MovieChat Forums > Unaware (2013) Discussion > An insult to the found footage genre!!! ...

An insult to the found footage genre!!! 'Unaware' is completely Unreal!


**WARNING: Review contains spoiler details**
There are already reviews that walk you through the story-line so I will save you from reading another iteration of it. Essentially I will focus on why this movie is so brutally and obviously fake and a complete insult to the found footage genre.

However before I slice this apart I will say that the movie producers and director did a tremendous job of hyping this and creating a thick layer of internet rumor buzz including lacing the communication lines with rumors of the actors being unknown and still missing and the Governments involvement in this cover-up. Well played marketing lead-up however there are so many things that become obvious and predictable once you see this movie that this marketing hype, like me, may completely offend you.

I will start by saying that when they make movies like this where they want you to believe something that is not real, they will start with many 'setups' strategically placed to convince you. Secondly because they are so focused on convincing you that they miss really key little details to hold the story together to keep you believing.

So I will create my list for you focusing on the 'setups' and 'details' in no particular order so that you can make your own deduction:

1) Setup - on the way to their grandfathers, the pass and pay particular attention to a military base - makes us believe there is military involvement of some kind

2) Setup - male actor shares his distant relationship with grandfather and the secret nature of his service - makes us believe there are secrets ahead

3) Setup - big chained fence with intercom at a country home - makes us believe something big might be behind it (female actor also builds this for us in a badly acted way)

4) Detail - although the big chain fence is locked the male actor still remembers the code - makes us believe a grandfather that is hiding something would not change the code (sure).

5) Setup - grandfather and grandmother not home - surprise, surprise (of course they're not home) - makes us believe they will be alone

6) Detail - poor acting by female actor to get mad at male actor about not calling ahead - not believable at all as she lets him off the hook way too easily.

7) Detail - male actor knows where he hides the key to the house - which is in the middle of the back yard near a true in no specific spot (hmmmm, must have been right there in the grass where it is obvious and easy to be mowed over...makes sense!)

8) Setup - male actor shows female actor around showing the 69 Cutlass - ah, because this will be used later so you have to know about it now.

9) Setup - male actor talks about his grandfather never letting him go near or see inside of the barn - so we are made to believe that a kid as curious as this guy has never, ever seen inside this barn...nice setup to ask "Oh, please tell us what’s inside".

10) Detail/Setup - absolutely no chemistry between these 2 and his big surprise is he is taking her to his grandparents’ house (with his grandfather who doesn't like him) to arrive unannounced only to propose to his girlfriend...how romantic! (Brutal detail and setup!)

11) Detail - they apparently make food and she arrives back with a movie, he pours wine and they proceed to eat what appears to be snacks for their romantic post proposal dinner. Of course all he can do after proposing is think about going to the barn...as anyone would do after proposing of course. Again poor detail and setup.

12) Setup - male actor goes to barn to hear a strange noise inside only to get scared and run back to the house - making us believe something ominous is inside...oh...ah. Of course if you were really that freaked out I guess like all of us we would stay put on the property and think more about it vs getting the hell out of there!!!

13) Setup - tries to tell girlfriend but she is too engulfed in her movie - making us believe it is now his big secret.

14) Setup/Detail - talks to the camera...which by the way...they are documenting their weekend way too closely as this camera is going absolutely everywhere with them....people don't even us a GoPro this way! Additionally he mentions earlier that he will leave the place exactly how he found it yet he is smoking in the house in their bed....how courteous of him; I am sure his military, raged grandfather Roy will be fine with this!

15) Setup/Detail – he convinces his girlfriend to back to the barn and gets a crowbar to open the lock - makes us believe she is involved in the mystery to build suspense. Detail missed is he twists the crowbar a few times to open the lock, only to claim fixing it later (even though he is afraid of his grandfather)...really???

16) Setup/Detail - newspaper clippings and top secret docs - this has got to be the biggest giveaway of the entire movie! First he finds newspaper clippings...can you guess what these might be? Maybe the biggest alien cover-up of all time...right...Roswell NM...wow...so subtle!!!! Second the girlfriend casually opens an unlocked file cabinet to find a Top Secret document on the top of the pile...I am speechless at how brutally bad the acting and placement of this document was...anyone at that level of security clearance would have that document so well hiding behind several locks & key that it would never see the light of day...which brings me to the detail portion...the doc is from 1947...yes 1947...and it is not the least bit discolored...nor is the paper itself even aged...a document from 1947 will definitely look yellowed and the pulp of the paper will be decomposing to create a thinner texture...fail!

I don't need to continue as I have given enough points to make your own deduction. I am confident you will see what I am talking about leading to the big ‘Hollywood’-type climax which I like to call the 'little green men' ending. I guess in the Producer and Directors defense they needed to stand out from all the other alien movies plus save money vs go with the ‘based on true events' route however it would have lent itself to being more credible at least.

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