Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Farhope Tower’

Written by Scott Edwards

Obsession can be a powerful feeling, especially if you are able to get what it is you want at any time.  While some people give in to the feeling, others try to fight it and keep it from impacting their lives. I am not one that gets obsessed with many things, maybe horror movies because I am always looking for a good one that I can watch over and over again, but I don’t let that dictate my days. Being able to walk away from something that you have always wanted is something that many people would not do, but there are some strong souls out there that know when to say when.
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Wanting to take his ghost hunting show, Unspecters, to the next level, Jake is willing to do next to anything. Getting a call from a network exec with the promise of a time slot if he can deliver something that the other shows cannot, Jake is forced to jump on the next idea. A trip to Farhope Tower with his team would guarantee that the show gets made, but Jake and his oldest friend Andre have a history at the old building. Investigating it when they were kids, Andre knows what power the building holds and warns Jake against it, but there is no stopping his friend when the lives of his team depend on them getting their own show.

Arriving at the building, the group sets up their first shot outside, explaining what madness went on there in the eighties. With twenty-two suicides that took place in the tower in only a number of months, the building was shut down and eventually locked up from any prying eyes. With his team of investigators, Jake takes his new recruit Zoe, camera woman Judy, investigator Simon and old friend Andre in for the ride of their lives. Exploring the main floor of the building, it is apparent that the locks did not keep anyone from coming inside and finding graffiti all over the place, one room holds a special message, ‘Go Up’. Knowing the history of the building and where the suicides took place, the group decides to follow that advice and head up using a staircase that does not exist on the blueprints.

Arriving on the tenth floor, the group goes about their business as usual, but hear a crash in the distance. Thinking that there was a sound that preceded it, they check the tape and Jake hears humming in the headphones and decides to continue the hunt. As they try to track the events happening around them, the group splits up when two crashes take place on opposite sides of the floor. As Jake and Simon head one way and find a suicide note from one of the previous tenants, Zoe, Judy and Andre find a spirit that is willing to communicate with them. As the ghostly screaming comes to an end and Jake awakes from being hit in the head, the group finds that Simon has gone missing. Knowing that the building is ready to take more, Andre begs the group to leave, but Jake will not allow one member of the team to be left behind, besides, the stairwells only go up since the woman of the building has something special to show them.

I didn’t know about this movie as I have seen several ghost hunter movies over my time, and they usually leave me wanting more. This was not one of those movies, it was very entertaining. Seeing that it was not going to be a found footage movie helped keep my attention from the get-go, and I was impressed by the fact that the flashes Jake was seeing throughout did not take away from the story, they actually added to it. I must say I was also impressed by the group dynamic when things started to go downhill for them and going up to the next floor is never a good idea in a haunted building, everyone knows that spirits are not in the basement, they are in the attic. With plenty of buildup, a good story, ghostly sounds, a haunted building, a woman spirit that wants to tell her story and a group leader who has a history with the building, it is a fun ride that will keep you watching to see how the spirits run Farhope Tower to this day. Stay Scared.

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