Director – Isaac Rodriguez (House of Prey, Witchboard)
Starring – Brittany Dunk (Sanitarium, The Stream), June Griffin Garcia (From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series, Killer Women), and Jason Scarbrough (A Darker Fifty Shades: The Fetish Set, Remy’s Demons)
Release Date – 2019
Rating – 3/5
Several months ago a video went viral in one of the horror groups I’m in. The video was recorded late at night/early in the morning and showed an elderly woman walking on the sidewalk. It was recorded with a person’s doorcam and the elderly women seemed to be distraught or lost. Watching a confused elderly woman walking on the sidewalk at night is nothing horrifying or news worth. However, this confused woman was walking at night while carrying a kitchen knife.
Jokes aside, if I saw that on my doorcam the following morning I would be freaked the fuck out. Back in 2019 filmmaker Isaac Rodriguez realized that doorcams were an invaluable tool in the found footage sub-genre and created a film around it. He recently contacted me to review his film Unknown Visitor. It looked interesting enough so I agreed to check it out. Thanks Isaac for sending this one over!
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows a young woman (Dunk) who moves into a new home. Her friend (Scarbrough) installs a doorcam for her to ease her mind but she’s uncomfortable in the new home. Things take a dark turn when a mysterious woman starts paying her nightly visits. Is she real or a product of an unmedicated women with a mental disorder? **Spoiler Alert**
Most of you know that I’m not really a fan of found footage flicks. Some have been alright but most bore the living hell out of me. The small talk, the cliched “how do I work this camera” when the movie begins, and the shaking and jumping as the action roles. I can see why it’s so appealing to some but they just don’t work for me. However, Unknown Visitor has a different take on the found footage sub-genre. Instead of shaky camera work and awkward dialogue the issue is fixed with a fixed camera at the door and scenes pertaining to the story. The awkwardness of standard found footage is removed by this gimmick.
The acting in this one is surprisingly well done. I really liked the characters that Brittany Dunk and Jason Scarborough bring to life. There is a few scenes that are a bit underwhelming but for the most part this small cast does a fantastic job.
The story for this one is perfectly written for the film’s set up. I enjoyed the mental twist the story delivers, the woman crying on the porch angle, and the veteran suffering from combat. All of this works very well for the most part. However, there was a few things that I wasn’t feeling and this does go into spoiler territory. I’ll refrain from getting too deep into that but the film should have kept the paranormal course.
Finally, this one has a few deaths. One is simple but it works and the other has a bloody moment with some make-up effects. I enjoyed the deaths that we get but those of you looking for a bloody flick will be disappointed. Overall, Unknown Visitor is a unique found footage film. The idea works but there is only so much you can do with a scenario like this but Rodriguez pulled it off. I enjoyed it but I don’t see myself revisiting it anytime soon. Check it out.
