CHEST (2022) (USA)

 ⭐️⭐️

The crew behind the internet series Dark Appalachia went missing back in 2016 filming something about a mysterious box hidden deep away in a patch of Tennessee called “Jeffrey’s Hell”. Their footage is discovered three years later after two police respond to a disturbance call and are attacked by a wild man wandering around well after dark in a quiet neighborhood. He flees after biting the throat of one of the cops and drops his sack which contains the footage… this footage we are watching. A local by the name of Jeff shares the story of his papa and a friend finding the box and leaving it behind somewhere in the mountain wilderness of Appalachia. Papa died of a heart attack soon after and his friend killed himself. There’s talk that the Devil is locked in the box but that’s all just superstition… or is it? The team just can’t resist the story and decide to go looking for the mysterious chest. The man’s crazy granny tells one of the crew that they shouldn’t be going out there and they’re all gonna die. So far, so predictable. The showrunner feels like there’s a much bigger story at play and he hires on the dude to guide them through the woods and get them to the infamous box and creepy cave it’s kept in. After some talk with a local and a bartender, it’s revealed that their guide’s father actually murdered his family and friend and Jeff managed to escape with the help of his grandma. They also warn the house is supposed to be abandoned and Jeff and his granny supposedly fled the area. It’s a nice twist that the locals are so damn helpful and friendly. Against their better judgment (well, one female member has a bad vibe), they decide to meet up with Jeff Granger and continue on with their planned hike. The first night in, after a philosophical chat by the campfire, three hooded folks on horseback stop by the camp and say nothing before leaving. The two witnesses (director and host) decide to keep it to themselves. The next day their guide has vanished, some are spooked and the gang marches on. After ignoring the warning of a random hunter, they discover a mineshaft hidden away behind a waterfall where the spooky cave is supposedly located. They take that as a good sign and a handful go to explore. They get lost but manage to find the crate, wrapped in chains and immovable. Folks turn against each other because they always do. The chains magically fall off the thing after an argument and spooky chanting fills the cave. Outside the cave, things aren’t going well for the duo of people who stayed behind. Demons, possession, murder and a whole damn evil conspiracy revelation follows. There’s an inkling of a great found footage flick here, properly utilizing Appalachian folklore but unfortunately things get fumbled and its inspired plot loses its own thread by aiming for a bit too much.