Starring - "Donny Boaz (Black Easter, Girls Getaway Gone Wrong), Mark Christian (Kill Devil Hills, Fear Itself), and Natalia Santacoloma (People in the Walls, Mission from Outer Space)
Release Date - 2024
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "Don't watch the tapes"
Format - Streaming (Online Screener)
Rating (out of 5):
A few weeks back I made a post on my Facebook page looking for indie horror films to watch and review for my annual October horror binge. I received a bunch of comments and messages from several filmmakers, producers, actors, and so on wanting me to check out their work. One such producer is Gerald Crum asking me to check out several of his films. I appreciated him for reaching out and adding them to my list. The first on the chopping block was The Cursed Tapes. I want to take a minute to thank Gerald for sending this one my way.
The film follows a man who visits his late father's home to clear out his things so he can have an estate sale. However, he uncovers a series of VHS tapes that his father had recorded prior to his death. As he watches them he uncovers strange things happening on the tapes and before long he realizes that something sinister was living in the basement and his father was taking care of it while he kept it locked away.
I knew very tittle about this one before hoping into. I had a slight assumption that I knew the basic outline after watching other horror films with cursed VHS tapes like Ring and V/H/S. However, after finally seeing the film I can safely say that the title is not really reflective of what happens in the film. The acting in this one is fairly well done. The cast is fully committed to their roles but for most of the film we are given some extremely stiff performances that lack any depth. I respect the hell out of this cast but a little more work on their dialogue and emotional range would have went a long way. The story for this one could have been interesting but the way in which it was done does not work. The title, The Cursed Tapes, doesn't really deliver on that. The tapes in question are not cursed in a sense that you have in mind. People watching these tapes don't die from a mysterious illness or masked killer. Instead, the tapes just shows the viewer, the man in the film, how his father took care of the creature in the basement. You would think the movie would pick up from then on but that's not the case. His father's videos does nothing to expand the story and the remainder of the film is just following the film's lead as he fumbles around getting scared. What we have is a film that has a decent premise but is unable to pull all their resources together to create something coherent and enjoyable. Finally, the film has a fun looking creature at times that looks like it uses some solid visual effects but that is the extent of it all. If you are looking for blood or gore then you will be very disappointed. Overall, The Cursed Tapes is a cool idea that a lot of physical media fans could appreciate. Many of us have a nostalgic love for VHS and love seeing that incorporated into a horror film. Sadly, this one fails to deliver anything enjoyable. This is one I would have to recommend skipping.
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