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Arbor Demon

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Arbor Demon (2016)

August. 26,2016
|
4.1
| Drama Horror Thriller
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An adventurous woman with a secret from her husband insists they go for a romantic camping trip in a remote wood to reconnect and share some quality time. But their idyll is shockingly cut short after a group of nearby hunters are brutally killed by a mysterious creature. Trapped inside their tent, the couple is forced to help one of the injured hunters and together they plan their escape. Is there really something supernatural hidden in the forest? Or is it just their imaginations running riot. Soon they must determine if the real threat is inside or outside their enclosure

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Reviews

Cathardincu
2016/08/26

Surprisingly incoherent and boring

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Grimerlana
2016/08/27

Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

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Mjeteconer
2016/08/28

Just perfect...

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FirstWitch
2016/08/29

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

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TheLittleSongbird
2016/08/30

'Arbor Demon' (aka 'Enclosure') drew me into seeing it, with a cool poster/cover, an intriguing and quite creative premise and as someone with a general appreciation for horror. That it was low-budget, which from frequent personal experience is rarely a good sign due to that there are so many poor ones out there, made me though apprehensive. It is sadly however yet another film seen recently, hence some reiteration because the exact same strengths and flaws are here present in those films, that to me was very weak, its worst elements being pretty awful, with a lot more wrong than right. 'Arbor Demon' is not great, or good, has a fair share of problems (fairly big ones too) and doesn't do enough with its potential, which was hardly small. There are however a few decent, even good, qualities in 'Arbor Demon'.Lets start with the positives. The scenery is atmospheric, likewise with the decent way it's shot. The music is suitably spooky and quirky and doesn't distract at all from the atmosphere, while not exactly enhancing it. Found too that 'Arbor Demon' started off fairly promisingly with a few effectively spooky moments.However, the story does feel over-stretched and some of it feels vague, under-explained in the last third where the film especially became duller, more predictable, more senseless and less scary it got. Too many characters are too sketchy and with nowhere near enough to make one want to endear to them. Their irritating and illogical decision making and behaviours insult the intelligence. Making the film feel bland and forgettable with not enough heart put into it. The acting is also terrible, Jake Busey in particular was just bizarre. The effects are ropy at best.Dialogue can be stilted and rambling while the pace is uneven, dragging in a lot of the second half and never is it exciting. Found too many the supposedly shocking moments not surprising or scary and the supposedly creepy atmosphere dreary, due to the excessive obviousness and the lack of tension and suspense. A lot of the film completely fails to make sense, both in underdeveloped plot elements and often nonsensical and confusing character motivations. The villains are poorly used and pose very little threat. The last third badly sags in momentum and the atmosphere completely falls flat, though the end does convey the message better than expected.In conclusion, very weak but not unwatchable. 3/10 Bethany Cox

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cmovies-99674
2016/08/31

PROS: One of the coolest parts of this movie was the original idea. The whole premise of the movie was very new and very exciting. It sort of took on a completely different vibe than most other movies. The thing that really propelled the movie was the way that the story stayed creative from beginning to end. Although the ending wasn't perfect, it also was very conclusive to the message and the overall meaning of the film.CONS: The biggest issues weren't necessarily bad, but rather that they are very average when above average is needed. For example, the acting fell flat in many categories. The main couple in the film did a great job at showing romantic chemistry, but not chemistry with combined fear. That factor would've been the make it or brake it portion of the film, and it was the brake it portion. A lot falls on the acting, when acting isn't good you have a hard time following along with the build up in tension or the resolution. These factors all combined lead to an average attempt at a creative script.www.chorror.com

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Kristi Petersen Schoonover
2016/09/01

I'm on a horror podcast, so I've seen it all. I was so pleased that this wasn't the run-of-the-mill that I was expecting—it's a tension- filled, well-paced, scary little ride. Yes, it's a creature movie, but the characters are well-developed (and the acting, for a change, is really GOOD), so we care about them; there are also a few stories going on at the same time, and all of them work well together so that the film's final moments are tied up perfectly (but NOT predictably). What's really impressive is the film's ability to scare due to less is more: we don't see a whole lot until we need to at the end (fans who were terrified by the old stuff like LEGEND OF BOGGY CREEK will definitely appreciate this approach). The set-up is tight so that we are plunged into the situation in short order—yet story and development do not get short shrift. If you love creature movies but you're looking for something a little bit different, definitely check this out.

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putrescent_stench
2016/09/02

Just saw this at the theater. Went in with pretty low expectations, as I hadn't heard any buzz about this film (so many other promising horror films coming soon - Get Out, A Cure for Wellness, The Belko Experiment, a remake (or re-adaptation) of It, etc. There were only two other (fairly negative) reviews on IMDb, and I read a couple of other reviews (Dread Central and Kim Newman) that were lukewarm about it. The poster art makes the movie look generic and cheap. The premise sounds pretty simple and unoriginal - a couple stranded in the woods, facing some unknown menace. But I'm glad I gave it a chance. I thoroughly enjoyed the film. It's not a "great" film, overly cerebral, emotional, gory, or overly anything. However, there were no moments that particularly bothered me, and all the elements - atmosphere, music, acting, tension - work pretty well together.Dana (Fiona Dourif) and Charles (Kevin Ryan) play a married couple who love each other but have some tensions, such as Charles about to embark on a three-month tour with his band. To celebrate their two-year anniversary and spend some time together before Charles hits the road, they decide to go camping. They soon find disagreements flaring - and to make matters worse, a group of drunk hunters parties and fires off guns at night nearby. But the hunters aren't their only worry, as a mysterious creature quickly dispatches with most of them, leaving only one, Sean (Jake Busey), alive. They rescue him, holing up together in their tent, only to find that Sean might be just as much, if not a greater, threat than the monster outside the tent.The addition of Sean is a brilliant move, as I'm not sure if this would have been as enjoyable without his character, or without Busey's effectively creepy performance. This has the internal-tension-while-under-siege-by-external-threat trope that is pretty common for horror movies (and is there a shorthand name for this? if not, there should be). Everything from Night of the Living Dead to last year's The Monster and Blair Witch relies on it, and I'm a sucker for it. There's not much of a unique take on it here, but it uses those conventions competently. Most good horror is pretty simple in premise; once you get too complicated, you run the risk of ruining the mood. This film knows what it is - a monster-romp-in-the-woods movie - and doesn't try to pretend to be anything more.I'm not sure what to think about the "monster" here, either in its nature or in its visual design. It is strange, not especially scary-looking, and it's hard not to say more without spoiling the film. There's not much explanation for it, although there is a supposed connection to a Native American story told by Sean's "crazy grandma Millie Ray," which sort of makes sense based on what happens, and sort of not.In short, this film is fun if you can just sit back and not think about it too much. It's also a plus if you like the woods as a setting and the above-mentioned siege-type narrative. 7/10 (maybe generous, but for what this film is trying to be, it deserves it).

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