I Am ZoZo (2012) User Reviews

I Am ZoZo...Very Disappointed

[ringojuna · 2/10 · 29 November 2013]

I'll keep this short. As the film opened, I wasn't exactly optimistic, but I was willing to give it a chance. It seemed like my patience was being rewarded when we got to the Ouija board scene. It was a long scene, but didn't feel padded. It took its time in building up tension, and it succeeded. That scene alone was nicely creepy. I was looking forward to the rest of the film building off of that, but that never truly happened.

Instead of taking the ball that scene provided and running with it, the film decided to spike the ball and kill any real momentum they had going for them.

It's very disappointing when a film shows you glimpses of potential and then fails to live up to it.

Terrible.

[songofkalima · 2/10 · 16 December 2014]

This movie is so very not-good. I usually enjoy Ouija board films, which in general are usually not considered 'good', but I could not enjoy this film. I was very intrigued when I first heard of it, after reading and hearing stories of the infamous, notorious entity named "ZoZo"... oh man this is like the kind of film you would relax to. For real. I wanted to 'get the story', I wanted to understand it and I fell asleep several times while trying to watch this very boring immaterial film. I finally did manage to finish it off, but I will never watch it again unless I'm having insomnia. The filming and music is just awful too. Many times there is a long scene of just nothing, it is hard to hold attention, and you catch yourself trying to entertain yourself in some other way than this boringness, and when there actually is dialogue relevant to this very irrelevant film, you miss it. It is spooky at a very minimal level. It feels as if no effort was really put into this. I give 2 stars for using a very beautiful antique Mystifying Oracle board in this film.

No, this wasn't even so-so...

[paul_haakonsen · 2/10 · 26 February 2022]

I stumbled upon this 2012 horror movie titled "I Am ZoZo" ten years after it was released. I had never heard about the movie, but I must say that the movie's cover was actually interesting enough. And with it being a horror movie that I hadn't already seen, of course I found the time to sit down and watch it.

However, I must say that the whole concept of a horror movie with a Ouija board as a focal point sort of have been done to the point of being redundant already. So I can't really claim that I was harboring much of any high expectations for "I Am ZoZo".

Writer and director Scott Di Lalla didn't manage to deliver a particularly interesting or entertaining movie with "I Am ZoZo". In fact, the whole movie was so insanely slow paced that it was quite a struggle to sit through, especially since a large portion of the movie was just footage of the actors and actresses sitting around the Ouija board and playing the game, asking questions and so obviously moving the marker around the board themselves.

Now, I don't give any notion to the Ouija board thing, as it is just a silly game. If there is such a thing as ghosts and spirits, why does it need people to hold their fingers on the marker? It is just downright idiotic that people actually buy into this concept. But hey, it did make for good horror entertainment at a time, but not so much anymore. And especially not so when the plot of the story is boring and laughably thin.

The movie felt like something that came out of the 1970s, with its dubious image quality of gritty footage and the camera being all over the place. That really annoyed me to the point where it was hard to get into the atmosphere of the movie.

The acting performances in the movie were adequate, although not memorable ones. The lack of a proper script and interesting dialogue and characters is to blame here.

For a horror movie then "I Am ZoZo" was a swing and a miss. And this is definitely not a horror movie I would recommend you waste your time on watching. Some of us suffered through this movie so you don't have to.

My rating of "I Am ZoZo" lands on a two out of ten stars.

I am Horribly Disappointed!

[ho-olako · 1/10 · 29 June 2013]

The concept was intriguing, and when we read the reviews we figured it was worth a shot! However, the reviews stating it's "excellent" and a "must see" had to have been written by the production company or the actors. I will give credit to the one who said it was eerie. This movie had a lot of build and a fair amount of potential. Unfortunately the characters were, as one reviewer put it "cliche" and there was a lot of build to nothing. The movie ends as abruptly as it begins, no premise, and only a veil of closure. The attempt at character building sort of trails off immediately, only to pick up clumsily in the middle of the movie, at a point where it seems like they were just trying to throw in filler, or some clumsy bridge to tie the fumbling opening scenes and clumsy ending together. All in all, this would be a complete waste of your time to watch, unless of course you have insomnia.

I am... writing a review as this is so bad

[mattybevens · 1/10 · 1 March 2015]

This film is just awful. I've never felt so compelled to write a review on a film before, but I am Zozo or Are You There? is probably the worst horror I have ever seen. Literally nothing happens in the film, no jumps, no scares, nothing flying across the room or unexplained phenomenon? The acting is dreadful, the characters are boring and dull and the music is all over the show. I don't think the film was supposed to be a cam film but it looks like the cameraman had a skinful before filming with his home entertainment set, maybe he had some of that "super moonshine" with them.

Seriously, how have some people rated this as a 10? You must be very very easily scared. Give this a miss people unless you want to waste 90 minutes and then a further 20 scratching your head in disbelief.

A Waste of time!

[porkchopis2 · 1/10 · 26 October 2014]

This is the worst movie I have ever sat through and I regret it! I read a review that said it wasn't bad but it really is!

The acting is hilariously bad, with wooden delivery.The script itself could have been improved by a six year old.

The story is a been there, done that, over told Ouija board urban legend. The fact that this is supposedly based on real events is laughable.

The only thing this has going for it is some nice scenery and a fantastic soundtrack.Neither of these things is enough to save it.

The entire film relies on childish fears of the dark type of scares.

I would recommend you skip it.

A stinker of a non-film by a director who obviously hates his audience

[AirPlant · 1/10 · 15 October 2014]

I haven't written a review for a few years but I just couldn't let this piece of offensive garbage off without expressing how awful this 'movie' is.

A word of warning; in the UK this has been renamed 'Is anyone There' -presumably to deflect casual browsers doing a quick check on their mobile devices at the store.

The acting is non-existent; the actors are unable to convey any emotion and the whole miserable effort feels worse than a bunch of high-schoolers on their first school play read-through.

The camera operator at least manages to point the lens in the general direction of the action but seems unable to effectively frame any shot.

The sound is recorded with what sounds like the mic right next to the camera and the camera gate sound is particularly intrusive at the quieter moments.

If the director had simply pointed the camera at a tree for 90 minutes it would have been an immeasurably better movie.

Avoid this offensively bad piece of arse-dribble at all costs And: Fop; I want my money back.

Zozo-Boringly-Awful

[NeilJThomas · 1/10 · 18 July 2015]

If you believe that such a movie can in any way be spoiled (it can't) then know that this review contains spoilers at the bottom.

I wish I could give this a 0 rather than the minimum 1 star.

I don't even understand why it's classified as "Horror, Thriller", as it contains no horror and no thrills. Also no suspense, no scares, no plot twists, and no special effects of any kind...

The *presumed* "evil" (what?) in the movie is simply suggested, and absolutely nothing of any kind happens.

If you watched this without knowing the title, genre or synopsis, you would come to the conclusion that you're watching a group of people filming themselves while on a weekend trip (to a remote cabin, of course) where they get so drunk they start scaring themselves after using a Ouija board.

In case you're still wondering: definitely. no. horror OR thriller.

The only blood you see here comes when one of the characters cleans a fish before cooking it; there's no violence of any form, nobody dies (on camera) nobody gets as much as injured.

The acting is as bad as it comes, the directing is awful, and you just won't believe how bloody silly the ending is.

It's also filmed in the style of - and with the unsteady hand of - a "found tape" movie, however the actors never interact with whoever is holding the camera or acknowledge their presence, which makes the experience just weird and unlikely from the get go.

Don't bother watching it, you'd regret it ==== "spoilers" after this===

Reason breaks down at the end, when one of the protagonists, revealed to be in an asylum (and playing the cello) says:

"BUT WHAT ABOUT THE BOARD? NO-ONE CAN FIND IT"

to which another character (glimpsed briefly at the beginning of the movie but never introduced, for the love of zozo) replies:

"I'm here, I'M GOING TO TAKE THE BOARD WITH ME"

... so, yeah, not all that difficult to find was it?

1st, psychiatric institutions will absolutely not allow you to keep an object (or be in a situation, if at all avoidable) that causes you anxiety or fear, so the board would be an absolute no-no.

2nd, I've yet to see a psych hospital that allows you to play a musical instrument (she's not even supervised by staff), but the setting is American, so they might, in Europe forget it.

I am DiSaPpOiNtEd

[aeoliantru · 1/10 · 27 June 2013]

I was intrigued by the premise of this and with a score of 8.6 I had to check it out. Right off the bat, the acting is terrible and the characters cliché. Despite this, I kept watching waiting for something scary to happen. I dozed off shortly after the Ouija board came out. The only thing scary about this movie is the time I wasted before deciding I couldn't watch it anymore.

As a lifelong fan of the horror genre, I have had my hopes dashed innumerable times by cheesy, cliché', non-scary movies. It's disheartening. So what if this movie was shot on super 8? Content this bad would stink on any format. Delve into the band Mars Volta and their experience with a Ouija board. It's far more interesting.

Worst Movie ever

[sirrell-958-818423 · 1/10 · 8 April 2021]

Drawn out BS story and plot, with nothing scary.. Stupid musical parts just to draw out more of nothingness this movie is full of, worst movie I've seen in ages.

Bad acting, bad videography, so much could be chopped from this film and nothing would be lost, it would have been better if anywhere up to 90% of it was chopped out.

Save you time and watch paint dry or grass grow, it will be way more interesting!

If I could give it less than 1 star I would have.

Soso nearly a good movie

[sebpopcorn · 19 July 2013]

A group of friends go out to a holiday home on an island on Halloween. The acting is fine and despite the well used setup it's actually pretty believable. The low key story about them playing around with an ouija board is quite good up to a point. The problem is that towards the end they seem to lose interest in telling a story and not a whole heap happens.

Talking slowly and drawling your words isn't scary either, it's just kind of annoying. As is the awful camera-work which bobs around constantly. It's also got the worst music imaginable, especially the last song. It made me laugh out loud it was that bad.

It's a shame there isn't more of a story here because I liked it until they lost interest in trying to scare me. Too much home movie and not enough horror for my tastes. Courtney Foxworthy (the witchy one) is definitely an asset to the movie though and helped me make it to the credits and that awful nasal song!

Outstanding example of how Super 8mm can be used to shoot the right feature

[mattstevens · 8/10 · 20 February 2012]

For current youth 'Super8' is a movie directed by that guy who gave us LOST and ALIAS. But Super8 is a film format, one that still exists and in some places, thrives, despite the onslaught of the digital world. For the most part it is an amateur format and when used professionally, relegated to music videos or artsy projects. Because of its short shooting time of just two and a half minutes per film cartridge, few have dared to shoot a feature film under such constraints. Almost ten years ago some daredevils succeeded with the psychological piece called SLEEP ALWAYS, but their master was scanned and finished in standard definition.

Writer/Director Scott Di Lalla has pushed the 8mm format into the modern age and delivered a technically impressive feature film debut that also accomplishes something few ultra low budget directors are capable of: delivering a film worth watching.

I had the privilege of seeing I AM ZOZO's first public screening at the NJ Film Festival, which specializes in showcasing shorts, documentaries and feature length films shot on digital video and super8. The evening did not start off on a high note as the short films presented ranged from snooze inducing to embarrassingly bad. My spirits sunk. It didn't help matters that the exhibitor had somehow screwed up the settings on their projector, giving us a slightly squished image (which they never fixed).

Thank the maker that once the feature started, amateur night was over. Beginning with a chilling docu-feel shot of a possession (complete with the 8mm camera sound coming from the speakers), the tone was set for what turned out to be an exceptionally directed little horror film. The ensemble cast of unknowns surprised and rarely veered into obvious acting territory. Their banter seemed fresh and spontaneous and I tended to believe their friendships. Lead actress Kelly McLaren was particularly impressive with a performance that defies her complete lack of acting credits.

The standout sequence is the late at night, ill advised use of a Ouija board and here the filmmakers show more skill than most Hollywood directors. Using long takes, perfect lighting and terrific writing, I AM ZOZO succeeds in forcing you to literally stop breathing as you anticipate what is going to happen and then, with sudden brilliance, feeds you a line that will cause you to laugh out loud and then, moments later, makes you hold your breath yet again. Frankly, I wanted to applaud the filmmakers at the conclusion of that sequence because it was more than I could have hoped for. Low budget films are not supposed to be so good at manipulating their audience.

That is not to say things were perfect. Films have this need to be 90 minutes and I feel that Scott Di Lalla should defy that rule and make some trims. If he were to lose just five or six minutes of extraneous footage I believe he would find the pacing improved and a wider audience available. The ending is also quite obscure and I wonder what a Harvey Weinstein would do with it were he to get his hands on the negative (of course, today they use digital intermediates, but I'll get to that in a minute).

Remember, I give this film an 8 out of 10. I need to mention the flaws, which are limited. Few films are perfect, but let's also understand that few films are this good. How many Hollywood films have you seen in recent years that deserve such high marks?

Technically, the choice of filming in 8mm was certified brilliance. I shoot with super8 all the time and actually own the same camera 'I AM ZOZO' was shot with. The Canon 1014 XL-S is one of the three or four best super8's ever made, but it's flaw is going soft at low light. Major kudos need to go to Scott and his camera crew for somehow using Kodak's lower speed (and therefore, lower grain) Vision3 200T stock and finding the lighting sweet spot to give them maximum sharpness. At times only candles or a flashlight were used for illumination and yet the image retained sharpness and detail. This is due to the incredible improvements in film stocks and also the ability to scan 8mm negatives at High Definition (or even 2k), retaining every single ounce of detail in the image. When Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell shot 'WITHIN THE WOODS' on 8mm, they attempted to blow it up to 16mm and found the grain so obvious, the image was unwatchable. How times and technology has changed. Super8 is now so good that it resembles 16mm stocks of the 60's and 70's.

In a day when DSLR's and their ultra clean look are all the rage, some grainy super8 is here to show you what horror films are supposed to look like. The look of a film establishes a tone and had the filmmakers opted to shoot on a DSLR (and that would have saved them money) I believe 'I AM ZOZO' would be incapable of standing out from the crowd of low budget horror films.

My hope for these guys is they get picked up by a smaller studio or even HDNet. This film deserves to be seen. And super8 deserves a second look by anyone out there hoping to create something special on film.

Okay supernatural horror flick

[Woodyanders · 6/10 · 26 November 2019]

Five young folks get together at a vacation home on a remote island. Things go awry when the quintet conjure up a lethal demon called Zozo while playing around with a Ouija board.

Sound good? Well, it is in some ways and it ain't in other ways. While writer/director Scott Di Lalla deserves some praise for taking time to develop the characters and manages to generate a little tension and spooky atmosphere early on, he alas allows the meandering narrative to unfold at a plodding pace that in turn causes the tension and atmosphere to eventually dissipate into a lackluster conclusion that quite simply lacks any essential punch and impact. Fortunately, the game no-name cast put in perfectly acceptable performances, with especially solid work from Kelly McLaren as the sweet Tess, Courtney Foxworthy as spunky Wiccan babe Mel, and Demetrius Sager as nice rich guy Aiden. The shaky shot on Super 8 cinematography alternates between being impressive and annoying throughout. BC Smith's moody gloom-doom score hits the shivery spot. A strictly passable diversion.

MADAM I'M ADAM

[nogodnomasters · 1/10 · 8 May 2019]

A group of young adults head off to an isolated home on an island with no electricity on Halloween. They happen to have a wiccan (Courtney Foxworthy) and a Ouija board. The opening of the film attempts to convince us there is a real Ouija board demon named ZoZo and this is based on a real story.

The filming is done by a hand held camera with bad camera angles and jerky motions. They have stopped pretending anyone is doing any filming. It is not found footage, it just looks that way. Tess (Kelly McLaren) is the main character and has trouble delivering lines. In spite of the lights not working, distinct shadows from camera lighting is visible. The horror aspect was also sad.This is a rank amateur film that lacks entertainment value. Appears to be a film designed to scare kids from goofing around with a Ouija board.

Won audience choice award at a super 8 film festival.

Parental Guide: F-bomb. No sex or nudity.

ZoZo update: ZoZo is the nickname of an ancient Akkadian ruler who became a demon when he destroyed the temples of El. He is currently trapped inside my Siamese Cat. If you encounter a ZoZo while playing Ouija, it is either "the other guy" moving the piece or a ZoZo demon impersonator.

The worst movie ever

[gio-72821 · 1/10 · 10 June 2020]

Haven't watched a more trashy movie like this. It's the worst! Don't what it!

Dayyum

[manoshpeiros · 1/10 · 8 December 2018]

Worst of the worst.....................!!!!! Just a trash movie

Absolute Horrrible Garbage... WoW....Even I am shocked!!!!

[wandernn1-81-683274 · 1/10 · 25 June 2020]

-1 Star For in the Opening Scene with the Board you can see the one girl actively putting pressure on the planchette to move it.....

-1 Star They make a point of establishing that the electricity is out, and there is no light, yet the light is obviously much more than a fireplace, a few candles and the light from a video camera could provide in the room at night

Oh wow, 2/3 of the way through and all they've done so far is play with a Ouija board....how boring....

-1 Star for so much light!!!! again....when we've established theres no electricity at night!!!!

-1 Star for the brutally horrible ending....

What an amazing piece of garbage this movie was.

1/10

No, just no

[WhoDoesntLoveAMovie · 1/10 · 1 April 2020]

I never write reviews. But this was incredibly bad. Don't do it! Spoiler: nothing happens

garbage

[skyedefina · 1/10 · 29 March 2021]

Quite literally the worst movie i have seen in my entire life. Very anticlimactic. Not mad, just disappointed. Don't waste your time.

Wow

[misssin-34219 · 2/10 · 23 July 2020]

The acting and camera work is just horrid, maybe this was everyone's first time doing a movie... if not there's no excuse

Not too bad if you fast forward some bits.

[hughnormgro · 4/10 · 12 March 2015]

The only reason I am writing this is that being as there was no electricity how did the girl have a hot shower? Perhaps solar panel which wouldn't generate much in late autumn. Perhaps I'm wrong though. I think the film is better suited to a teenager. There were time in the past when an ex girlfriend of mine played about with a board. I wasn't impressed especially when she it told her that we would part in the end. That bit was true. Strange thing about that is that we both live in the same area, not a massive population and in 50 years I've not bumped into her. Perhaps the film is really a warning to the curious. Someone else said that - M R James.

Just a great time

[onering33 · 9/10 · 29 August 2012]

This movie is basic popcorn fare but with an added jolt of intelligence and artistry. There are some scenes in this move where I felt I could cut the tension in the movie theater with a knife. If you like paranormal movies, you should check out this film. Just a good, good time. The ouija board scenes are the best!!!!

If you are a fan of non-formulaic movies that serve up twists and turns then this movie is for you. It has a steady dose of scares and characters that a lot of us can identify with. You may think you know what is coming in this movie, but the ending took everyone by surprise, which is saying a lot with how predictable Hollywood is.

Bittersweet Halloween terror

[gressman07 · 6/10 · 21 October 2019]

Psychological slow burn horror/terror, probably not for most people. If you get your kicks trying to laugh off movies like The Blair Witch Project or Paranormal Activity (the first), not for you. If you enjoy those types of movies (or "found footage" in general) you'll probably enjoy it.

Shot in a "found footage" format but without an actual "filmer" we get the advantage of voyeuristic creep without the cons (why they still filming, etc). Has an old film feel sort of like Apollo 18 but looks and works much better.

The intro and first hour work well. Characters seem authentic and the island house without power creates a fitting environment. The music is also pretty creepy and drives the tension. Unfortunately the entirety of slow burn that the first hour builds is basically tossed aside by a next day fun day in which the event is seemingly forgotten for some island shenanigans.

15 mins of Everclear, fish fries, and bizarrely placed not to mention irrelevant character backstories later, we are left with only 15 mins to rush an ending. The final night, despite a partial attempt and success to bring back some eeriness, is largely a wash, as is the explanatory finale. Nearly half the characters fates are entirely unknown, some getting a mere conclusionary line of text in the fade to black end screen. Looking back, the ending actually largely undoes much of the appeal built in the first hour, leaving things more open to interpretation.

Writing this out has cemented just how subjective its level of "terror" will be. Watching it alone in a dark setting and empty house was pretty unsettling, personally. Much like The Blair Witch Project and all "found footage" horror, it provides a blank slate to terrify oneself accordingly. With sufficient open mind, mirror neurons, and perhaps empathy, one can go along with its characters and share in their situation. Or, as seems the alternative majority, simply call it boring and 1 star it into oblivion. In any case, the final 30 mins are a genuine failure all around.

6/10 on Halloween flicks/found footage style scale (5 being default/average/meh).

Less (and more) than you want!

[jjdosha · 5/10 · 5 January 2014]

I AM ZOZO, was, for starters, a greatly themed film. The idea behind the film was creepy (a little reminiscent of the film Witchboard); though the film fell short on the plot and the action that every horror film buff/spectator/novice expects from a film like this. If I were rating this film on the performances, the musical score and the location that was chosen to shoot the film, I would have honestly gave this film a 9! All the actors did a fantastic job conveying their characters, even in the most simple forms. The musical score of the film made me want to soundtrack to it, while the location where the film was shot made me want photos of it...but unfortunately, a horror film cannot survive on just those factors; the delivery of the action plot needs to fit the intention and that is why the film falls incredibly short in its appeal and ratings. Otherwise, kudos to the film crew, the performers and the musical score. I'm sure the performers did all they could to save the film.

Nothing happens - the movie

[jhoddernorton · 1/10 · 7 January 2024]

1 hour 10 into this dull movie which consists of a group of 2 dimensional, stereotypical, boring characters having parties we seriously considered turning it off but realised there was only 20 mins left and surely THAT would be when the plot kicked in. It did not.

This movie is awful, badly written, worse acting, bizarre choice of camera work and direction (there is a solid 15 second shot of 1 characters nostril at one point and another prolonged shot of a fish their eating).

We love bad horror films but this isn't even so bad its good. There is no plot, no charisma, no entertainment, just an hour and a half of people having parties.