“Scared the living hell outta me… So scary it’s hard to watch… Perfect horror.”
These are the quotes used in the new trailer for the found footage horror The Gallows. Which film critic said them? Well, it wasn’t a critic exactly. In fact, the credit goes to “Audience Screening” and the moment the attribution shows up it’s the briefest of the three quotes to stay on screen. Does that mean The Gallows is a bad movie? No, but there are signals in film marketing you begin to key on that throw up red flags and, for me, quoting an audience screening is definitely one of them.
As for the trailer itself, well, if there is any genre that has proven sound is a major aspect of cinema it’s the found footage horror film as they wouldn’t be anything without loud bangs, creeks and groans to accompany their whip pan reveals and sudden supernatural goings on. Add in a female rendition of a classic ’90s rock song, this time it’s Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, and, well, you have yourself a moody little tease for a film that was most likely made on a low budget and sure to, at the very least, make a penny or two as a result. Will it be any good? Eh, just ask Audience Screening, they sure seemed to like it.
The Gallows hits theaters on July 10, check out the trailer below.
Twenty years after an accident caused the death of the lead actor during a high school play, students at the same small town school resurrect the failed stage production in a misguided attempt to honor the anniversary of the tragedy–but ultimately find out that some things are better left alone.
