Review of The Poughkeepsie Tapes (2007) by Jason P — 23 Oct 2011

The Poughkeepsie Tapes is one of the scariest films I have ever seen, playing heavily on society's fear of murder, torture, serial killers, and the chance that some killers may escape scotch free.

The Poughkeepsie Tapes is a mockumentary (the film is NOT based on a real killer and the events depicted in the film did NOT occur, so sleep safely in this knowledge) about a brutal, sadistic serial killer that ravages the small town of Poughkeepsie for a good number of years. Eventually the FBI manage to uncover his home, but when they make a raid on it they discover that it's empty, the only thing left behind being stacks of tapes on which the killer recorded his murders.

The film is made up of fake documentary footage about the killer and some of the footage found on the infamous tapes, both taking up equal portions of the film. The Poughkeepsie Tapes plays like a documentary you would find on The Discovery Channel or Tru TV, and that makes it feel all the more real and terrifying. Helping with the suspension of belief are the tapes themselves. the footage viewed from the tapes are grainy, and at times hard to make out..in other words: it looks like actual footage from a VHS recorder.

The acting in the documentary portions is pretty bad, and the actual footage is made up of torture porn-esque sequences of victims screaming, crying, spitting up blood etc. All in all, while The Poughkeepsie Tapes is competently filmed and directed, I couldn't recommend it to anyone except those who are die-hard fans of the real life crime programs on Tru TV, those who are currently working in the forensics and investigative services, and those who are studying to become a forensics detective or such.

Probably the only part that came across as forced and fake was the ending where the film pulls the typical: He's still out there, he could be living in YOUR town, but steps it up a notch too far by adding in that HE COULD BE IN THIS VERY THEATER. Ya, suuuure movie, sure.

The Poughkeepsie Tapes is a really hard film to watch, and if by some miracle you do make it through to the end then I promise you it will stay lodged deep in your mind long after it's over. Yes, many sleepless nights await you, so watch this at your own risk.

2/5 Stars.