by Sharon Forest

I am sure everybody has noticed the huge upswing of 3D movies; that and the proliferation of "found footage" films, where a video camera is part of the story; proves that filmmakers are going to every length to bring the audience "in" to the movie, so the audience feels more and more a part of what is going on.

I enjoy 3D movies - those moments when they do work, I actually do feel like I am standing in the same room as the characters. It doesn't happen a lot, but when it does, I love it!

Found footage films usually don't work for me because I get busy thinking "how could the person hold onto the camera that way while he is being eaten by the monster or killed by the killer?" Sure, once in a while, like 3D movies, it can work, but not often enough.

When I heard about "Hanah's Gift", which is a horror film told in a first person point of view and in real time, I was intrigued. Could this be the movie that actually does bring the audience into the story? Well, it did! I found myself flinching and ducking from the bad guys, and sometimes even panting from the run "I" just had. Also, the fact that this first person is a little 6 year old girl, well, I felt pretty vulnerable when the bad things were happening.

So, here is this sleeper - a low budget feature thriller that scared me and brought me into the story like no big budget 3D experience I have had. If Hanah's Gift is as successful as I think it will be, I am sure there will be a glut of first-person movies coming out, but I don't think they'll be able to pull it off as successfully as Hanah's Gift did.