Director: Kyle Tague
Year: 2025
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Slasher
Plot:
Filming a new episode of their show, a couple start recounting their investigation into a series of videotapes left behind in a secret cabinet of the house, detailing a supposed Mr. Peek who used to live in the house, forcing them to find out the truth about the house to stop him.
Review:
For the most part, this was a rather enjoyable and somewhat chilling found-footage effort. Among the better elements within here is the unconventional approach to the genre that manages to bring about some intriguing aspects. The whole concept of this is presented with more of a straightforward narrative involving the couple moving into the house and trying to film it as content for their channel, only to stumble upon the collection of tapes that point to the previous owner of the house being responsible for a series of strange crimes and encounters, which turns this into a solid starting point. That this is given through a series of talking head sequences where everything is presented as a continuous cut of episodes from their show detailing how they’re slowly going to reveal what’s going on the more they play the tapes which are mixed with their personal recovered camera footage detailing strange events that happen to them in the house helps to make for a fun time as everything the approach and storyline being told are quite enjoyable and help to make everything feel far more chilling as time goes on.
This is all given quite a dark touch with the gradual discovery of what’s going on with the content of the tapes and where it’s leading them. The two showing off the kinky notions of what’s going on, where he stalks other random women and then begins performing a series of depraved interactions with them, gives this a dark edge almost immediately, especially once they start to claim being the recipient of various under the guise of being scientific subjects by the masked figure at the center of the situation. As it all focuses on the psychological break they suffer from as it starts getting closer to home, when it becomes obvious the deranged lunatic filming everything for them, leading into the crazed final half, where it all comes together and introduces a series of dark revelations about what’s going on and the whole purpose behind the tapes or the family being targeted. This all manages to hold the film up overall.
There are a few minor drawbacks found here. The biggest issue with this one is the immensely confusing setup in the final half, where it comes to carrying on the storyline, when it’s hard to take seriously how this would’ve continued. The whole idea about the revelation behind the tapes and what the outcome means when it’s ignored and carries on trying to make content when everything has been revealed turns them into such an unlikable duo that it’s hard to stay invested in what’s going on with them as this continues. These are designed under the guise of being about what type of videos they can make out of what’s happening against her will, which helps, but it’s still the type of material that just drags the film on unnecessarily and drains the energy, so it lasts longer than it should. On top of that, with little here about who the actual figure they’ve been watching is, all about and what the purpose is, since everything is just given in vague terms, it’s hard to tell what everything is about, all of which comes together to hold this one down.
Overview: ****/5
A likable and rather enjoyable found-footage effort, this one comes together with quite a lot of positive points against only a few drawbacks to be quite an effective entry. Those with an appreciation of this style, who are massive found-footage fans, or who are curious about it, will have the most to like here, while most others should heed caution.
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