Broadcast Signal Intrusion is a unique mystery horror film directed by Jacob Gentry. The film stars Harry Shum Jr., Chris Sullivan, Steve Pingle, and Kelly Mack. The 104-minute film was released earlier this year at a film festival ahead of its public release this month via video on demand. For the genre and medium, it feels like this film offers something new. However, some movies lead to similar investigations, for example, two classic masterpiece films, The Conversation and Blow-Up.
James (Shum) works at a television station in Chicago to transfer all the old video cassette broadcasts there to digital format. When James was transferring a video, he suddenly found a strange interruption to the broadcast that featured a masked person with no apparent intent. It turns out this case was previously investigated by the FBI, which was deadlocked. James then found one more video that made him obsessed with conducting a full investigation. After that, strange events began to occur around James, one of which was a mysterious figure who stalked him every time.
Built with a strong side of mystery, the film’s premise is undeniably fresh for the genre. The development of the plot is getting more and more disturbing the mystery side which makes the curiosity even more. The surreal side also enters the story, which is triggered by the protagonist’s past trauma. We also seem to be brought to something most secret behind all of this. Unfortunately, towards the end of the story, it feels anticlimactic. Between the absurd, James’ trauma, with one alleged big conspiracy, feels less connected. Some elements of the story still leave many big questions that cannot be answered.
Built with a strong side of mystery through a unique premise, Broadcast Signal Intrusion has the potential to be one of the best investigative horror films before the surreal elements enter into its plot. In addition to the mystery side, the actor’s appearance as James is extraordinary and his chemistry with Alice. It’s a shame that all of this only appears as a patch, complementing the surreal element. It could be; this is all a metaphor for James’ inner conflict with his trauma. However, throughout the story, we don’t see the big deal for James, and we can only guess what happened to his girlfriend or wife. Did it have something to do with the broadcast interference he was investigating? Could be yes, could be no. Blow-Up is also surreal, but we know precisely the protagonist’s internal problems, so we know where the film is headed.
