The Break-In (2016)

THE BREAK-IN is an indie riff on PARANORMAL ACTIVITY, as are so many, and featuring the same kind of atmosphere of tension and disquiet. This time around the story is non-supernatural and concerns a young expecting couple who are disturbed by increasing reports of burglaries in their neighbourhood. Their story is captured via found footage in a low budget but fairly realistic way. The problem is that the events that do take place are few and far between and they're also quite familiar despite attempts at atmosphere building. The twist ending is the only thing of note in this one.

I have to say, I really enjoyed this film. I tend to search out low-budget, little-known horror like this film, because I can really appreciate a solid story even if it has little to no frills. This film does a great job of building the suspense in a low key fashion throughout, a "slow burn" if you will, almost to the point of banality, but there is a little something that keeps you engaged with the story. And then, you get to end. What a surprise! I had almost the same reaction to this as I did the ending of the popular 80s slasher "Sleepawawy Camp". Though not as shocking and jarring as SaC, the ending to The Break-In still delivers that gut punch you'll never forget. This is something I'd be interested in purchasing for my home collection.

I stumbled upon this movie on Prime tonight and despite it's low rating of 2 stars, I decided to give it a try. Sometimes your run-of-the-mill B-horror film can turn out decently scary, despite not being everyone's cup of tea.It was your typical hand cam sort of set-up, similar to Paranormal. A standard, douchey couple in a subpar condo start experiencing neighborhood disturbances. Things get real when their good friend and neighbor is stabbed in the result of a home intruder. Alas, the couple, although expecting a goddamn child, decides to stick it out and remain in their home despite multiple burglaries in the area. Just as the film begins to finally build up a bit of momentum, it takes a sloppy, hard left and decides to play the sleep apnea card as a "twist" and what the man thought was a nightmare of him murdering the invader was actually a reality of the murder of his pregnant fiancé..Rushed, sloppy, and ill-written. The cherry on top was the morbid choosing of the cheesy house-pop in the final credits, complete with candid selfies of the couple. I feel genuinely ripped off for my time invested watching this film. What a joke.

So I am a horror freak! I will watch anything horror. I also love independent films. SO when I saw this on Amazon Prime I knew I had to check it out, however, I had never seen an advertisement before for it so I was a little skeptical. Not to mention, the reviews on amazon were all over the place. Some people loved it, others said worst movie I have ever seen. But I thought I would give it a try and form my own opinion......and how glad I am that I did.First off, if you need cgi and super heroes and explosions in your films, or if you like a bloody slasher horror film, this may not be your cup of tea. But if you like a good story, and good plot twists, give this one a try. Watching this I was so intrigued just by the everyday actions of the main couple. Felt like I had a birds eye view of their life(and it being in the horror section, I eagerly anticipated something bad to happen!) That anticipation kept me on my toes the entire movie. I don't want to give the ending away, but it was totally unexpected. I thought it was going to go one way, and then it took another turn. Very cool, very original. Kudos to the writer on this one. I would highly recommend this to all horror/indie fans!