VOD REVIEWS: Michael McKiddy’s FAWN delivers scares and creepiness by going back to the roots of found footage horror

There’s something laudable about filmmakers going out on a limb and just “making a movie.” For better or worse it’s a spirit of innovation and the mandate to tell a story that drives them to forgo the typical production hazards and drive this car as far as they can, with or without a crew. It is this same spirit that guides Michael McKiddy’s new movie Fawn. Fawn’s success lies in it’s most attentive moments, where it utilizes the full force of their home video aesthetic and makeup team to deliver on a horrid storyline luring us in just when we think we’ve seen enough.

Right out the gate the film starts strong, opening on mysterious imagery of a dying man in a cornfield. Snake-like tubes slither out of his corpse as voices can be heard whispering, discussing, and scheming. Immediately your attention narrows in on the movie. A powerful start to such a simple film.

For fans of the found footage genre here is a new entry that harkens back to the genre’s roots. It doesn’t waste time or money on expensive digital effects. Instead it hones in on the roots of horror: flickering lights, an unseen child, a presence felt but not heard. Mckiddy manages all of the technical elements with his Canon 60D camera to surprising effect. I’m personally a sucker for found footage and their whole style crawls under my skin (it could happen to any on of us!) so I’m an easy target for a movie like this. Despite all the production nitpicks I can come up with this movie still scared me from time to time.

The film grounds itself in Rikki-lee Millibank’s character “Polly” who initiates this journey by trying to document her visions of her long-dead sister. Jimmy Groce and Angela Roberts Johnson help carry the plot from inception to climax. Admittedly the story gets a little mangled towards the end, but something with this much spirit deserves to be recognized. It’s unsettling footage contrasts sharply with the rather milquetoast scenes providing a sense of rhythm even as we slowly creep further towards darkness.

The movie hits a brisk seventy-five minutes before coming to a stop. On Amazon Prime something like this might find itself nestled between other can-do horror movies. It’s part of what I love about the service and about this curation: the catalogue can be deep and obscure if you look hard enough. If you’re a fan of this kind of DIY filmmaking horror, then check out Fawn. At the very least you deserve to watch the opening ten minutes. Gauge your interest off of that because I guarantee you will know whether or not this movie’s for you by that alone.

Fawn is available on Amazon and Vimeo.