Sinister - A film that is creepy as hell!

Got out last night to catch a double feature on cheap Tuesday, and movie number one was the new horror flick Sinister starring Ethan Hawke.
As I have said before, horror films aren't my typical first choice for an evening of entertainment, but with Halloween fast approaching, I thought I would take a chance.
While I was expecting a Slasher flick, what I got was more of a supernatural psychological thriller.  And a good one at that!
The plot is solid, Ethan Hawke plays a struggling true crime writer who moves his family into the home of a family killed in an unsolved homicide in an effort to write his next novel.  His wife and children are unaware that their new home actually belonged to the subject material for his next book, and that 4 of the 5 family members were actually hung from the tree in the back-yard.  This hanging is actually the first scene of the film, and it gripes the audience right away, setting the tone for the film.
As they are moving in, Hawke discovers a box of home movies in the attic, a box that doesn't appear in any of the crime scene photographs of the house.  The box contains not only footage of the murder of this particular family, but 4 other grisly murders as well, spanning 5 decades, all with the same circumstances.  One child from each family is always missing from the murder scene, and often a rare demonic symbol is left somewhere at the scene of the crime.
This is where the supernatural comes into play in a big way.  Hawke enlists the help of a criminologist specializing in the occult, who is able to identify the symbol, and the creepy deity that is associated with it.  I dont want to name it, or include any images because it scared the sweet bejezus out of me.  And that's all I am going to say about that. 
The atmosphere in this film plays a huge part in building the suspense and raising the stakes on the creepy factor.  As the movie goes on and as day progresses into night, and back again, a pattern emerges that the audience can zone in on, taking advantage of the daylight to catch a much needed breather from the creepy night time terror.  There aren't alot of cheap thrills and chills throughout the film, but there are definitely a few moments that made me jump.
Lighting and its effect on the tone and mood also played a huge factor in the film.  I can say with certainty that it had an effect on my perceptions.  To illustrate, here's a quick run down of the narrative that was going through my head for the majority of the second half of the film:  "Just turn on the god damn lights!  For the love of god!"  "Seriously!  What the hell!  You are seeing creepy shit around your murder scene home in the dead of night, and you don't think to flick on the light switch?  For the love of christ, what is wrong with these people..."
All in all I was impressed with the film, it went that extra mile to make you think about the events it depicted, and when it did go for the shock factor, it didn't pull any punches...two words...yard work.
Now that's an image I just can't seem to shake!
See the film for yourself and see if it leaves a similar impression on you.  Oh, and let me know how you sleep afterwords.