Strange Harvest Review – The Fake Documentary That Almost Feels Too Real

So, I just finished watching this movie called Strange Harvest, and honestly, I had to double-check it wasn’t some real Netflix true-crime thing. It’s not. The whole thing’s made up — but the way it’s shot and acted, you’d swear it was pulled straight out of a news archive.

Courtesy of Saban Films

It’s the first solo film from Stuart Ortiz — you might know him as one half of The Vicious Brothers, the guys behind Grave Encounters. This time, he’s ditched the haunted asylum for a serial killer story. But instead of going the usual horror route, he’s packaged it like a dead-serious TV documentary about a creepy, ritual-obsessed murderer.

Why It Feels So Convincing

America’s been obsessed with serial killers for decades — Bundy, Dahmer, Gacy… you name it. We’ve made entire industries out of them. So it’s not surprising that Strange Harvest leans into that obsession.

From the start, it throws you into the mindset of “this really happened”. The opening text tells you:

“What you’re about to see is considered one of the most under-reported cases in Southern California’s history.”

If that were actually true, it would probably be the kind of case your grandparents still talk about.

The Chilling First Crime Scene

The film drops us in the mid-2010s, where police show up for a welfare check at a nice, gated suburban home. What they find is the stuff of nightmares: mom, dad, and their daughter tied to dining chairs with duct tape, feet inside big industrial buckets filled with blood. Above them, some strange symbol is painted on the ceiling.

Detective Joe Kirby (Peter Zizzo) walks in, takes one look, and says:

“Oh my God, he’s back.”

And that’s where things start getting dark.

Enter “Mr. Shiny”

Turns out, 15 years before that, three unrelated murders happened in Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Different victims, different methods — nothing to connect them at first glance. But later, police started noticing strange ritual patterns.

That’s also when they began getting handwritten letters from a guy calling himself Mr. Shiny. He would taunt them, saying things like:

“Thanks for not catching me.”

and

“Ten transits remain… I will return.”

And then… silence. Until this new murder brought him back into the headlines.

He’s Smarter This Time

Unlike his earlier “sloppy” killings, the new ones are careful, methodical, and — weirdly — artistic in a horrifying way. The victims are all different types of people, but every death is carried out with the same precise, disturbing style.

Technology’s also caught up. Cameras are everywhere now, so while Mr. Shiny barely leaves any physical evidence, he does show up on video sometimes — like walking into a donut shop before closing and attacking, or creeping into a teenager’s bedroom during her livestream makeup tutorial.

How the Story Unfolds

Most of the Strange Harvest review centers on its storytelling style. You see the investigation through interviews with Kirby and his partner, Detective Lexy Taylor (Terry Apple). Then there are chats with experts, grieving friends and family, and even random people who had brief encounters with the killer.

Eventually, the police figure out who he is — and we meet someone from his past. He’s played by Jesse Clarkson, the movie’s production designer. But instead of giving us closure, it just makes things stranger. His motives? Still a mystery.

The Mockumentary Magic

What really sells Strange Harvest is how well it nails the true-crime TV vibe. You get:

• Fake news reports that feel exactly like the real thing
• On-the-street interviews with “locals”
• Zoom calls with specialists
• Crime-scene graphics and maps
• Stock photos that look ripped from dusty police files

The music, by Sara DeCoursey, is perfectly straight-faced. She’s scored actual documentary series before, so it fits like a glove. None of the actors seem like polished Hollywood faces, which makes the whole thing even easier to believe.

The Creepy Highlights

Even though this isn’t a traditional horror movie, it has moments that stick with you. Some crime scenes discovered later have the same disturbing creativity you’d see in Se7en.

And then there’s the climax — a nighttime chase in a wooded park where the cops corner Mr. Shiny. Even while being hunted, he’s deliberate, almost ritualistic, taking down unlucky bystanders as if they’re part of his “plan.”

The ending doesn’t tie everything up. In fact, it leaves you with more questions than answers. And just when you think it’s over, there’s a post-credits scene that hints at an explanation… but it’s vague enough to keep you unsettled.

Why It Works

The strongest thing about Strange Harvest is its total commitment to the format. At no point does it wink at the audience or break character. That’s rare — most found-footage or fake docs have at least one moment that feels staged.

This one? If someone showed it to you without context, you could easily believe it’s a real case from some dusty corner of the FBI files.

Where It Could Have Gone Further

That said, the fake-doc approach does put limits on the fear factor. A standard horror film could’ve pushed suspense and scares harder without the “documentary realism” rules. Sometimes you wish it could cut loose and get a little wilder.

Still, for what it’s trying to do — blend fact and fiction until you can’t tell which is which — it’s spot-on.

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Final Thoughts – Strange Harvest Review

If you’re into true-crime shows, you’ll probably enjoy this. Strange Harvest is eerie, convincing, and uncomfortably believable. It’s not about jump scares or gore for shock value — it’s about making you believe, even for a second, that Mr. Shiny could be out there.

Stuart Ortiz clearly knows how to work the found-footage/mockumentary angle, just like he did with Grave Encounters. This time, he’s built a killer who’s less of a person and more of an unsettling myth.

Would I recommend it? Definitely — but only if you like your horror slow-burn and grounded in realism. If you go in expecting big, flashy scares, you might find it too restrained. If you want a story that creeps into your head and makes you Google “Was Mr. Shiny real?” at 2 AM, then yes, this Strange Harvest review says it’s worth the watch.