembering how scary it was… and I felt the exact same way you did. You nailed it. Once Beghoul and the kids became front and center… it lost so much steam… the only extra thing you left out was that stupid whisper thing the kids did. It was so irrelevant.

Took words right out of my mouth!

great video man just found your channel you're hilarious

For me, the main problem is how cyclical the movie's structure is. Daytime, where we have visits with the police and arguments with the wife, then nighttime, where we explore snuff films and reflect on a lack of writing success. This happens like 3 or 4 times. The movie never feels like it's building to something, just repeating the same episode over and over again. Also the night scenes are wayyyy too dark. There are multiple parts of this movie where the screen is completely black for seconds! Literally just seconds squinting at the screen trying to figure out what the hell is going on. 😂 Also the past tense of "hang" is "hanged".

You are criticizing the second half of the film which is the start of the resolution you need to find out more about bughuul for the ending to make sense. Once you learn more about the unknown you lose that fear factor. That happens with every film that has supernatural aspects to it. And about the cheap jump scares, the director didnt want them they were required by the studio so thats just unfortunate. Edit: Also, we as rewatchers know that Ellison cant get hurt by the kids or bughuul but first time watchers dont know what might happen, this makes the film hands down top two horror films tied with hereditary. ALSO ALSO, the ending jumpscare was meant to snap the audience out of the horror vibe since the film is now over, imo that makes that specific scare more acceptable.

Sinister is amazing.. that sound design tho🙌🏽

I've been watching all videos of your channel and I gotta say they're amazing!! I feel the same way about this movie, it starts pretty damn strong and quite impressive for a Hollywood horror movie, but it fumbles and becomes just another mid horror movie we get every single month. I think the movie should've just been a found footage with the dad recording his findings and we getting to watch the tapes he found as well, as for the entity I would've put in photos and recordings, not in the actual movie interacting with the characters, it would be this menace that no one could see for real. And yeah, the creepy kids with dead makeup kill the movie for me, unnecessary as hell.

Although I agree with most of your points, I think all of the supernatural aspects of the film tied into the story and would not have made sense to abandon this theme in the second half. Part of watching anything is suspending your disbelief and allowing the audience to immerse themselves in the story which the movie masterfully accomplished. I think that the kids showing up throughout them film were representations not only of antagonists in the film that were controlled by Bughuul, but also of Ellison's reckless obsession with writing the story and depicted the toll this took on his mental state. This is a top 10 all time horror movie for me, but I absolutely respect your opinion and loved the video!

I’m literally binging your videos and I am terrified of scary movies keep going❤

Oh, wth, this vid didn't pop up in my feed. I'm glad I randomly scrolled my subscriptions today

No this temporarily wrecked my younger sister and I's relationship

i pretty much agree. they could have kept in the Bughuul sub-plot and made it more subtle, i think. the film still is very enjoyable, it's well directed indeed, but the supernatural aspects could've been more nebulous within the plot - or (on the flip side) made the children ghosts much more aggressive.

The main theme to these movies always spooked me out I love it

I had 0 issue with beghuul being in there. I like your point on his use, that’s agreed. It was used comically at the end. Tried to pull some The Ring theatrics and it didn’t even need too. The soundtrack and his face here and there was enough! Leave that villain and the background but visible is still effective. May not be as chilling as an ambiguous figure but I thought it still worked to a degree

Hey Tray great video essays. I’ve learned a little and agree with much. Want to tell you how this movie freaked me out: I put it in my computer and lain in bed ready to watch the whole thing. The eerie videos creeped me out and were so surreal. ( I thought the demon was a little too photoshopped tho) I agree the latter half the movie was more weak. I got to the part where we start knowing who was doing the killing and then…fell asleep. I woke up to the last scene. Just a static shot. In my haze I thought like my computer crashed or something. I looked a little closer and the damn jump scare!!!! It got me good and only did bc I had fallen asleep. But this movie and my experience made it something to remember. So maybe there’s a solid place for a movie to let you doze off for a solid jump scare moment. Thanks for the videos.

Sinister's sound design and music is amazing. The cast nails it, and it has good pacing. I always love going back to it every now and again. But yeah, the sound design is what elevates the film

Good analysis, keep it up.

I agree that the more information you learn, the less frightening (and interesting) the movie as a whole becomes. For example, I started skipping the home movies in this and the sequel once the formula had been established: family dies, kid disappears, and no new clues are found in the footage except flashes of Bughuul. I also realised that the killings don't happen until the families move house before it was revealed, so there was a decent chunk of the movie that--while tense--held no actual peril beyond that it would lead to them moving and eventually dying. Despite all that, Sinister remains the most deeply unsettling film I've ever seen. Also I love Deputy So-And-So :D

I watched this movie last night with my fiance and wanted to like it. The music was absolutely superb, the acting was great, the tapes are unnerving as all hell and will stay with me for a good whole. Hell, one of my favorite obscure actors is in this movie (James Ransone), so I was super happy to watch this. But the tension and horror got sucked out of it the moment i saw Baghuul (however you spell it) and he just looked like a guy doing a low budget The Crow cosplay. My fiance thought he looked like a juggalo, kept saying "whoop whoop" every time he came up on screen. The ending had both of us sighing in frustration. I called the jumpscare ending, she called it too. You're 100% right when you say this film loses itself in the latter half.

I just rewatched this and for me it's actually better than I remember. But you're not wrong. The first half is definitely the strongest. I still think having the supernatural element would have worked. I just think it gets to tropey with it. I forgot about the scene with the ghost kids, if that was supposed to be scary it's sad because that's the part of the film where I felt like I could take a breath and relax cuz I knew nothing scary was going to happen. I think the issue is if they were going to keep it supernatural they needed to do one of two things and they failed to do either. You either need to only lightly allude to it such as by having the cult symbols in the videos or having him in the background of videos. You could even have some of the typical haunted house stuff work like the projector running at night, because it serves as an excuse to get us to the stuff that's even creepier. But you would have to wrap up that movie without ever explaining what was going on. Something poignant but keeping the mystery Conversely, you need to write a more interesting story about the deity. There could have been some creepy lore there that added to everything and gave it more narrative explanation. But instead you just get Vincent D'Onofrio for a couple of minutes doing some quick exposition dump that feels lazy and ultimately Just teases you with a story behind it and then never gives it to you. Instead he's just like "yeah nobody wrote anything about this guy so like here's two tidbits of information and also I'm going to be really vague and not answer your concerns" It definitely could have gone without anything that really showed him up close and in person. The attic scene still had a lot of tension, but seeing them all there so clear and seeing this guy wear what looks like Mr Socko on his head doesn't work as well as something blurry and out of sight in the background of a murder video Still one of the better horror movies made over the past couple of decades though

One thing to note of _Sinister_ is they seem to take inspiration from Norwegian Black Metal: Bughuul seems to have some of the facial style of a black metal artist wearing "corpse paint", his symbol seems to be inspired from how black metal bands make their logos all jagged and occultish, and finally, the film itself does use some songs from experimental/black metal band Ulver, notably during the BBQ tape, parts of their song "Silence Teaches You How to Sing" (a 20 minute experimental track) was used.

I rewatched this recently and the first half builds tension so well. The tapes are genuinely some of the most unsettling (without being gratuitous) pieces of horror I've seen but it feels like the second half of the movie is written/directed by a completely different person. It goes from being quite a unique and interesting horror movie in the first half to just another 21st century possession flick. Some of the "scares" in the second half are just so eye rolling it almost feels like a parody of modern horror at times. On a side note even though the movie falls apart in the second half, the soundtrack is still one of the best I've heard in a horror movie

Loved that you laughed at Baghuul, Mike of Red Letter Media has said that despairingly to every demon horror film they watch. It really is so stupid. Two scripts chopped and screwed together almost.

Your analysis fits perfectly for Insidious as well. The first half was just so damn scary until it became way less scary in the second half.

Honestly, I partly agree with the whole mystery of Bughuul and the ghost kids ruining the second half, but IMO there's no other way they could've done it. A real serial killer convining these kids to murder their families makes no sense because kids wouldn't flat out want to kill their families. As well, the kids that murdered their families in the 1960's 70's 80's etc would've been full on adults in 2012. It needs that supernatural aspect to keep the kids at the same age that they killed their families. The way they should've done it was to make scenes where Stephanie as a kid shows Ashley the films. The other kids would've been gone, but Stephanie would slowly possess Ashley until the final part of the movie where Bughuul is finally revealed to Ellison. Instead of trying to rationalize Bughuul, it should've been Ashley as the protagonist in the 2nd half. Showing the subtle moments where she was shown the films until she became possessed. Bughuul would've still been a mystery, but the whole demonic possession part would've still been a mystery.

nice video, as always

Already know its about to be banging 🙌🏾 👌🏾 😌 Edit: could you review midsommar next 👀?

I found the part where the kids running around kinda goofy because they were moving in slow motion, and I was fed up with tiny unnecessary jumpscares. Same as the ending too, I expected the boogey man to have less mobility and more static, and I quite don't like the idea how they made the boogey man looked like some heavy metal band guitarist in the ending part.

I had to watch this video twice to really capture your perspective on certain things. First of all, very well done video. I really liked Sinister and i think its one of the scariest/disturbing movies ive seen, despite the second half being a little weak. i havent seen the movie in a few years, and im a father now. So im pretty sure this movie hits different to parents; in a way i dont want to watch it again hahahha. What do you think wouldve been better for the ending then man? Arent people inevitably going to want to see the demon or see why these things are happening? Maybe they just executed it wrong. Nonetheless, i agreed with almost everything you said, very good points! Edit: the thicc thanos cracked me up, that was disturbing indeed! Subscribed btw

this video is spot on, almost a shame they couldn't keep up the first half

One of the most unsettling movies I've ever seen the music on the tapes gets to me the most even now lol the ending could of been a lot better but all in all its still a great horror movie

You are a G for that jump scare count down 🤣

Nah, the second half saves the movie from a total snorefest. All that atmosphere and fear of the unknown is a waste if you don't eventually deliver, the unknown is used like the buildup in a song to make the reveal or climax powerful, what you want is a song that just buildups forever and never drops, which nobody will listen to. All that stuff you like about the first half only matters with the second. Even stuff like the kids walking in slow mo it isn't about them being a physical threat to him but an omen of what's to come, the fear in the second half is not of what's going on but the inevitability of what's going to happen, how horrific that is, and if he can stop it, knowing what it is now. Speaking of music the Boris song at the end when they're killed is as powerful as the music in the beginning, there's definitely a transition but it's a necessary one.

Damn bro! Your first channel? If not I have to tell you that if you keep this up, you’ll have a bright future bro. Anyway, this is dope and keep it up man, I see your channel blowing up soon Ok peace ✌️ bro.