Exists (film)
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''Exists'' is a 2014 American found footage
monster A monster is a type of imaginary or fictional creature found in literature, folklore, mythology, fiction and religion. They are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive, with a strange or grotesque appearance that causes Anxiety, terror ...
horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...
, directed by Eduardo Sánchez. The film had its world premiere on March 7, 2014, at
South by Southwest South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...
, and stars Chris Osborn and Samuel Davis. The story revolves around a group of friends hunted by something in the woods of
East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that consists of approximately 38 counties. It is roughly divided into Northeast Texas, Northeast, Southeast Texas, Sout ...
. Following the darker psychological tone of Sánchez's previous film '' Lovely Molly'', the film returns to the creature-feature horror of '' Altered'', also written by Jamie Nash.


Plot

Brothers Brian and Matt invite a group of friends - Matt's girlfriend Dora and their friends Todd and Elizabeth - on a camping trip to their uncle Bob's cabin in
East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that consists of approximately 38 counties. It is roughly divided into Northeast Texas, Northeast, Southeast Texas, Sout ...
. Driving on the
forest road left, alt=Pathway through forest., Concrete pathway through deep forest in India. Forest tracks or forest roads are roads or tracks intended to carry motorised vehicles or horse-drawn wagons being used mainly or exclusively for forestry purposes, ...
, Matt hits something with the car and stops to investigate. The group hears loud animal cries in the distance but dismisses them. Finding the road blocked by a fallen tree, the group continues on foot and reaches the cabin, only to discover that it is dilapidated. The group decides to spend the night in the car, where Brian and Matt again hear the loud cries. The following morning, Brian finds blood on the fender and a tuft of hair in the
grille Grill or grille may refer to: Food * Barbecue grill, a device or surface used for cooking food, usually fuelled by gas or charcoal, or the part of a cooker that performs this function * Flattop grill, a cooking device often used in restaurants, ...
. Brian catches sight of what he claims is
Bigfoot Bigfoot (), also commonly referred to as Sasquatch (), is a large, hairy Mythic humanoids, mythical creature said to inhabit forests in North America, particularly in the Pacific Northwest.Example definitions include: *"A large, hairy, manlike ...
running along a nearby ridge, but the group dismisses him. Determined to get the creature on film, he sets up several
GoPro GoPro, Inc. (marketed as GoPro and sometimes stylized as GoPRO) is an American technology company founded in 2002 by Nick Woodman. It manufactures action cameras and develops its own mobile apps and video editing software, video-editing software ...
cameras at various points around the cabin. That night, the creature continues to scream and harasses the group. Using his camera's
night vision Night vision is the ability to see in low-light conditions, either naturally with scotopic vision or through a night-vision device. Night vision requires both sufficient spectral range and sufficient intensity range. Humans have poor night v ...
, Brian catches a glimpse of the roaring creature through a window. At daybreak, the group attempts to leave but finds their car completely destroyed. Matt and Brian reveal that they didn't tell their uncle Bob they were using his cabin and that they stole the keys from him, so rescue is unlikely. Matt
bikes A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A is called a cyclist, or bicyclist. B ...
to an area of the woods that has
cell phone reception A mobile phone signal (also known as reception and service) is the signal strength (measured in dBm) received by a mobile phone from a cellular network (on the downlink). Depending on various factors, such as proximity to a tower, any obstructio ...
so that he can call for help, but just as he gets through to Bob, he is attacked by the Bigfoot. At the cabin, the others move furniture to block the windows and doors. They uncover a
trapdoor A trapdoor or hatch is a sliding or hinged door that is flush with the surface of a floor, ceiling, or roof. It is traditionally small in size. It was invented to facilitate the hoisting of grain up through mills, however, its list of uses has ...
to the cabin's cellar, where Todd finds a
shotgun A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, peppergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge (firearms), cartridge known as a shotshell, which discharges numerous small ...
. At nightfall, the Bigfoot attacks the cabin and kills Elizabeth before Todd shoots it, causing it to flee. The remaining three members of the group decide to hike toward the road. That night, they rescue the injured Matt from the creature's den. As dawn breaks, the group takes shelter in an abandoned RV. Brian receives a call from Bob, who is now at the cabin. Todd sets off
fireworks Fireworks are Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a large numbe ...
hoping to alert Bob to their location, only to have the Bigfoot attack him. The creature then pushes the RV over the edge of a hill with Brian, Matt, and Dora still inside. When Brian regains consciousness, he finds Matt and Dora dead. Brian flees but the creature pursues and drags him off. Brian awakens next to his deceased friends. Nearby he observes the corpse of a juvenile Bigfoot, and realizes they killed it accidentally with the car. The Bigfoot begins to attack him when uncle Bob arrives and shoots it with a
rifle A rifle is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting and higher stopping power, with a gun barrel, barrel that has a helical or spiralling pattern of grooves (rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus o ...
. As they flee for Bob's truck, the Bigfoot ambushes and kills Bob. Brian picks up his uncle's gun and runs as the creature gives chase. He turns and points it at the Bigfoot, begging it to stop and begins to apologize. The wounded creature stares at Brian, who lowers the rifle. Still recording, Brian turns his back to the creature and prepares to be killed but the Bigfoot disappears into the forest.


Cast

* Dora Madison Burge as Dora * Chris Osborn as Brian * Roger Edwards as Todd *
Denise Williamson Denise Williamson is an American actress best known for her work on ''Maggie'' (2015), '' Blacktino'' (2011) and ''The D Train ''The D Train'' (also known as ''Bad Bromance'') is a 2015 black comedy film written and directed by Jarrad Paul ...
as Elizabeth * Samuel Davis as Matt * Brian Steele as Sasquatch * Jeff Schwan as Uncle Bob (as J.P. Schwan) * George P. Gakoumis Jr. as Firework Salesman (as George Gakoumis) * Stefanie Sanchez as 911 Operator


Release

''Exists'' premiered at the
South by Southwest South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...
film festival on March 7, 2014, and was released on February 3, 2015.
Entertainment One Lionsgate Canada is a Canadian entertainment company and a subsidiary of Lionsgate Studios. Based in Toronto, the company is primarily involved in the acquisition and production of films and television series. The company began on June 1, 1973 ...
set the United Kingdom release on DVD and Blu-ray for the April 6, 2015.


Reception

On review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, ''Exists'' holds an approval rating of 30%, based on 24 reviews, and an average rating of 4.80/10. On
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, the film has a weighted average score of 22 out of 100, based on 22 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews. In a particularly scathing review, Keith Uhlich from ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...
'' wrote, "It feels strange to be so dismissive about someone who once commanded wide attention (however much as a fluke) with an indie blockbuster that effectively birthed a lucrative mainstream genre. But Sánchez, sadly, is now a pretender to his own throne." Ed Gonzalez of ''
Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yor ...
'' rated the film 1.5 out of 4 stars, panning the film's uninteresting characters, 'under-realized metaphorical ambitions', and thin story. Geoff Berkshire from ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' criticized the film's thin characters, and script, writing, "Eschewing the painfully slow-burning suspense and pseudo-realism that helped make ''Blair Witch'' a sleeper smash and genre touchstone, Sanchez’s thoroughly conventional approach here does little to elevate a dismally generic script". Robert Abele of the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' was highly critical of the film, calling it "aggressively unimaginative". Frank Scheck from ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' similarly criticized the film's clichéd script, and thin characters, calling it "a compendium of horror movie clichés whose visual style is roughly akin to trying to watch a movie while riding in a rollercoaster." The film was not without its supporters. Richard Wittaker of ''
Fearnet Fearnet was an American digital cable television network, website and video on demand service owned by Comcast. The network specialized in horror entertainment programming through a mix of acquired and original series, and feature films. Backgr ...
'' praised ''Exists'' for its editing and score, as they felt that it would help make the movie appeal to people who would not normally like found footage films. ''
The Austin Chronicle ''The Austin Chronicle'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demogra ...
'' gave a predominantly positive review and commented that while the film held several similarities to Sánchez's ''
The Blair Witch Project ''The Blair Witch Project'' is a 1999 American psychological horror film written, directed, and edited by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez. One of the most successful independent films of all time, it is a " found footage" pseudo-docume ...
'', "he evades all those bear traps, returning tension and pathos to the monster movie."


References


External links

* * * {{Eduardo Sánchez 2014 films 2014 horror films 2010s monster movies American natural horror films Found footage films Bigfoot films Lionsgate films Films directed by Eduardo Sánchez (director) Films set in forests Films set in Texas Films with screenplays by Eduardo Sánchez (director) Haxan Films films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films English-language science fiction horror films