Premiering in the secret screening slot at South by Southwest Film Festival this year, Scott Derrickson is returning to the horror genre after his The Day the Earth Stood Still. And judging from reviews (including our own), it’s a welcome return. Sinister sees Ethan Hawke as a novelist who uncovers some home movies and things go downhill for him from there.

We said  the film’s “a strong exercise in restrained horror, and one that becomes more satisfying with reflection. This isn’t a horror film which provides major catharsis, silly one-liners, or that annoyingly loud score telling the audience they should be scared. Derrickson is well aware the imagery and ideas are scary on their own merits, so he lets all the low-key terror speak for itself”.

Co-written by C. Robert Cargill (also known as Massawyrm around these parts), we’ve got the first trailer tonight and it definitely packs a creepy punch. I’ve always admired Hawke’s ability to tackle a wealth of different projects, often many in a row, and it’s no different with this one. Despite seeing more-or-less similar concepts in many different recent horror films, the imagery is downright terrifying.  Check it out below for the film also starring Vincent D’Onofrio, Clare Foley and James Ransone.

Synopsis:

SINISTER is a frightening new thriller from the producer of the PARANORMAL ACTIVITY films and the writer-director of THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE. Ethan Hawke plays a true crime novelist who discovers a box of mysterious, disturbing home movies that plunge his family into a nightmarish experience of supernatural horror.

Sinister hits theaters October 5th.