The Last Broadcast

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AJ C Mar 26 I bought this on dvd about 20 years ago when I was led to believe it was an even earlier example of the found footage genre than Blair Witch Project. It is not, it is more mockumentary in execution. The worst part of this film is that it is supposed to be about hunting the Jersey Devil, and we are never even fully introduced to the myth and lore surrounding it all. I found the scene with the plastic bag (in the last 10 minutes) to be surprisingly effective. Even as a big horror fan I would not suggest you waste your time on this one. See more Ben D Jan 23 (We discuss this movie on Ep. 132 of TRM.) This movie is not the “found footage” cornerstone of the sub-genre I had been led to believe it was — I can admit when my New Jersey bias skews my positions and opinions on culture. Even if (I suppose, “though” is more accurate) The Blair Witch Project had not been sown from the seeds of this Pine Barrens, New Jersey-centered movie, it could have been a late-1990s delight fitted with the technology and thinking — the 1990s were the Mad Max, maverick, “information superhighway” of the internet — of the era. Instead, the story makes some poor commentary on reality TV (I think), streaming (my word here), and the camera itself. Groan. Even though it is set in the Burlington County section of the venerable Pine Barrens, there’s almost nothing here that actually concerns the Jersey Devil. I would at least expect for some exposition given about the vaunted Garden State cryptic, but besides a couple of artist renditions of the beast splashed on the screen, it’s merely a ploy to get people (like me) to watch the movie. At first, you’re concerned with the acting from Steven Avalos and Lance Weiler, the co-hosts of the C-SPAN-esque TV show Fact or Fiction. But then some other character discusses that they’re actually not very good actors or professionals in the show within the movie. Alright then. I’m on for the ride. Nevertheless, the story of the triple homicide and the quirky and creepy Jim L. Suerd (James Seward) as a suspect does little to retain your attention. Is he a crank? A showman? An actual murderer? When Shelly (Michele Pulaski) joins the plot as a “data retrieval expert,” the movie receives a bump, which is just enough to keep you from turning it off entirely. However, the baleful ending is so atrocious that this movie falls from something I could’ve potentially, maybe, recommended to a very specific audience into low-budget, niche horror sub-genres to something no one should waste their time watching. See more Kam P 03/10/2024 It held my attention until the last five minutes, The ending left me totally frustrated and exposed some major plot holes. See more Diana S 01/24/2024 I'd never heard of this film before now, and I don't remember seeing anything else like it as of the late '90s. It hits on issues that were to come, issues created by advancing technology that a small group of techy people might have foreseen in 1998 as the PC arrived on the scene along with the internet. This movie seems quite relevant today. A really interesting viewing. See more P E 11/29/2022 The Last Broadcast was one of the more enjoyable of the churn of mediocre to awful found footage films… until the last turn of the film, which was not nearly as brilliant a twist as the producers likely thought. Really, it's more like 2.5 stars. See more justin t 02/15/2022 Obviously this is shot on really low quality cameras with very rudimentary special effects. The sound quality is poor at best with much wind noise and bass rumble on the microphones. Then again it is deliberate and perfectly fits the intended tone. This is probably the cleverest use of budget. There is no budget and they make a quite well crafted horror out of it. You get the feeling that they are really passionate about making films. There is some repetition as they struggled slightly to fill the time but overall it is interesting throughout. There are some really creepy moments that they could have taken further. I didn't like the third person ending; they could have kept it part of the documentary. It is inspirational for those wanting to make movies with a bit of substance with no money. Add some more thrills and this would have been much bigger. Obvious deliberate technical deficiencies are made up for by passion and suspense. See more Read all reviews

The Last Broadcast

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