THE INGRESS TAPES **** UK 2017 Dir: Michael Fausti. 7 mins
Chilling in the simplicity of its execution, this Super 8mm London-shot short appears to unfold as the confessional tape of a professional killer. The voiceover recollections of his crimes are accompanied by grainy footage of train journeys and English scenery, alongside the recurrent image of a reel to reel tape recorder.
He talks of dropping a concrete block on another guy and catching the train afterward, thinking of how easy it would be to kill anyone in the houses he passes. His memories fetishise the tools of his trade (hammers, submachine guns and a diver’s knife) and he casually tells tales of cutting people up at a bleak personal time in his life. The most disturbing element of this superbly edited film is how it captures the banality of murder: the unseen protagonist likens it to just going to work (complete with the commute) but is justifiably smug about how he gets his work done much quicker than all the poor average schmoes stuck in a 9-5 existence (“It just becomes your job…”). Equally unnerving is his talk of inadvertently executing a ten year old: “I didn’t know the kid was in the car…That’s not down to me, that’s bad luck”.
Review by Steven West
The Ingress Tapes Trailer from Michael Fausti on Vimeo.