by KYLE LAUGH
** We have an interview with Unlisted Owners writer / director Jed Brian coming your way tomorrow, so remember to watch out for that!
Very rarely do I enjoy spending the little time I have available to me watching found footage films. The fact that their costs are typically minimal and can be filmed on any number of video camera, webcams and cellphones grouped with former films such as The Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity (just to name a few of the more popular ones) makes some people believe they can become a film director overnight.
On the other hand, those who plan it out, put in the work and focus on all factors of their film including acting, realism and aura typically tend to push their way through all the noise providing film fans to something fun, interesting and unique and in this case, Unlisted Owner is able to serve this up to its viewers.
A large mistake many films in this subgenre make is avoiding following a realistic timeline which should be simple to follow and doesn't have many confusing things which could be very off-putting to most people.
Unlisted Owner follows a group of friends for a day who have decided to go camping but ultimately decide to break into a house which the brutal murders of a family took place that prior evening.
First time writer and director Jed Brian took the task of following a proper timeline to heart and gave us something that flows from start to finish, piecing everything together as though the local police department had created a video for evidence of the killings which had taken place using a variety of recording devices from the different people involved. On top of the fact that everything single scene looks like it was filmed in a singular take, this made It something I truly enjoyed seeing.
In addition, the acting throughout the entire cast seemed very natural, utilizing banter regarding drinking, women and sharing memories to fill in what could be considered the slower portions of the movie. This was also one of the major factors contributing to the films realism as these conversations were easily something myself and my crazy friends would discuss when hanging out together years ago.
The only negative I had (next to a bit of a shaking cam issue right at the start and trust me it was very minor) was that some of these aforementioned conversation pieces did feel a bit drawn out at times which may have been there only to ensure that the film would be considered feature length. Making a short out of it could have potentially raised my rating for it but that could also kill the story's progression thus ruining the film as a whole.
There isn't much more I can go over without ruining the film for people, but do recommend checking it out of you're a fan of either found footage films or lite slashers.
7 out of 10.
WATCH THE TRAILER BELOW
