3 out of 5

Directed by: Jack Cox

This has its dodgy moments, and some missed opportunities for self-awareness, but The Stickman’s Hollow nails key Found Footage aspects: it gets its environments down, it really hits the tension when needed, and it doesn’t overstay its welcome.

Fully of the “scary thing in the woods” lineage, The Stickman’s Hollow centers around the eponymous locale, a beautiful (?) pond a mother / father / son is encouraged to vacation at by the mother’s sister (Ely Jackson) and brother-in-law (Thomas Cadrot). Despite being warned off the requisite creepy fisherman – that’s where them religious weirdos used ta baptize their weirdo kids, don’tcha know – the family camps out for the night at the Hollow, dutifully filmed by son Oliver (Alexander Brophy) on his new camera.

The night doesn’t go as hoped.

…It’s also a lot more fun and interesting than that basic premise suggests. By shuffling through different POVs of the same timeline and area, writer / director Jack Cox avoids the tedium of having to justify keeping the camera rolling (and can justifiably edit around downtime), while finding small, consistent avenues to poke and prod at the light lore of the film. These POVs are also presented in segments, meaning the camera isn’t constantly jumping around – we stick with one storyline, “complete” it, then move to the next.

The Blair Witch vibes are very strong, as are some religion-themed FF entries (a special shoutout to Jason Simpson’s Father Monroe, a highlight in Stickman), and while I dig that Cox doesn’t feel the need to nostalgia wink too hard at the audience, enough time has passed since some classic entries that it’s okay to even speak to them on camera – there’s a scene early on where someone acknowledging Blair Witch would’ve grounded the tension, as it’s then additionally kind of goofily spoiled by some unsubtle effects happening on screen. This is sincerely rare in Hollow, with Cox pretty masterfully cutting around spooks to amplify the scares, but it’s an unfortunate early misstep.

Later, the movie’s final segment struggles the most with “why are we filming” syndrome, but it also has some of the most enduring scares, with the ending sequence a truly excellent juggling of implying things, barely showing things to us, but giving some key payoffs when it matters.