BIGFOOT: THE LOST COAST TAPES (2012)

Streaming on Tubi!
Directed by Corey Grant.
Written by Bryan O’Cain and Brian Kelsey
Trailer: https://youtu.be/oA0A9nczyVw

Having seen my fair share of Bigfoot films, I know it’s difficult to come up with a new premise for the sub-genre that pulls one in. Though BIGFOOT: THE LOST COAST TAPES has its rough edges, I do have to give it credit for coming up with a winning premise, and sometimes that’s just enough to get a recommendation out of me.

Starting out with what I liked about this film, I really dug the way things were set up from the beginning. Drew Rausch plays Sean Reynolds, a non-believing and disgraced news reporter, recovering from a mental breakdown and wanting to reclaim fame by uncovering a hoax concerning a dead Bigfoot in a cooler. After seeking out the hilljack named Carl (Frank Ashmore) who claims to have the body, he forces the camera crew and host to wear blindfolds, give up their cell phones, and pay $75,000 in order to get footage of the corpse. But Carl has a flair for the dramatic. He puts off the reveal and prefers to tell stories about the inhabitants of the woods around him, much to the ire of the impatient camera crew. Though I’ve seen many Bigfoot films, this premise felt fresh. It also seemed plausible that, if a Bigfoot was found, one would be extra careful in keeping it safe from other Bigfoot and, more importantly, the press. Approaching the film from this angle was a decision I liked.

I also loved the ending, which takes somewhat of an unexpected turn. Though the poster suggests that there may be another threat in the woods other than Bigfoot, I wasn’t sure what that meant. The ending does make sense in the continuity of the story and once again distinguishes this film from the slew of other Bigfoot films that go the typical monster in the woods route. I won’t reveal it here, but the ending worked for me.

My problems with the film have to do with the choices of actors. While lead Drew Rausch gets a pass since he is the personification of the douche anchorman looking for a money shot to get him back into the big time, some of the other actors, the sound guy in particular, felt like they were reciting lines and setting up lines for others in the crew rather than the comfortable dialog the sells most these found footage style films. Though the film feels over-scripted at times, there are nice beats of tension. I especially liked the overly dramatic Carl who keeps procrastinating on revealing the corpse of the Bigfoot.

BIGFOOT: THE LOST COAST TAPES feels scripted, but it feels like an actual found footage film. There is no additional music added or production cheats that tear you out of the illusion that this footage is something discovered in its purest form. It has all of the same pitfalls most found footage films have, namely there is no reason the camera should keep rolling or fall into the exact perfect spot to capture what needs to be captured to make it an actual story that makes sense. This one also has the two most cliched beats of a found footage movie; the [REC] drag away from the camera and the up-nose confessional from BLAIR WITCH. These two sins are unforgivable to me as it reeks of un-originality.

Despite all of that, I thought there was enough to like about BIGFOOT: THE LOST COAST TAPES to give it Two Foots and Three Toes.

The original premise is what saves this one from being your run of the mill Bigfooter. But it’s cliched found footage moments knocks BIGFOOT: THE LOST COAST TAPES down a few notches.