The Collingswood Story

What a surprise this little gem is! This horror film is gripping as is unfolds and parses out the town's secret piece by piece. The setting is a old house in a small suburban town of Camden, NJ, (which is in the shadow of Philadelphia, Pa). Living in a Rutgers-Camden off campus housing apartment in Collingswood, NJ, Rebecca keeps in touch with her out of state boyfriend using her computer laptop and a internet web phone. Kudos to the kids for being so tech savvy. Online they stumble across a horrific secret about the town. Things go downhill from there. I know this town, and while the story is a fiction, the town does have history. Even though the town borough incorporated in 1888 at the breakup of Newton Township, the area was first settled by Europeans in the 1680s. Crows Park is actually Knights Park, and Haddon Avenue and Lees Lane do exist! The movie is unrated, but I would consider it PG. There are pretty intense scary scenes. Not suitable for children under 13. Great Halloween movie in the dorms.

The proof that you REALLY don't need all those millions to make good entertainment. This low budget gem has it all. A clever script, believable characters, a very good background story and it is fast paced enough for no one to lose interest in it along the way.

If you liked Blair Witch (and you will be comparing this one with it more than once) you will love The Collingswood Story.

Those big-shot moviemakers in Hollywood have a LOT to learn with Michael Constanza.

Don't miss it!

Guys, this film is very interesting because it is a found footage horror from over 20 years ago involving computers. This film was way ahead of its time! It came well before several films of the genre that involve the same elements, such as The Den, Unfriended and Searching.

Well, the plot is interesting, although it takes a while to get going. The actors are good, and MYSTERIOUS. The two main male actors in the film simply disappeared from pop culture after this work. They acted in this film and then they didn't do anything else.

The unfolding of the plot is interesting and the ending is surprising and may scare some people.

I think the film would be better with more pulse and more scenes of fear and panic instead of focusing a huge part on the couple's conversations.

an online friend of mine recommended this film to me and im eternally grateful, since Blair Witch,Cloverfield and Paranormal Activity hit at the box office this genre seems to be growing and growing but whats odd is that quality found footage horror films like this one just seem to slip under the radar so to speak, it is easily on a par with Paranormal Activity and Blair Witch, in fact i found the way it built the suspense and the subtle clues it left during the films dialogue that points to an unexpected conclusion is very clever indeed, in fact if you watch it twice you truly appreciate it more, The director got great performances out of the 4 main characters and Stephanie Dees is particularly good in her role, I would recommend watching it alone as there is nothing worse than watching it with someone who demands constant blood and gore in their horror or at least 1 death every 10 mins as they will annoy you, but if you appreciate suspense and subtlety in your horror you will really enjoy this one

'The Collingswood Story' has got a lot in common with the Found Footage genre, with one little difference, it's not based on found footage but it's based on webcam and video message conversations. Still, it has that same kind of intimacy and gives it the sense of 'being real', with us, viewers, as the witnesses. It's really a nice concept, and one I had not seen before in the way it was used in 'The Collingswood Story'. It's quite a simple set-up but I liked it all the way.

So what is it about? We have boyfriend and girlfriend John and Rebecca, Rebecca recently moved to Collingswood for college. They are an 8 hours drive apart and have contact through a webcam. It's Rebecca's birthday, and Johnny surprises her with all kinds of amusing webcam nutters. The last one she visits is a psychic. When the psychic tells her that something is just not right, Johnny also contacts the psychic who tells him that Rebecca has to be careful because of the troubled past of Collingswood. Being slightly unsettled, he surfs a bit around on the net to find out that the psychic's story is based on truth, Collingswood had a history of a satanic cult and the house Rebecca lived in was once the scene of some grisly family murders. Though Rebecca is initially freaked-out, she later decides that the psychic is just playing tricks on people. Johnny on the contrary is worrying more and more.

We see the whole story evolve through the webcam contact (Rebecca bought herself a cable allowing her to take her laptop through the whole house), video messages she sends Johnny and the sites Johnny visits online.

The movie is slow paced, but it has more of a story in it than meets the impatient eye. If you for example take the time to read the websites Johnny visits, the story gets more body. So do use that pause-button on your remote control. What I like about that concept is that it gives the movie an even more intimate feeling, as you are researching sort of together with John.

Both actors did a good job, especially considering that they both lack acting experience. I found them totally believable and really natural in their roles. Both are pleasant to look at too. The psychic and John's friend Billy lacked that believability for me, but well, you can't have it all.

The bad is that the story could have been more tensed, and more could have been done with the endings. It left me with a slightly unsatisfied feeling, though I did like the fact that I really didn't see it coming. Still, it could have been done better. At the same time, the movie did hold me at the edge of my seat and I never found it boring.

All in all, TCS definitely has it flaws but at the same time it makes use of an interesting concept, it has more in it for those who pay attention, the acting is good and the end is unexpected. It's nice to see what can be done with a low budget and a creative mind.

It was a movie worth my time.