scndsky
I came across this rather obscure title in my local library. I'm a fan of psychological horror movies and the description of The Unknown spoke to me. It's made by a couple of friends who decided to shoot a horror in a week time with a tight budget. The acting is surprisingly good and the actors used their real first names as their character names. The scenario inherits elements from its teachers: there's some Alien, some Body Snatchers and some The Thing. The sometimes shaky camera, the forest setting and the low budget approach may remind you of The Blair Witch Project, a movie that was released in the same year and sadly overshadowed this movie.My opinion? The Swedes pulled it off great. It's one of my favorites in the genre. But before you think this is the new Alien, I must say that The Unknown doesn't come close to the perfection of those classic Hollywood productions. It has certain flaws (some plot twists are textbook examples, some questions are left unanswered), but, and this is of most importance, the atmosphere is right, the tension is ever present and you can really be "in" the movie.I also recommend this to fans of blond Swedish women in red turtlenecks.
ekwall_peter
The comments above sums it up quite good, but there is one thing that is worth to point out. For some reason, most horror movies from Sweden tend to keep an ironic distance towards them self (Evil Ed and Frostbite for instance). This is an exception. It feels serious and it would be a shame if it will be forgotten.The actors are great. Better than a lot of bigger productions.The comparing with Blair which project are totally uncalled for. A lot of movies where filmed with hand held DV-cameras those days. The equipment triggered a lot of new low budget films, thats all.(sorry for the crappy language, but I seldom write in English)
Musicbear
First of all, I really don't know why people keep comparing this to 'The Blair Witch Project'.Yes, it's a low budget movie that takes place in a forest, which REALLY isn't unique for 'The Blair Witch Project'. In fact, most low budget horror movies I have seen have been shot in some nearby forest. And that's also where the similarities end since this movie has actors, a script, a story with a plot that is far more similar to 'The Puppet Masters'/'Body Snatchers' and, best of all, no hysterically screaming teens.I haven't rated it yet, since I'm not yet sure exactly what grade I'm gonna give it, but it's gonna be higher than 'The Blair Witch Project'.
Nikita Averin
Five geologists go out to a forest, where a quite big area has burned down, to investigate the reasons for this happening. They find a species that has never been seen before and soon, one of the geologists starts to behave strangely. Does this creature has anything to do with the fire and with the accidents that occur?I can't really say that I had high expectations on this hybrid of "The Blair Which Project" (1999) and "Body Snatchers" (1993), but I have to admit, that it wasn't bad at all. The acting and the directing is fair, not sensational, but still good. The script is cleverer than I could ever have imagined from this movie: there are surprisingly many one-liners and some sequences are exciting and even kind of scary in its best bits. The only thing that drags the rating down a bit is the shaky camera work, similar to the one in "The Blair Which Project". I honestly felt sick after half an hour, not to mention how I felt afterwards. Otherwise, an overall good movie, but don't forget to bring a bag with you - simply in case of emergency. Rating: 6/10
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