With the found footage genre typically having the easiest point of entry for filmmakers (namely, anyone with any type of recording device can slap something together), it might be the hardest genre to stand out in. The inherent nature of this filmmaking style is that it leans into lo-fi elements and amateur actors, as recognizable performers often take you out of the storyline. It’s not impossible to stand out from the crowd, though, as proven by Man Finds Tape, the debut directorial effort from Paul Gandersman and Peter S. Hall. The movie is jam-packed with bizarre, ambitious, and creative ideas, yet it’s the inherent nature of found footage filmmaking that throttles the overall experience.

Documentary filmmaker Lynn (Kelsey Pribilski) starts to receive some bizarre messages from her brother Lucas (William Magnuson) about strange tapes he’s discovered that cause unexplainable phenomena. Lynn, and everyone else Lucas tries to talk to about the footage, is apprehensive about these messages, as Lucas earned some viral fame by making fictional YouTube videos that he passed off as real, which followed a similar premise of discovering weird tapes. Still, Lynn returns to her hometown to help her brother however she can, only to realize the truth is even freakier than either of them could have imagined.

As someone who began consuming creepy YouTube videos as soon as YouTube was coming into popularity, the premise of Man Finds Tape scratched an itch I didn’t even realize I had. In the 2000s, video series like Marble Hornets, Shaye Saint John videos, the unexplained “I feel fantastic” footage, and Slender Man all freaked me the hell out. These days, between the talents of YouTube creators and the proven success of alternate reality activations, it’s hard to buy into videos of this kind, as AI makes it even easier to create surreal videos teasing otherworldly experiences. Point is, Gandersman and Hall tapped directly into a very specific style of horror that came and went during a very specific point in history that impacted a lot of horror fans.

From the premise to the execution, the pair effectively captured the compelling nature of such projects authentically, managing to feel real and avoiding falling into extremes. The first 30 minutes of Man Finds Tape might be what I appreciated the most, as the filmmakers were so effective at blending together the viral videos, interviews, and documentary footage to a gripping effect. The duo, much like myself, are clearly fans of the underseen Lake Mungo, as that movie largely set the template for any successor in this mixed-media realm. Additionally, with a movie like Shelby Oaks recently blending together cinematic perspectives and surreal mythology, yet doing so less effectively, Man Finds Tape felt like a much more impressive outing.

Even with the authentic and organic blend of filmmaking perspectives and ambitious, bizarre ideas, what holds Man Finds Tape back is what holds back a lot of other movies in this genre, which likely stems from a lack of financial resources. All of the performers adequately bring the material to life, yet they never fully come across as real people having real reactions or real conversations. The writing is fine, the performances are fine, but the exchanges these people are having don’t come across as real. John Gholson is the standout as Reverend Endicott Carr, as the nature of his character allows for more outlandish outbursts, and it’s always a delight seeing Graham Skipper pop up in an indie horror movie, but the cast as a whole prevents the audience from fully buying into this movie as a “real” piece of media (even though we obviously know it’s not a real piece of media).

Without getting into spoilers, the other way the financial limitations impact the movie is in the visual effects. There’s some really ambitious, bonkers reveals in this movie that the audience won’t see coming, and when they’re hinted at or we’re only given glimpses of them, they effectively unnerve us, but the longer we look at them, the easier it is to see the seams and the more those low-budget seams take you out of the experience. These setbacks, though, are due to the ambition on behalf of Gandersman and Hall and I’d rather see indie filmmakers swinging for the fences than holding back and taking a safer route.

Man Finds Tape might not be for everyone, but those who have a soft spot for lost media and found footage will appreciate how authentically the filmmakers captured a very distinct tone that has been all but lost in the horror world, and those well-versed in found footage tropes will appreciate the clever spins the pair put on familiar territory. Whether the film’s production value prevents all audiences from investing in the experience is yet to be seen, but there’s enough that works about Man Finds Tape that I can’t wait to see what Gandersman and Hall get up to next.

Wolfman Moon Scale