The Seven Best Found Footage Horror Films You Should Watch

Found footage horror movies is a horror sub-genre that has a much smaller following in the horror world, but a very dedicated one. Personally I don’t mind watching them, but I have probably watched more that I dislike, rather than like though.

But when it works, it really does work.

But often they can be messy, very messy, but they do give you a different sense of horror when done right, because it all feels like it could be real.

So if you some enjoy motion sickness, here are seven found footage horror films that I like.

As always, please check www.justwatch.com to see where/if they are streaming in your region.

Noroi: The Curse

Noroi is long and very methodical in its execution, and while some might find it slow, I think it is brilliant, and that slow build up and creepiness is fantastic to watch unfold.

You get to watch the story unfold like a complex web of disturbing folklore, missing children, and ancient rituals. You need to pay attention in this one, and it has plenty of moments you will miss if you look away or go out the room for 5 minutes.

But it’s well worth it.

REC

REC starts with a TV crew following firefighters into an apartment building. Then it turns into full-blown infection chaos with demonic overtones. You get zombies, but not your lazy Hollywood zombies. These ones sprint, scream, and hurl themselves at doors. Lovely.

The final ten minutes are probably among the most terrifying ever shot. Night vision. Attic noises. Emaciated horror. Absolute madness.

The Taking of Deborah Logan

This one begins like a documentary on Alzheimer’s and spirals into pure horror. Deborah Logan, an elderly woman struggling with memory loss, who begins behaving a bit unusual. And that’s probably putting it nicely.

The mix of medical realism and supernatural possession makes this film extra disturbing I think. There’s a scene involving an unhinged jaw that you will simply never unsee. You’ll know when you get there.

Hell House LLC (2015)

What do you get when you build a haunted house attraction in an abandoned hotel where people died horribly? A lawsuit. But also: this movie.

Hell House LLC is low-budget perfection. It’s about a group of Halloween enthusiasts setting up a haunted house, only to experience increasingly unexplainable (and deeply messed up) events. You’ll spend half the movie yelling at the screen: “Stop going into the basement!” And yet they do. Every time.

Oh, and clown mannequins that move by themselves….

The Poughkeepsie Tapes

This film is quite controversial, and isn’t best watched by those don’t want upsetting things happening on screen. It’s presented as a mockumentary, which is basically found footage’s cousin, and the story is about the discovery of hundreds of videotapes documenting a serial killer’s crimes.

This is a film where you get no closure, and no redemption. Just a gnawing sense that evil sometimes wins.

Creep

Here’s a fun premise: a videographer answers a Craigslist ad to film a dying man’s “video diary” for his unborn son. What could go wrong?

Mark Duplass plays Josef, who moves between awkward, funny, and “oh god he’s going to wear my face as a mask.” The horror here is psychological, intimate, and skin-crawling. There’s no demon. No ghost. Just a man who is way too into wolf masks.

Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum

I love the buildup in this film, and much like Noroi, it is very methodical, and the scares all feel very earned. The found footage format works really well too, and it makes you really feel like a member of the crew, which means you’ll also feel personally attacked when the ghosts do show up.

So, that’s my list – any found footage horror films you always recommend to people? Let me know in the comments, I am always looking for new interesting ones.

Simon Leasher

A lover of cinema for over 35 years, I try and look at the good and bad points of films while advising whether someone might like the film or not. More

And yes, The Godfather 2 is better than The Godfather.