The Last Broadcast (film)
Encyclopedia
The Last Broadcast is a 1998 American horror film
made by Stefan Avalos
and Lance Weiler
. The film was produced digitally using inexpensive PC-based hardware and software.
-maker named David Leigh, and his investigation of the Fact or Fiction murders, where a pair of Public-access television
cable TV hosts are murdered in mysterious circumstances. Leigh sets out to find the truth behind these killings while making his documentary.
Fact or Fiction is a show dealing with unsolved mysteries and the paranormal
. Its two hosts are Steven "Johnny" Avkast and Locus Wheeler. Initially a success, we find out through Leigh's investigations that the show is failing, and is threatened with imminent cancellation. It is at this point that Avkast comes up with the idea of a live Internet Relay Chat
section of the show.
It is during one such chat that a caller gives Avkast the idea of searching for The Jersey Devil
in the Pine Barrens
(the film only mentions the Jersey Devil, however, and gives absolutely no background details of the legend). Leaping on this idea, Avkast and Wheeler recruit Rein Clackin, a soundman who allegedly can record the paranormal, and Jim Suerd, a psychic
who, Leigh discovers, is emotionally disturbed.
The plan is for the four to enter the Pine Barrens, with Suerd leading them to the location of The Jersey Devil. During the hunt, they will broadcast a live show simultaneously via television, internet and amateur radio
.
The four enter the Barrens but only Suerd emerges alive, while the others are horribly murdered. Avkast's body is never found, though it is made clear in the following trial that he could not have survived considering the massive blood loss found at the crime scene.
Leigh then summarizes the trial. Suerd, as the only survivor, is also the only suspect. To aid the prosecution case they employ a video engineer (nicknamed "The Killer Cutter") to compile a portrait of the group's trip using the surviving film footage found at the crime scene.
Suerd is found guilty and imprisoned, though there is doubt over his guilt as his clothes were not drenched in blood and there is evidence he was engaged in an IRC room
at the times of the murders.
Before anything can be proven, Suerd commits suicide in prison and the case is considered closed by the authorities. However, Leigh has a box sent to him containing a damaged videotape reel, which Leigh assumes is tape from the Fact or Fiction team thought not to exist. A data retrieval expert named Shelly Monarch is called in to reconstruct the images on the tape. She finds that not only have Wheeler and Clacklin's deaths been caught on tape, but that Suerd could not have committed the murders.
What is also caught is a blurred image of the real killer. As Leigh videotapes her, Monarch uses an image editor to re-construct the image of the killer's face; when she finishes, the viewer sees that Leigh himself was the actual murderer.
With this revelation, the film abruptly shifts from the perspective of Leigh's camera to a third person
perspective, lingering on Monarch's tormented face as Leigh fights with and then suffocates her to death with a piece of plastic sheeting in a real-time sequence. Afterwards, Leigh loads Monarch's corpse into his car and drives it out to the woods, where he dumps it in a clearing and then begins awkwardly videotaping himself narrating the next segment of his documentary.
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
made by Stefan Avalos
Stefan Avalos
Stefan Avalos is an American musician and filmmaker.Avalos was trained as a classical violinist. As a violinist, he won major competitions and was a soloist with, among others, the Philadelphia Orchestra. He was touted as a child prodigy but by early high school, Avalos realized his true love was...
and Lance Weiler
Lance Weiler
LANCE WEILER'S RÉSUMÉLance Weiler is an American film-maker and writer from Pennsylvania. Initially working as an assistant cameraman and camera operator on large commercial shoots, in Pennsylvania and later New York City, he then co-directed, co-wrote, co-produced, and co-starred in The Last...
. The film was produced digitally using inexpensive PC-based hardware and software.
Synopsis
The film deals with a documentary filmDocumentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
-maker named David Leigh, and his investigation of the Fact or Fiction murders, where a pair of Public-access television
Public-access television
Public-access television is a form of non-commercial mass media where ordinary people can create content television programming which is cablecast through cable TV specialty channels...
cable TV hosts are murdered in mysterious circumstances. Leigh sets out to find the truth behind these killings while making his documentary.
Fact or Fiction is a show dealing with unsolved mysteries and the paranormal
Paranormal
Paranormal is a general term that designates experiences that lie outside "the range of normal experience or scientific explanation" or that indicates phenomena understood to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure...
. Its two hosts are Steven "Johnny" Avkast and Locus Wheeler. Initially a success, we find out through Leigh's investigations that the show is failing, and is threatened with imminent cancellation. It is at this point that Avkast comes up with the idea of a live Internet Relay Chat
Internet Relay Chat
Internet Relay Chat is a protocol for real-time Internet text messaging or synchronous conferencing. It is mainly designed for group communication in discussion forums, called channels, but also allows one-to-one communication via private message as well as chat and data transfer, including file...
section of the show.
It is during one such chat that a caller gives Avkast the idea of searching for The Jersey Devil
Jersey Devil
The Jersey Devil is a legendary creature or cryptid said to inhabit the Pine Barrens of Southern New Jersey, United States. The creature is often described as a flying biped with hooves, but there are many variations...
in the Pine Barrens
Pine Barrens (New Jersey)
The Pine Barrens, also known as the Pinelands, is a heavily forested area of coastal plain stretching across southern New Jersey. The name "pine barrens" refers to the area's sandy, acidic, nutrient-poor soil, to which the crops originally imported by European settlers didn't take well...
(the film only mentions the Jersey Devil, however, and gives absolutely no background details of the legend). Leaping on this idea, Avkast and Wheeler recruit Rein Clackin, a soundman who allegedly can record the paranormal, and Jim Suerd, a psychic
Psychic
A psychic is a person who professes an ability to perceive information hidden from the normal senses through extrasensory perception , or is said by others to have such abilities. It is also used to describe theatrical performers who use techniques such as prestidigitation, cold reading, and hot...
who, Leigh discovers, is emotionally disturbed.
The plan is for the four to enter the Pine Barrens, with Suerd leading them to the location of The Jersey Devil. During the hunt, they will broadcast a live show simultaneously via television, internet and amateur radio
Amateur radio
Amateur radio is the use of designated radio frequency spectrum for purposes of private recreation, non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, and emergency communication...
.
The four enter the Barrens but only Suerd emerges alive, while the others are horribly murdered. Avkast's body is never found, though it is made clear in the following trial that he could not have survived considering the massive blood loss found at the crime scene.
Leigh then summarizes the trial. Suerd, as the only survivor, is also the only suspect. To aid the prosecution case they employ a video engineer (nicknamed "The Killer Cutter") to compile a portrait of the group's trip using the surviving film footage found at the crime scene.
Suerd is found guilty and imprisoned, though there is doubt over his guilt as his clothes were not drenched in blood and there is evidence he was engaged in an IRC room
Internet Relay Chat
Internet Relay Chat is a protocol for real-time Internet text messaging or synchronous conferencing. It is mainly designed for group communication in discussion forums, called channels, but also allows one-to-one communication via private message as well as chat and data transfer, including file...
at the times of the murders.
Before anything can be proven, Suerd commits suicide in prison and the case is considered closed by the authorities. However, Leigh has a box sent to him containing a damaged videotape reel, which Leigh assumes is tape from the Fact or Fiction team thought not to exist. A data retrieval expert named Shelly Monarch is called in to reconstruct the images on the tape. She finds that not only have Wheeler and Clacklin's deaths been caught on tape, but that Suerd could not have committed the murders.
What is also caught is a blurred image of the real killer. As Leigh videotapes her, Monarch uses an image editor to re-construct the image of the killer's face; when she finishes, the viewer sees that Leigh himself was the actual murderer.
With this revelation, the film abruptly shifts from the perspective of Leigh's camera to a third person
Point of view shot
A point of view shot is a short film scene that shows what a character is looking at . It is usually established by being positioned between a shot of a character looking at something, and a shot showing the character's reaction...
perspective, lingering on Monarch's tormented face as Leigh fights with and then suffocates her to death with a piece of plastic sheeting in a real-time sequence. Afterwards, Leigh loads Monarch's corpse into his car and drives it out to the woods, where he dumps it in a clearing and then begins awkwardly videotaping himself narrating the next segment of his documentary.
Home video
The Last Broadcast was released through Ventura Distribution on VHS and DVD. Wavelength Releasing also was a part of the DVD releasing. Heretic Films re-released the DVD in 2006.Cast list
- David Beard - David Leigh, The Filmmaker
- James Seward - James "Jim" L. Suerd, The Accused
- Holly MadisonHolly MadisonHollin Sue Cullen, professionally known as Holly Madison, is an American model, showgirl and television personality. She is widely known for being one of Hugh Hefner's girlfriends on the reality television series The Girls Next Door...
- Miss Lady Bright Eyes - Stefan AvalosStefan AvalosStefan Avalos is an American musician and filmmaker.Avalos was trained as a classical violinist. As a violinist, he won major competitions and was a soloist with, among others, the Philadelphia Orchestra. He was touted as a child prodigy but by early high school, Avalos realized his true love was...
- Steven "Johnny" Avkast, "Fact or Fiction" Host - Lance WeilerLance WeilerLANCE WEILER'S RÉSUMÉLance Weiler is an American film-maker and writer from Pennsylvania. Initially working as an assistant cameraman and camera operator on large commercial shoots, in Pennsylvania and later New York City, he then co-directed, co-wrote, co-produced, and co-starred in The Last...
- Locus Wheeler, "Fact or Fiction" Host - Rein Clabbers - Rein Clackin, Paranormal Sound Man
- Michele Pulaski - Michelle "Shelly" Monarch, Data Retrieval Expert
- Tom Brunt - Thomas "Tom" Branski, "Fact or Fiction" Video Engineer
- Mark Rublee - Clair Deforest, Video Editor for the Prosecution
- A.D. Roso - Detective Anthony Rosi, Lead Investigator
- Dale Worstall - Dr. Dale Orstall, Jim's Child Psychologist
- Vann K. Weller - Vann K. Waller, Forensic Pathologist
- Sam Wells- Sam Woods, Film & Television Director
- Jay MacDonald - Jay McDowell, Web Designer
- Faith Weiler - Joyce Dryer, Jim's Landlady
- Marianne Connor - Mary Brenner, TV Reporter