Hunting Matthew Nichols: Impressive Found Footage Indie Horror

When it felt like it was safe to watch a documentary, Hunting Matthew Nichols turns that concept on its head. Subversive in ways reminiscent of 1999’s ‘The Blair Witch Project,’ this mystery tale pays homage to that film by slowly but surely builds up to something much more than what most audiences would expect. The Canadian indie film impressively pulls off quite a lot in spite of its circumstances, using the beautiful backdrop of Vancouver and Vancouver Island to its advantage. A real ride, all within an under 90-minute runtime, all that matters is whether or not audiences are willing to go on that ride. Setting the tone early, the film puts its case together in a compelling way, even though the material isn’t all that original. The directorial debut of Markian Tarasiuk, he plays double duty, appearing as himself to steer the ship forward narratively. The voice of reason, even he would be put through the ringer and be challenged in ways he did not believe possible. Juggling styles, subgenres, and tones in crafting this story, they may not necessarily work seamlessly together, but that grounded and flawed approach makes the story and characters more endearing. As much as what the mission statement in the title might suggest, it is also the study of a tight-knit town with a sordid past that is brought back to light.

Set in a small Vancouver Island town, the problem of missing people is a real issue for British Columbia, having the highest rate of missing persons per capita in Canada, with a significant number of those originating on Vancouver Island. A fictional tale, Hunting Matthew Nichols plays as a documentary by Tarasiuk, and cinematographer Ryan Alexander McDonald (himself), that follows Tara Nichols (MacDougall), the third member of their documentary team and the younger sister of Matthew Nichols (James Ross). Featuring interviews with Tara, the Nichols family, and other prominent members of the case, Tara, Markian, and Ryan performed their own investigation into the 2001 disappearance of Matthew and his best friend Jordan Reimer (Issiah Bullbear), now over 20 years later. While a lot of documentaries tend to be objective, being objective in this case would be next to impossible with Tara so heavily involved. Getting very little in the way of answers after all this time, she understandably grew restless and therefore gave her a bit of a bias. Scouring through the original case files to try to understand what happened back then and going through the collected evidence so the documentary team could go further with new eyes and a fresh perspective.

Opening up a whole new can of worms, the investigation soon turned towards the supernatural as a means to explain the disappearance of Matthew and Jordan. Though there were countless other conventional possibilities to explain allegedly happened to them, Tara just couldn’t accept a simple accident within the treacherous coastal forest they were allegedly last seen. She believed the key to the disappearance was in that forest. Matthew and Jordan, two aspiring filmmakers inspired by ‘The Blair Witch Project,’ took their camcorder out to the woods to film themselves and their hijinks, only for them to not return. Their tapes proved to play a major role in what could have happened, but that only matters if their contents are to be believed, especially the most recent one that was withheld by the police in order to avoid mass panic. Undeterred by what it suggested, Tara believed it to be real and was willing to investigate the woods, and a mysterious cabin where Matthew and Jordan allegedly went missing, by herself if she had to. A major crossroads for she, Markian, and Ryan, this was a point of no return that they chose to dive in, for the sake of Tara and their documentary. As Ryan waited behind, little did the others know what they were about to find, a chaotic climax in the vein of the film that inspired Matthew and Jordan that would leave audiences with more questions than answers.

A decent found footage horror, the best part of Hunting Matthew Nichols is the filmmaking and performances. Almost intertwined here, they essentially work hand-in-hand in keeping up with its faux documentary premise. Grounded and flawed, when it comes to its characters, the film avoids sensationalizing the story and supernatural elements, instead focusing on real people wanting to do the right thing for another who is still grieving the loss of her brother. Not without conflict, there were plenty of struggles and disagreements about what to do next, which is normal. Tara, a character who arguably acts irrational at times, is understandable, as someone driven by emotion out of a place of grief. Markian settles the drama and the tension with his presence, but he is still a human with thoughts and feelings, and can be affected by things. MacDougall and Tarasiuk are great together on screen, thanks to their strong chemistry and writing. Though the story may not be the strongest, the characters are still compelling to watch, and that could make up for a lot.

Haunting Matthew Nichols presents a film that may be tough for some to get on its level, but those who can will be treated to a decent indie horror propelled by strong characters and filmmaking.

still courtesy of Dropshock Pictures

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.