I’ve only had four dreams, or they could be called nightmares, which have really stood out and stayed with me over the years. All of them I dreamed when I was a kid, and only one still bothered me as an adult. That dream was about Bigfoot standing in the corner of my grandmother’s front yard, snarling at me as I played. I’ve been leery of that corner ever since.
I had one other dream of Bigfoot later, when I was a teen, which involved the big guy trying to get into a cabin I was taking shelter in. There are scenes in Exists that remind me a lot of those dreams. It could be why I like it so much.
Two brothers, Brian and Matt, take their friends to the backwoods of Texas to have a fun weekend at their uncle’s old cabin. The cabin is somewhat rundown because their uncle doesn’t go out there anymore. There’s a reason for him abandoning it. There’s also a reason why the road is blocked to outsiders.
While travelling, at night, to the cabin on the lonely back road, something darts in front of their car. Not stopping in time, Matt accidentally hits the quickly moving object. They search for whatever it was, but can’t find anything. There’s blood and hair in the vehicle’s grille, and something cries out in pain in the woods. Not knowing what it was they hit, the gang head on out to the little lost love shack.
Brian plans to record the entire weekend for YouTube purposes, so he has cameras on at all times: around the cabin, on his person, and on his brother and their friends. When he catches footage of something running through the woods, he is the only member of the party concerned it’s not an average animal.
Later that night, blood-curdling screams erupt from the woods and something begins banging on the cabin walls. Thanks to Brian’s handy night-vision camera, the group discover something looking in the window at them. They all believe Brian at that point and agree there’s some big mean something outside and it wants to hurt them.
The next day, they discover their vehicle demolished. Matt sets out on a bicycle to reach a point with a cell signal. Matt and Brian are out there without their uncle’s knowledge, or permission, and their uncle is the only one who may can rescue them. The bike ride does not go well. Everything else that happens to the group falls into the bad category also.
I’m not a big fan of found footage films, but I like Exists. Every time I’ve watched it, I’ve not felt taken out of the story by the “gimmick.” Director Eduardo Sánchez was also the co-director of The Blair Witch Project. This may be sacrilege in some circles, but I like Exists better.
It’s not easy to find a respectable Bigfoot movie. To find even a marginally watchable one that doesn’t make me want to pound my head against a tree has proven to be nearly as elusive as finding the real Bigfoot. There’s only so man times one can watch The Legend of Boggy Creek and remain sane. Exists helps me to retain (achieve?) my sanity. It’s practically a dream come true.
Curio Macabre 