When rebecca moves to collingswood new jersey to be closer to school, she puts considerable distance between herself and her boyfriend johnny, still, the two are able to stay in touch via webcam, together they discover that the house rebecca is now living in has a dark history, a history that’s about to repeat itself, i first discovered the collingswood story back in the early 2000s, and i was incredibly impressed, though the film would be classified as found footage, a sub-genre that even at that time was feeling pretty played out.
the collingswood story is told entirely through a series of online video chats, long before the den, unfriended, and searching used webcams as a narrative device, there was the collingswood story, but this movie is far more than just a gimmick, it’s a testament to less is more improved positive, that a strong story, good actors, and steady direction, are the key ingredients to a standout horror film, not a multi-million dollar budget.
Stephanie and johnny burton carry the movie like champs, their characters are likable and their performances feel natural at times, i honestly felt like some kind of sick peeping tom having somehow hacked in on their private video chats, you get the feeling that their relationship has been a little rocky, and that this move on rebecca’s part wasn’t just to be closer to school none of this is mentioned in the film it’s the subtlety of their performances little glances and pregnant pauses that speak louder than words.
Costanza is able to do a lot here with a little, he slowly builds tension throughout the first two thirds of the film before finally letting it all hang out in the final act, costanza is able to create a real sense of unease and an overall creepy atmosphere throughout, the collingswood story is also something of a time capsule when it comes to the early days of people communicating with each other online, the collingswood story isn’t perfect and it does stumble a bit toward the end, but the positives far outweigh the negatives here, the collingswood story is a rock solid little thriller that deserves your time and attention, i can’t recommend it any higher, as for this new blu-ray release from cauldron films, the film is remastered from the original source tapes by writer director mike Costanza, i’d give the picture quality and the sound quality both a solid 4 out of 5 for this release, the collingswood story both looked and sounded fantastic on this new blu-ray release from cauldron films.
The proof that you REALLY don’t need all those millions to make good entertainment. This low budget gem has it all. A clever script, believable characters, a very good background story and it is fast paced enough for no one to lose interest in it along the way.
All in all, TCS definitely has it flaws but at the same time it makes use of an interesting concept, it has more in it for those who pay attention, the acting is good and the end is unexpected. It’s nice to see what can be done with a low budget and a creative mind.
Don’t miss it!
