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15 out of 21 people found the following comment useful :-
Nice job!, 22 October 2007
7/10
Author: arotan-2 from United States

We had seen the commercials for this movie on Nickelodeon, and my 11-year-old son thought it looked good and wanted to see it. I was curious after reading that the movie was shot on DVCProHD format and was apparently a low-budget family affair. I too have been a part of such productions, and I wanted to see how a movie like this fared on the big screen. I took my son and two of his friends-- 3 boys, ages 11, 11, and 10. They loved the movie! Walking out of the theatre, they were amazed, talking about their favorite parts, and how scary it was. Sure, some critics have lambasted it. But it was a hit with the target tween audience I saw it with. It's a very enjoyable mystery involving the paranormal, set up in a way that's complex but followable (maybe a bit too complex? I thought so at first, but in retrospect it all worked-- complexity just means you have to pay attention and engage your brain-- is that a bad thing?) and it has a logic that holds up and pays off in a satisfying way in the end. I believe the cause of the negative reactions in some of the other commenters here, as well as those of the professional critics, could be that in an intelligent story like this, much of the exposition and key plot points must be conveyed through dialogue and acting, and the subtleties of the acting craft are crucial. But, when you're on a budget, really good, experienced actors are hard to come by. But like I said, any sub-par acting didn't hinder my son's enjoyment of the film. He and his friends were not comparing it to Harry Potter, or any other film for that matter. The lead actress was very good. It's no small feat to carry a movie, and she did it nicely. Directing and cinematography were fine. Nothing screamed low-budget, and any noticeable differences in the "look" of the movie due to the DVCProHD format were not problematic, and really no more extensive than, say, 16mm blown up to 35mm. Of course, the kids (again, the target audience) didn't know the difference. There was a little graininess in a couple of dark interior scenes-- be we've all seen that in shot-on-film horror movies, so it didn't detract. Overall, a good job, and I applaud the filmmakers and distributor for taking the chance and bringing this movie to the big screen.

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10 out of 16 people found the following comment useful :-
Not one person can act!, 19 October 2007
1/10
Author: moldyqueso from United States

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Contains some spoilers, though there isn't much to spoil!

The story takes place in Pine Creek, where Sarah Landon visits a friend's home, Megan, who has recently past. After having mysterious car trouble, Sarah is forced to stay perhaps longer than she wanted to. Circumstance leads her to an old childhood friend, Matt, and a town legend involving Matt's brother, David, which is the main backdrop for this film.

A car accident occurred thirteen years earlier that claimed the life of one of the town's young sports stars. The grieved father claimed that he would seek his revenge against the victim by killing her son, David, on his 21st birthday. The angry father then dies, but appears in ghostly form from time to time causing David's mother to have a nervous breakdown. David burrows into seclusion, researching paranormal phenomenon in hopes he can prevent this ominous act from happening. Sarah, with the help of David's brother Matt, try to help David thwart the inevitable.

I saw this film merely from the perspective of a parent hoping for a decent movie to take his child to. My daughter is still very young and can't see anything too scary. The moment this film started, I was left with an overwhelming and uncontrollable realization...the acting is terrible! I'm not one to notice bad acting, unless it is lousy. Also, the story didn't make any sense. If you're that upset about a loss of a child, are you going to wait 13 years before you seek vengeance? The cinematography, background scenes, transitions and character framing all looked decent enough.

It looks like this film was written, produced, directed and starring all family members which is great, but they are not actors. This movie would've been a hard thing to watch if it was a made-for-TV movie. The fact that this made it to theatrical release is quite sad. The scariest part I found about the movie, was when they said "Little did I know, that this was only the beginning," as this is the first movie planning for a series. Overall, very little entertainment value no matter what the age group and a waste of time and money.

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15 out of 26 people found the following comment useful :-
Very Disappointing, 20 October 2007
1/10
Author: kwright-25 from United States

We were truly disappointed with this film. Our expectations weren't high. We were just looking for something to see with our nine year old daughter. Frankly, it fell short of the quality of one of the old ABC after school specials. We certainly didn't have high expectations While the plot had some possibilities, the acting was laughably bad. This was especially true of Brian Comrie who played David Baker. My nine year old daughter said that it was the worst movie she had every seen. The only redeeming quality was that it was bad enough to be somewhat funny. If you are a teen/tween and you want to see a movie that you and your friends can laugh at then consider this one. Otherwise, save your money and see something else.

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7 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
A waste of time, 24 December 2007
2/10
Author: dbborroughs from Glen Cove, New York

released with no publicity or anything a few weeks back I saw this on a couple of movie Marquees and went to investigate. Family friendly (they hoped) TV movie about a 17 or 18 year old girl going to visit the family of a deceased childhood friend. There she runs into a mystery involving ghosts and a death curse. My notes from this are sketchy, mostly scribbles about how Rissa Walters as Sarah can't act. To be certain she looks good but its all over once she opens her mouth.The real question I seemed to have was how this ever got any sort of theatrical release, even one that rivals the release of Terry Jones Wind and the Willows (Then again this has some promotional material,I remember a poster, wind in the willows didn't). A waste of time. Lets hope the promise of a series of Sarah Landon films never is fulfilled.

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4 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
Not bad at all, 4 September 2008
8/10
Author: KawaiiTikal from Montreal, Canada

I was looking for something to watch that wouldn't require too much thought, something quick and fun, nothing too complicated. When I saw the 3/10 rating on IMDb, I almost didn't watch the movie. In the end, I still did, and I'm glad I did. It was nothing special, but I wanted to be entertained, and that's exactly what the movie did. Nothing less, nothing more.

As other people have mentioned, the movie is like a cross between Nancy Drew and a Goosebump episode. It's filmed cheaply, with unknown actors that don't deliver any ground-breaking performances, but the script is well put together and interesting. The intrigue is surprisingly captivating, and there are no slow parts, resulting in a fast-paced movie where you don't really have time to be bored or annoyed.

The 'horror' parts of the movie are extremely cliché, and somewhat funny because they fail to surprise, but for younger kids this is just enough, more would be too much. Everything falls into place a bit too easily during the movie and the ending is ridiculous, but until that point the unfolding of the story is great, if kept in mind that this is a thriller/mystery for children. The ending supposes there will be a continuation, and I do hope so.

It's fun to watch, just don't expect more than it is.

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Give it a break, there is a worse movie than this, 1 February 2009
3/10
Author: mindcat from South Carolina

OK, so I understand there are people out there who think they are God's gift to film, very sexy looking and want to make a movie. Isn't American Idol like that too? But please next time before you waste so much video and money, at least go to acting school or hire a director who can instruct you on how campy and amateurish you look.

This flick did have some very good parts, if you expect Ozzie and Harriet, with Rick and David, do the paranormal.

At least there wasn't a lot of tongue sucking gratuitous sex.

And when I view this thing again, if I can get through it, I'm sure I'll find it's value more in comedy than any other genre.

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2 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
This movie is proof that there really is something below AWFUL!, 23 November 2008
1/10
Author: rrrogster from Madison, wisconsin

Laughably awful....I can't remember when I saw something so badly produced, directed, acted, etc. That the producer has money there is no doubt, but no class or brains. There is an awful rumor this entire family still lives together in the same house somewhere in San Diego. How creepy is that? I would say far more than the joke they produced here.

Maybe the parents of these twisted and overgrown, "adolescents", should screen another movie of a more relative subject, "Failure To Launch". Just check it out.

We can only hope the moron who is flushing his money down the toilet making crap like this will soon find something else to occupy his time.

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1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
Good suspense, weak acting, make for enjoyable, yet flawed, family-friendly flick, 15 September 2008
5/10
Author: DodMcDuck from United States

Sarah Landon and the Paranormal Hour is a fun, suspenseful film appropriate for adults, teens, and older children.

Where the movie shines is in its family-friendly approach to the genre. You won't find any blood and guts, profanity, or sex here, but that doesn't mean there is no content. More than a few suspenseful moments and a major twist at the end keep the viewer's attention. Kids and adults alike will find something to be spooked by here.

Unfortunately, the rest of the movie doesn't match these high points. With the exception of Jane Harris, the acting is almost universally sub-par. While this is probably a result of the film's low budget, it must be noted that several important male roles in the film are played by members of the same family (often an ominous sign in a low budget film). These hunky actors have the Hollywood look, but need more acting practice before they're ready for the big time.

The script is average. There are no clever lines of dialogue to be found, but it certainly isn't cringe-worthy. Perhaps some of the lines could have been adapted to better fit the weak acting capabilities of the cast, but time considerations probably prevented such changes.

All in all, not a bad flick. Enjoy it at a kids' Halloween party or on family movie night.

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3 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
Really Fun Show, 24 November 2007
Author: Bizandplez (Bizandplez@hotmail.com) from Covington, Washington

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

I am 55 and this is perhaps the best movie I have ever seen. It had it all, the mystery of what is the connection btw. Sarah's friend Megan, at whose death and funeral we start this story, and the death 21 years earlier of Johnny Woods is one aspect of this movie that I found fascinating. The plot is fractal, and as you focus on any piece of what is happening leads to ever expanding possibilities. Some people may call this a kid show, let me explain why. It doesn't hav bad language, graphic sex, or a sad ending. Personally I don't like my nose rubbed in dirt so I really liked it.

The Comrie boys all did a great job of acting and I think they could do great as action adventure heroes. Rissa Walters in her greatest role must continue this series of the Sarah Landon adventures. Hope yu got the next one written John as if there is no new adventure by the end of 2008 I am going to hold my breath till there is.

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6 out of 13 people found the following comment useful :-
A GREAT ghost story for kids, 23 October 2007
10/10
Author: Tara Bennett from United States

When i first heard about this movie, honestly i thought it sounded ridicullous. A PG scary movie i couldn't see how it'd be scary. but then i watched the trailer and i realized what the filmmakers were doing. they were making a scary movie for kids not a pg scary move for adults. i showed the trailer to my niece and she couldn't wait to see it. i took her and her friend (10 and 11) to see it and they loved it. it's scary but not too scary (i wasn't that scared but i can see why they were). this is a kind of movie they don't get a chance to see most of the time. it's not juvenile but it's obviously made for a younger audience in mind. it's got a good story, interestinng concepts discussed to make the kids engaged. the sarah landon character is adorbale and real and the girls liked the boys in it. this is not a movie i'd see again b/c it's not really for me - i;'m 35 and like artsy sundance stuff but i can see why they want to see it again. i hope this movie sticks around.

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