‘Evidence’ is Up and Down, But Ultimately Warrants a Viewing (Review)

Written by: Matt Molgaard Directed by: Olatunde Osunsanmi Cast: Stephen Moyer, Radha Mitchell, Caitlin Stasey Just one year after Howie Askins released a found footage film titled Evidence, Olatunde Osunsanmi decided to piece together another found footage flick called Evidence. Gotta love creativity right? Osunsanmi’s film definitely differs from Askins, but they’re both successful in attempting to inject some degree of creativity into the genre. While I prefer Askins’ flick to Osunsanmi’s, I’d be a liar if I said Olatunde didn’t create a piece of work that’s grown on me to some degree.

Found footage flicks that can combine that amateur aesthetic with a professionally polished look via wraparound tales or external story examination are entertaining. We have the potential to see the best of both worlds. While Evidence isn’t nurtured enough to proffer the best of anything, it is engaging enough to keep fans watching. It’s also a respectable attempt to do something a little different with the subgenre. No ghosts here. No paranormal activity here. No Bigfoot hunts, either. This is an inspired story – even if the script feels noticeably abused in a few sequences – that earns resect for moving away from the easily anticipated.

The story, in a quick summary, deposits a crew of crime scene specialists in the middle of a baffling case. A bus headed for Vegas crashes in desolate dessert territory. A lunatic who favors torches and welders suddenly shows up determined to do with away this group of travelers. And for the most part he does, but there are a few secrets in store for the officers working this case, and as they study what found footage was recoverable at the crime scene (on numerous devices), they unravel a mystery that’s going to leave everyone floored, and someone awfully famous.

There are plenty of issues to work with here. Bad dialogue, plot improbabilities. Story inconsistencies, and some retched camera footage when in handi-cam mode are the front-running detractors. But here’s the thing, I like Stephen Moyer, and Radha Mitchell has really put her effort into this genre. Two respectable figures and an attempt, whether outright successful or not, to summon some originality to the surface earn big points from me. The fact that the staggeringly gorgeous Caitlin Stasey appears only adds to the allure.

Worth a watch!

Rating: 2.5/5