The Borderlands

This low-budget found-footage horror debut from British director Elliot Goldner has plenty of chilling atmosphere but lacks bite.

There's nothing wildly original here, and the gotcha scares get repetitive. But the script is witty, the cast are simply terrific ... a spiky, intelligent little throat-grabber.

takes the viewer to a deep dark place of nightmares, where reason will be devoured by the primordial shadows.

Much of this may sound familiar, but The Borderlands' crafty virtue is that it understands that hand-held camerawork and boo scares aren't an excuse to neglect plot, dialogue or characters.

Much of the build-up may retread familiar The Last Exorcism territory, but the claustrophobic final act is properly alarming scary fare.

Low-budget horror films based around found footage began to seem outdated not long after The Blair Witch Project but this British excursion into the form is surprisingly enjoyable.

Once things start to go bump in the night it all gets yawnsome.

Writer-director Elliot Goldner has put together a slow-burn thriller that grips, twists, jostles and pokes.

Low-budget British indie finds absolutely nothing new in the supposedly spooky found-footage subgenre, unless all the typical haunted-house frights occurring in a church counts.

Goldner carefully builds up the tension by creepy increment, neatly switching from Gray's geezer spiel to an all-pervading sense of dread to inextricably draw the viewer in.

A frisky British found footage horror that's well worth your time.

A convincing British found-footage horror that actually has some good performances and genuine scares.