by: Obaid K
Posted on 04.21.10 in All Horror Films > Mystery > Supernatural
Release Date: 1998

Even with a nice build up, The Last Broadcast leaves viewers with an incompetent conclusion that ruins everything it had going for it. I try not to judge movies solely by their ending but I honestly can’t remember the last time I was this disappointed especially since the build-up to the climax is very good. I’ve seen plenty that were far worse but those movies were a little more self-conscious and didn’t take themselves so seriously – two qualities that may have helped here.

The Last Broadcast is shot as a faux-documentary about the murders of three men in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey – the haunt of the infamous Jersey Devil. Filmmaker David Leigh presents the facts surrounding the incident (dubbed the “Fact or Fiction murders” by the media) in a series of interviews with people who were involved with the case. The three men were carrying out a live broadcast of their supernatural-themed show, “Fact or Fiction”, from the woods when they were killed leaving Jim Suerd (the fourth member of the group) as the sole survivor and prime suspect. Suerd dies in prison under “mysterious circumstances”, which prompts Leigh to set out to find the truth about what happened in the woods that night.

This was the first film to be created in an entirely digital format, something filmmakers Stefan Avalos and Lance Weiler achieved using software borrowed from friends and with PCs they built themselves. I’m not going to take any jabs at the look of this film because it would be unfair and I eventually got used to the “greasy lens” look and monotone narration.

I think some additional editing in the first 45 minutes would have helped to move the story along quicker because things don’t really pick up until the second half when Leigh receives a box of pulled video tape and becomes an important character in the story. Analyzing this footage becomes the focus of the remainder of the movie as he enlists the help of data retrieval specialist, Shelly Monarch, to restore the tape which appears to document the last moments of the men. I thought this last half was genuinely creepy as Leigh prepares to visit the site of the murders and we see Monarch slowly recovering images that include an indistinct shape that was present during the attacks.

Considering the budget they were working with (allegedly $900) the dialogue and acting aren’t bad and there’s some perceptive commentary on how “truth” is shaped by media sensationalism and further distorted in this age of 60 second sound-bites and the constant flow of online information.

I really wanted to like this movie: it merged the internet with a centuries-old legend and the last half of the film is worth the wait. But, in the end, I felt duped and had no way of consoling myself. For fans of first-person POV horror films, this is one of the earliest efforts in the genre and is definitely worth a watch but prepare to be shocked by a horrific ending.

• ★★★★★

  Acting:

• ★★★★★

  Blood:

• ★★★★★

  Violence:

• ★★★★★

  Partying:

• ★★★★★

  Language:

• ★★★★★

  Humor:

• ★★★★★

  Predictable:

• ★★★★★

  Girls:

• ★★★★★

  Gore:

• ★★★★★

  Sexuality:

• ★★★★★

  Torture:

• ★★★★★

  Overall: