The Devil's Woods (2015)
A group of four friends trying to repair their strained relationships decide to spend the weekend camping at a music festival. En route they stop off at a small town in the middle of rural Ireland and then find a nearby spot in the woods in which to camp prior to moving on to the festival.
In a way there's nothing new to see in this ultra low budget Irish horror, however i really enjoyed it once again. Director Anthony White basically seems to have a camera and a cast of four for much of this film yet it works really well. It helps that the friends all come over as mainly likable and the dialogue totally natural and at times really funny whilst never feeling forced or scripted, helped by a pacing that allows the characters to build and not seem so throw away as is the case with many of these films.
There's an air of unease which develops as the films slender 70 minutes gather pace. Idle chatter which could have been awful actually feels invigorating thanks to White's innovative camera work and an ambient soundtrack from a band called Stillroom which is weird and sinister.
From the off there are hints at what is to come with Occult themes and symbolism throughout and even a few homages to films like The Wicker Man and The Blair Witch Project.
Whilst films like this aren't for all as there are several stretches where not a lot really happens, the last ten minutes are genuinely creepy and i thought fairly edge of the seat stuff.
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