Sinister (2012)
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A true-crime writer's discovery of a box of supernatural home movies in his new house puts his family in grave danger.
The story
Struggling true crime writer Ellison Oswalt moves his family into a new home in Pennsylvania to research a series of local murders and a missing child. While exploring the attic, Ellison discovers a box of old home movies that depict gruesome, seemingly supernatural events. As he investigates the footage, he begins to notice disturbing patterns and symbols. The discovery forces him to confront the dark history of the house and the mysterious forces lurking within, as his children begin to exhibit strange behavior and the line between reality and the supernatural begins to blur.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Ellison Oswalt, a struggling true-crime writer, moves his family into a house in Pennsylvania to investigate the mystery of the Stevenson family murders. In the attic, he finds a collection of home movies showing gruesome murders and a recurring cultic symbol. He consults an expert who identifies the symbol as belonging to the deity Bughuul. As the investigation deepens, Ellison's children begin to act strangely, and the house becomes haunted by 'ghost children.' After a series of escalating supernatural events, Ellison discovers that the children in the films were manipulated by Bughuul to commit 'familicide.' In the climax, his own daughter, Ashley, drugged him and his wife, and under the influence of Bughuul, she prepares to kill them. The film ends with Bughuul appearing and consuming Ashley's soul as she performs a ritual on the family.
- First release year
- 2012
- Runtime (minutes)
- 109
- Production countries
- United Kingdom; United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Scott Derrickson
- Writers
- Scott Derrickson · writer; C. Robert Cargill · writer
- Cast and characters
- Ethan Hawke · Ellison Oswalt; Juliet Rylance · Tracy Oswalt; Fred Thompson · the sheriff; James Ransone · the deputy; Michael Hall D'Addario · Trevor Oswalt; Clare Foley · Ashley Oswalt
- Genres
- supernatural horror; mystery
- Themes
- supernatural; parental protection; occultism
- Tone and mood
- scary; tense; eerie
- Setting
- A house in Chatsford, Pennsylvania.
- Premise and plot tags
- haunted house; found footage; cult; true crime
- Source material / true-story basis
- Inspired by a nightmare had by writer C. Robert Cargill.
- Franchise connections
- A sequel was released in 2015.
- Content notes
- horror
- Reception
- The film was a box office success and was praised for its atmosphere and acting, though it was criticized for its use of jump scares. It gained a reputation for being extremely scary, being named the scariest film ever made in a 2020 study.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 64% · scale: percentage · review count: 154; Metacritic · score: 53 · scale: 100 · review count: 30; CinemaScore · score: C+ · scale: A+ to F
- Production trivia
- The Super 8 footage was shot on actual Super 8 cameras and film stock.; The film was parodied in the comedy A Haunted House 2.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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