The Borderlands - Blu-ray

Content: London-based tech geek Gray is convinced that exposing the mysterious goings-on at a church in the English countryside as a fraud will be an easy and rather entertaining assignment. For his clients, the Congregation, Gray is to ensure that every step of the investigation is captured on video. To do this, Gary must equip himself, team leader Mark, and his closeted colleague Deacon with cameras that must be activated throughout the investigation. For Gray, the whole thing is huge fun that also pays well. But soon strange events begin to occur in Father Amidon's church that are hard to explain. And though the experienced Deacon assures the fresh-faced Gray that there is a logical explanation for every supposed supernatural occurrence, there actually seems to be a force at work in the church that has nothing to do with modern technology, nor anything to do with God. For what awaits the investigators here is something so unimaginably evil that it can only come from hell...

The horror subgenre of found footage films is badly worn out after the enormous success of the Paranormal Activity series and its countless copies. What was revolutionary and fresh at the time of the Blair Witch Project is now completely overused and usually no longer produces goosebumps, but only cultivated boredom. But every now and then there are still some highlights that manage to create some suspense and surprise even on well-trodden paths. The British found footage thriller The Borderlands is such a case.

The film clearly follows the rules of this subgenre. So also here in the first third relatively little happens and one observes actually only the protagonists with their rather boring goings-on. This is where the horror slowly but surely breaks in at some point, and in the case of The Borderlands, it works really well. That's because director Elliot Goldner does a great job of building up a very engaging base atmosphere in which the supernatural horror can unfold very well. Even small signs of creepy occurrences have a decent goosebump effect in this atmosphere, which means that the viewer is definitely captivated by what's going on even in the quieter moments.

The final third is then horror at its finest. Even though the finale may leave a few questions unanswered, it has a very intense and lasting effect. What also works to the film's advantage is that it largely dispenses with the now really annoying shaky-cam visuals. Many of the cameras used to capture the action are fixed, which is why the image is also pleasantly still in many scenes. And even when handheld cameras are used, the shaking is kept within tolerable limits.

The Borderlands certainly doesn't reinvent the found footage genre. But in the mass of countless bores, the film is a felicitous reminder of what made this subgenre so successful. And also of the fact that not only the found footage look is enough to create suspense, but that a compelling story, peppered with some good shock effects, is also necessary for that. And that's exactly what this small but fine horror gem has to offer, which is why it ends up with a pleasantly creepy worth seeing!

Image + Sound: As with many other found footage films, there are again some image glitches and blurring, but these are deliberately used stylistic devices and therefore cannot be judged as a weak point in the audiovisual realization. Since director Golder has found ways to use quite steady camera work in many scenes, good image sharpness and an authentic-looking color scheme can often unfold as well. The sound is mixed rather subtly, but can provide some very atmospheric surround effects to give you goosebumps, especially in the second half of the film. Dialogue is mixed with good intelligibility. Good!

Extras: As a bonus, the Blu-ray has only a few program tips to offer.

Conclusion:The Borderlands is another contribution to the now badly worn sub-genre of found footage horror. But Elliot Goldner hasn't just found stylistic ways to stand out from the crowd of similarly styled works. The lack of overly shaky scenes and the story enriched with some very effective shock moments make The Borderlands a solid goosebump thriller with a disturbing finale. The Blu-ray is technically coherent, the only negative is the complete lack of extras. Still, if you appreciate found footage horror and like supernatural mystery fare, don't miss this film. Recommended

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp