Sinister: Ranking the Super 8 Snuff Tapes
John Squires
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One of the coolest things about Sinister is that it took the popular trend of the time and repackaged it in an entirely different way. Rather than making a found footage film, Scott Derrickson made a movie about a man who literally finds footage, and that footage is some of the most disturbing in horror history.
When writer Ellison Oswalt (played by Ethan Hawke) comes upon a box full of “home movies” in the attic of his new residence, he starts playing them in his office and quickly discovers they’re snuff videos depicting the murders of entire families. We watch these tapes along with Oswalt throughout the film, and much of the story is told through them.
Filmed on Super 8, the tapes are bone-chilling in a way that ensures you’ll never be able to erase them from your memory, and they manage to accomplish a goal that most movies from the found footage sub-genre fail to achieve: the footage feels genuine, as if you’re watching real people die right before your eyes.
There are five “home movies” shown in Sinister, and with Sinister 2 hitting theaters this coming weekend, we wanted to look back on those disturbing videos today. So let’s rank them according to overall creepiness, shall we?
5) BBQ ’79
The unsung hero of Sinister is the score, which is oftentimes deeply unsettling to the point of being pure nightmare fuel. And the score is particularly creepy in this video of a family tied up in their car and burned alive in the garage, adding an atmosphere to the footage that can only be described as hellish. When it comes to horror, the music can often make a scene, and it definitely does with this one.
4) SLEEPY TIME ’98
This next tape plays out like a home invasion film, with an unseen killer walking through a house and slicing the throats of a man and woman, tied up in their bed. The killer next enters the bedroom of their young son, at which point Ellison can’t even bring himself to watch. This one is so simple and so effective, and I love the way Derrickson only lets you see the blood in the reflection of Oswalt’s glasses.
3) FAMILY HANGING OUT ’11
Sinister begins with one of the most memorably chilling opening sequences in recent horror history, showing us one of the home movies before Ellison ever discovers it. The grainy footage shows a family of four, bags over their heads, being hung from a tree in their backyard; and the camera lingers as they kick their legs and struggle for their lives. Talk about establishing a mood right off the bat.
2) POOL PARTY ’66
For me, the second creepiest home movie from Sinister is this one, where we see a family tied to lounging chairs and then dragged into their pool. It doesn’t hurt that one of my biggest fears is drowning, so the thought of going out like this truly disturbs me. This tape is notable for being the first one where Ellison spots Bughuul, seen lingering under the surface of the water.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEVef9o-LeI
1) LAWN WORK ’86
The hands down most terrifying scene from Sinister comes courtesy of the “Lawn Work” tape, which is home to the single most effective jump scare in recent memory. At first all we see is a lawnmower being pushed around in the dark, but we soon realize that a person is literally being mowed over – and a horrifying musical cue rattles the nerves. Ellison’s visceral reaction to this one is the same as mine, every single time I watch the movie.
How scary will the Super 8 “home movies” be in Sinister 2? You’ll have to head out to your local theater this weekend to find out!
