Director: Ramone Menon
Writer: Ramone Menon (Screenplay)
Starring: Elina Madison, Allen Marsh, Oto Brezina, Melanie Thompson, Parker Coppins, Viktoria Paje
Plot: An intruder breaks into the home of an unsuspecting family in order to make a homemade murder film.
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Horror Shocker
Story: The Black Tape starts by reporting that this tape known as The Black Tape has been sent to media outlets with no return address and we are about to witness the contains of the tape. We watch how the Wilson family Robert (Madison), Alana (Madison), Stephanie (Thompson), Paul (Coppins) Earl (Brezina) and Mary (Stonebrooke) find have their life followed by a mysterious voyager within their house.
We see how their lives continue as normal until Stephanie is kidnapped from the house and the killer makes contact hold the daughter of the family up for ransom. We continue to see the killer stalk the family but just what are their motives and who will be the next victim.
The Black Tape is a new take on the found footage subgenre as one thing we rarely see is how the ‘found’ footage is actually found. We have the killer make the tape in their own style to show a confessional to what they have done. While this does work very well it does make the killer the protagonist. The film does jump between days showing how the kills were achieved giving us the reaction before the preparation which is usually something we only hear about in final moments of films. I would say this is a fresh, terrifying new way to give us found footage that will leave you wanting to check every single corner, wardrobe and stairway in your house.
Actor Review
Elina Madison: Alana Wilson is the mother of the household who is the one always trying to care for her children even when things are getting to their limit, once Stephaine is kidnapped she makes the call that they have to give up any money saved regardless of what it means for the family. Elina is good in this leading role as the mother of this terrified household.
Allen Marsh: Robert Wilson is the father of the household who tries to stay calmer through all of the situations even when his daughter is taken he wants to find a realistic way of bringing her back. Allen is good as the father in the family.
Melanie Thompson: Stephanie Wilson is the eldest daughter of the family, she is going through the typical teenager issues throughout the film as she becomes the target of this voyager killer. Melanie is good in this role playing the teenage daughter of the family.
The Killer: The Killer is the person with the camera recording the family from within the house, the character dressed in all black with a plastic white non descriptive face mask to show their anonymous side to the character. The killer has no credited actor which adds to the pure horror of the character that could make anyone their latest victim or could be anyone involved in the story.
Support Cast: The Black Tape has a small supporting cast but all take part in what happens to the characters involved.
Director Review: Ramone Menon – Ramone gives us a great horror that is filled with tension suspense and terror.
Crime: The Black Tape gives us a video that is the confession to a series of crimes by a mysterious killer.
Horror: The Black Tape brings us into a story of terror that follows the victims to a killer.
Mystery: The Black Tape makes us question who and why this family has been selected to be killed.
Settings: The Black Tape keeps nearly all of the film inside this one house that shows the events unfolding.
Special Effects: The Black Tape uses the effects when needed for the kills involved in the film, they all work but the film doesn’t rely on them.
Suggestion: The Black Tape is one for all of the horror fans out there to watch and enjoy. (Horror Fans Watch)
Best Part: Final act.
Worst Part: If you miss a time hop you might miss something important.
Believability: No
Chances of Tears: No
Chances of Sequel: Yes
Post Credits Scene: No
Oscar Chances: No
Budget: $55,000
Runtime: 1 Hour 32 Minutes
Tagline: A Home Made Murder Film
Overall: Horror that breeds new breath into the found footage genre.
Rating
