Videoman (2018) – Film Review
Director: Kristian A Söderström
Cast: Stefan Sauk, Lena Nilsson, Carolin Stoltz
Certificate: 18
by Roger Crow / @RogerCrow
On the surface, this looks like a generic stalk and slash thriller, a throwback to the era of Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th and assorted Dario Argento movies like Tenebrae. However, while it may wear its Italian horror influences on its sleeve, it’s also an occasionally touching study of two troubled, lonely souls attempting to find love.
The protagonist, Ennio, is obsessed with VHS videos. He has a basement full of rare tapes, and when a collector offers him a fortune for a rare tape he picked up, it’s a chance to wipe out his debts in one fell swoop. There’s one problem: the tape goes missing, and he spends the bulk of the movie looking for it.
“Trippy”
Intercut with his search is a seasoned alcoholic office worker with an estranged daughter.
Naturally their paths collide, but he’s so outspoken and consumed by his hatred of social media that he pushes her away.
If, like me, you love movies, romcoms, surreal arthouse European films, and Italian horror flicks, then this is right up you street. It’s trippy, occasionally funny, mostly unusual, and you never know where it’s going next. A Trojan horse of a movie in that it’s a romance concealed in the belly of a generic thriller. I’ve no idea whether it would translate as a remake, but who cares?
It’s a compelling adult watch that should attract a massive cult following.
