Thehorrorgenre was founded for creators to push boundaries and to experiment with filmmaking in a way that no other medium has as they search for new methods of terrifying audiencesby re-imagining concepts that have unnerved watchers for years.Few horror subgenres have been as successful at this asfound footage, as creators try out new ways to place audiences in the victims' perspectives with this boundary-pushing concept. Of course, they don’t always work. But every so often,this genre has hit gold, with groundbreaking titles likeThe Blair Witch ProjectandParanormal Activity. Since the quick rise and fall of found footage in the 2000s, there have been many attempts to innovate this subgenre, but few have been as successful as 2013’sEvidence.
Directed byOlatunde Osunsanmiand streaming for free onTubi,this film splices together found footage and traditional filming techniques to create an intriguinghorror mysteryunlike anything viewers had seen in this subgenre before. It fuses the best aspects of both genres while still imbuing each scene of our cast being stalked by a masked killer with utter terror, drawing viewers in with its mystery before jarring them with terrifying scenes of bloody mayhem. This, combined with the awareness of the detectives at its center, makes each death so much more impactful as audiences learn about these people who could have just been typical horror fodder. It culminates in a shocking, extremely meta ending that makes viewers question what this genre can be,creating a found footage movie like no other and expanding what this medium is capable of.
‘Evidence’ Offers a New Kind of Found Footage Horror
Audiences may think they accidentally selected a mystery instead of a horror whenEvidencebegins, and that’s understandable. The film opens with a press conference, reporters closing in as Detectives Burquez (Radha Mitchell) and Reese (Stephen Moyer)struggle to solve the case of a complete massacre at a deserted shopping center just outside of Las Vegas. The only clues they have are in the cameras and phones salvaged from the carnage,videos that transition the film into its found footage format as they beginto review the shocking footage in the hopes of catching a killer.
These tapes show the story of bitter couple LeAnn (Torrey DeVitto) and Tyler (Nolan Gerard Funk), along with LeAnn’s wannabe director friend, Rachel (Caitlin Stasey), becoming stranded in the shopping center after their bus breaks down. The trio and a few others quickly find themselves being hunted by a killer wielding a blowtorch and welder’s mask,a campy combination that results in shockingly visceral bloodshed.The killer teaches viewers how easily a blowtorch can cut through someone’s arm, and as night descends and the terror ramps up, roadside assistance turns horrific when objects like flare guns are used against our main characters. These kills and our cast’s fight for survival are enough to make a thoroughly unnerving film,but it’s how the movie jumps between these tapes and the detectives trying to decipher them that makes it truly disturbing.
‘Evidence’ Goes Between Found Footage and Traditional Storytelling
The film threads in moments of the Detectives discussing the case and their investigationwith its found footage elements, using them as perfect punctuations to unnerving scenes that push viewers to find the same clues this duo does. Even more, their resources and hindsight make each death so much more impactful; audiences not only learn about these victims as we watch them struggle to survive but also hear about their lives before the cameras start rolling,adding an emotional gravity to make the horror even more unbearable.
Everyone Underestimated This Found Footage Horror Movie — Until Its Shocking Ending
Behind this movie’s basic plot is a level of twisted dread audiences weren’t ready for.
It’s a fresh, uniqueapproach to mystery horrornever before seen in this subgenre. While found footage has incorporated third-person filming before, by rooting itself in an investigation the movie challenges viewers to be as glued to their screens as the detectives are. To try not to blink, to scan every moment in the hopes of untangling the investigation itself,it makes each jumpscare and gory moment that much more startling to watch. It’s a fantastic balance of each genre’s core aspects, and by increasing the clues and the bloodshed as the runtime goes on, it makes a film that will leave viewers terrified yet desperate to find some answers.
‘Evidence’ Drags You In And Doesn’t Let Go
Even with the ways it excels,Evidence’sexperimental approach to found footage is definitely not without its faults. While they add some necessary grounding to the plot, some moments with the detectives run on too long and detract from the necessary spotlight on the plot’s horror.While some may appreciate how the ending twists the subgenre’s own conventions against it, others may find it a blatant approach to fool an invested audience. Yet, even with its issues,the film offers a wholly interesting innovation ina genre that thrives on creativity.Its ability to combine horror and mystery makes it a kind of film that is not only distinct but will draw watchers in completely… before absolutely terrifying them.
Evidence is a found-footage crime thriller released in 2013, directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi. The film follows detectives as they analyze recordings from multiple devices to uncover the mystery behind a grisly massacre involving bus passengers at an isolated gas station.
Evidenceis Available to Stream on Tubi in the U.S.
WATCH ON TUBI
