I picked the movie Creep (2014), an indie found footage film which follows just 2 characters: Aaron, who takes up a job listing on Ebay to film Josef, a mysterious and mentally unwell man who seems to have many secrets and a habit for lying. This movie is one of my favorites, as the premise is very simple and the movie has no special effects or big cast, simply amazing cinematography and dialogue that makes every single moment tense and enjoyable.
This is just an example of the entire movie, which is filmed in a found footage first person perspective. It utilizes many point of view shots, where the camera follows what a character sees, and helps give it a more intimate and at times unsettling feeling.
In this scene, Aaron has just met Josef and is filming him, but as Josef speaks on darker tones the camera zooms in and becomes uncomfortably close, making you feel like you're sitting in there with Aaron listening to Josef and making Josef appear more vulnerable. I liked how the point of view shot was used in combination with a close up to make you feel present in the scene, and to heighten the emotion. The shot also, like most of the rest of the movie, has no music or background noise, giving it an eerie suspenseful feel.
This scene is one of my favorites, as Josef begins acting stranger and Aaron begins to feel suspicious of him. We follow Josef back to his house, completely unaware of what is to come next, and the shot reflects that perfectly. The low angle makes Josef appear larger and more threatening, and makes the viewer look up at him as if to be looking at someone of more authority or presence, and the lighting enhances the atmosphere. The lighting causes Josef to appear as a silhouette, and for a moment he seems to be not Josef but just a shapeless figure that is addressing the camera.
In this scene, Aaron is attempting to leave the house but is stopped by Josef. Josef confronts Aaron, and the two-shot is great at heightening the tension of the encounter. The shot is also a fixed shot, since Aaron leaves the camera, and it creates a ton of suspension in the scene as the stillness of the camera and the lack of music makes you hone in on their conversation and Josef's increasing hostility. The scene also juxtaposes great with the following scene, pictured below, where Aaron picks up his camera and follows Josef.
The high angle and lack of subject in this scene is what makes it work so well for the point in the movie, in which Aaron is now freaked out by Josef and is trying to leave but first has to find Josef. He's looking around the house, and the moment he begins walking down the stairs at a high angle it's apparent to the viewer that he's going to find Josef at the bottom of the stairs. The tension doesn't come from whether or not Josef will be there, but rather what he will be doing there and what he might do to Aaron and, in extension because of the point of view of the camera being of Aaron, what he might do to the viewer.
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