The Honeycut: Locked in with ‘Grave Encounters’

Broadcasting from Beyond the Grave

Ghost hunting shows. I love them. I find them both informational and entertaining. In most of them, we learn about the history of the place they are investigating, and then we see the paranormal activity unfold as the night sets in. 

The 2011 film “Grave Encounters” follows this same formula. The ghost hunting team from the TV show within the movie, also called “Grave Encounters,” goes to shoot an episode at a haunted asylum. However, they uncover much more than they were expecting. 

When my co-host on the “Midnight Terrors Podcast,” Kevin, chose to cover “Grave Encounters,” I was down. I had always seen the “Grave Encounters 2” cover on Netflix but never bothered to watch either of them. 

So, was it worth the wait? Or was this one haunting that turned out to be a bust? 

Honey’s Cut

This movie is fine. That’s about it. It’s just kind of there. 

I really dig the premise that it is a ghost hunting show gone awry. This came out during the found footage craze of the 2010s, sparked by the success of the “Paranormal Activity” movies. And, it did pretty well for a straight-to-video-on-demand and limited theatrical release. With a budget of $120,000, it made more than $5 million. I’d say that’s pretty impressive. 

While found footage films have their place (see the above paragraph where “Grave Encounters” made millions) I have just seen one too many in my day. Unless they do something really spectacular, I’m pretty burnt out on the whole idea. 

That being said, this movie is pretty decent once it picks up. For the first 45 minutes, we’re just seeing the ghost hunters walking around, having minor paranormal experiences. But then in the last half of the movie, everything goes south, and there are some decent scares. 

Honey’s Final Thought

“Grave Encounters” is a film that brings an original idea but fails to do anything that makes it really stand out. It capitalized on the found footage/ghost movie trend and made its money. I can’t fault it for that. 

I’d say this is one that’s fun to throw on with a group of friends or at a Halloween party. It’s one where you can turn your brain off and enjoy the ride. Sometimes, that can make for the best kind of horror movie.