Written by Robert Scucci | Published
in 2024 Shelby Oaks is a unique watch because it seamlessly integrates found footage into a traditional storytelling framework. Much of the first act plays out like a true-crime documentary, setting up the mystery and characters wandering around it. Then the perspective shifts to the footage the documentary is talking about, and suddenly we're immersed in an amazing supernatural action. While I'm a huge fan of found footage and analog horror, I can't remember another film that switches recording styles from scene to scene, making Shelby Oaksas far as i know (but please correct me if i'm wrong), it's a sample of one size.
Granted, I haven't seen every movie ever released, and I have blind spots like everyone else, but my biggest takeaway was that Shelby Oaks it earns significant points for its camerawork and the layered storytelling built around it. While the ending was a bit predictable for my liking, everything leading up to it was solid, and I'm glad I sat down with this one because it's incredibly fluid in its delivery, allowing its mystery to emerge naturally.
From YouTube to Doom views
Shelby Oaks begins as a documentary, introducing Mia Brennan-Walker (Camille Sullivan). Mia's younger sister, Riley (Sara Durn), disappeared 12 years earlier while working on a project for her YouTube series, Paranormal Paranoids. While investigating the prison, three of Riley's associates, Laura (Caisey Cole), David (Eric Francis Melaragni), and Peter (Anthony Baldasara), also disappear. Their bodies are eventually found, horribly mutilated. The only lead police have is one of two video cameras found, which contain footage of Riley in what many believe were his final moments.
All of these opening sequences include filmmaking found during the founding Shelby Oaks' Central conflict: Mia believes Riley is still alive, everyone thinks the YouTube channel was a big hoax, and her husband Robert (Brendan Sexton III) is ready to leave her because his obsession with guilt has taken over his life after years of no answers.
That all changes when a man later identified as Wilson Miles arrives at Mia's door with a tape labeled “Shelby Oaks,” the town Riley last searched. After handing over the tape, Wilson tells Mia, “You finally let me go,” before poking his head off his front porch. It's a terrifying sequence from the outside, but it's enough to convince Mia that whoever “he” is probably tied to Riley.
While examining the tape and some of Riley's effects, Mia comes to the shocking conclusion that Riley has been possessed by a demon ever since she suffered night terrors as a child, and that that experience likely inspired her fascination with the paranormal in the first place. His arteur sleuthing sends him on a twisted path involving demonic hellhounds, incubi, and the revelation that Riley, and possibly Wilson, are caught up in something bigger involving forces he doesn't begin to understand until he discovers what, who, and where Wilson has fled.
This Could Perfectly Be A Franchise
All about Shelby Oaks it's expertly crafted, but I'm most impressed by how it transitions between recording styles. It's almost as if the camera pans back from the original source of terror, giving us a familiar supernatural mystery centered around Mia and her investigation. He repeatedly analyzes found footage for clues, but those investigative scenes aren't presented as found footage themselves. That way allows you to experience Riley's fear first hand before pulling back to cover everything up close to Mia.
When I got to the big show in the third act, I was a little sad because my immediate reaction was, “Oh yeah, that makes sense,” and then… it did. Sometimes movies go like that, and I don't feel bad about it because Shelby Oaks it takes enough crafting to make the whole experience worth it.
What I'm most interested in seeing, however, is a prequel that unravels some of the tapes. Shelby Oaks it ends in a sequel, although it works well as a standalone film. The prequel, however, could be next level. My guess is that the tape Mia got from Wilson is just one of many recorded during Riley's 12 year absence. The combination of available images created on those tapes can make for some amazing world building that pushes you. Shelby Oaks in the area of franchises, and that's something I'd really like to see.
I'm just spitballing here, though, and right now that's all we have Shelby Oaks. Overall, I was impressed with the filmmaking and the build up to the third game. I'll admit that the ending was a bit off for me, but I've also seen a lot of movies like this, so maybe I'm just a bit of a cynic. I would definitely recommend it to my horror-loving friends.
From this writing, you can stream Shelby Oaks on Hulu.
