Infirmary is an effective and atmospheric found footage film

Paul Syre as Edward in Infirmary- Courtesy of Nicholas Pineda

Found footage fans should keep an eye out for Infirmary, which just had its world premiere at Dances with Films NY. Director/co-writer Nicholas Pineda's film is an effective and unsettling feature that makes great use of its sound design and abandoned hospital location. It also takes a page from The Blair Witch Project with a less is more approach, before building to a chilling conclusion.

The movie stars Paul Syre as Edward, a veteran who served in Afghanistan and takes a job at an old psych hospital under the watchful gaze of his co-worker, Lester (Mark Anthony Williams). This is largely a two-person cast, other than Danielle Kennedy's limited performance as Mrs. Dowey, who also works at the location. But for a majority of the runtime, we're with Williams and Syre's characters. Edward is timid and more reserved, compared to the grizzled Lester. That said, Lester isn't above playing pranks on Edward, no matter how terrifying they are.

Most of the narrative unfolds through Edward's body cam footage and security camera footage. For the most part, the movie largely avoids the shaky handheld camera footage that this subgenre is known for, and this is a major plus. The film is also a slow burn in a lot of ways, building its atmosphere and gently revealing more about its central characters, including Edward's time in Afghanistan and what happened to him. Even the old psych hospital has an eerie backstory, though it's never quite clear if it's true or not, since it comes from Lester's lips and he enjoys spooking his co-worker.

Pineda actually shot the film inside of an abandoned hospital, and the quiet hallways and creepy mannequins that fill various rooms go a long way in striking an unnerving mood and tone. The film is bolstered by its clever editing and sound design. Like The Blair Witch Project, the characters aren't quite sure what exactly they're hearing or seeing, including shadowy figures. The scares ramp up as the movie progresses, but until the last 20 minutes, Pineda largely keeps his cards close to his chest. Even the ending is open to interpretation, which again is similar to The Blair Witch Project and that haunting shot of Mike (Michael C. Willaims) standing in the corner as something or someone assaults Heather (Heather Donahue).

Infirmary somewhat hypes itself up with an FBI notice that bookends the movie and talks about what transpired at the hospital. However, the film is effective, in part, because of all it doesn't show, including what happens to Edward and Lester. These men have traumatic pasts, so viewers may question if what they're seeing is real, or ultimately in their head, perhaps a form of PTSD.

Ultimately, the scares build to an ambiguous and surprising ending that will likely baffle some viewers. That said, for those that don't need or like everything spelled out for them, then the ending will likely land just fine. This is a movie that largely relies on the audience's imagination to fill in the gaps.

Though Infirmary's influences are clear, including The Blair Witch Project, this is a found footage movie that carves its own path, using body cam and security footage to unravel its spooky narrative. This feature also works so well because it doesn't hit the audience over the head with cheap jump scares. It relies on the sound design and the old less is more technique to create one creepy atmosphere. Infirmary marks a promising first feature from Pineda. He proves that you don't need a big budget to craft a frightful horror movie.