Not much you can really say about this HBO short film other than it was short and rather effective as it had that 1970's horror vibe to it. You can read what it is basically about in the summary and yes that as they say sums it up nicely. The only thing I can really add is to say as a kid this one creeped me out a bit even though there was a light heartiness about it in certain areas. The end though is not light hearted as there is a struggle that is rather disturbing. Thankfully there are no more reel to reels eh? All in all though it is a fairly good effort, it makes one pine for the days they showed shorts on HBO and shorts were not simply crappy movies done on a video camera and posted on youtube.

***Spoiler*** Lol. These were the days of HBO. Recorded Live will soon be mine (thank you Tremors 4). I even had a roll of reel tape that my dad had (possibly porno) that I had that ate me as a child, lol. HBO Short Takes were great, especially the Canadian Film Board cartoons. I remember the Log Rider as one, that song just sticks in my head. There were stories about the aforementioned 'The Chalice' and there was one about a blonde chick going into a dark house, maybe 'The House'. God I miss being a child again. I lost both parents before my 21st birthday, now I am 34, and when I see old shows or remember these great shows, I feel that 'old familiar pain'. HBO was the best channel of all time back in the late 70's and early 80's. In this era of everything being on DVD, I hope HBO opens their vaults and releases a set of these great old, dated classics. I would be one of the first in line for it.***Spoiler***

Man, this is one seriously messed up short film! I saw this a billion times on HBO in 1981 and 1982.John Goodwin gets this note in the mail telling him to go to a job interview. He drives over to this big house and goes in. At first, he sees no one. Then, he goes in a room where two reels of videotape unspool from their reels and become one giant blob-like wad.This videotape-wad-thing chases Goodwin throughout the house. Every effort to escape is sabotaged. He does manage to get a hold of a magnet to pick up a pair of scissors on the floor and, for a few minutes, has the upper hand.Unfortunately, it does not last. He goes into a room and puts the magnet down for a second. The wad, which has burrowed under the carpet, ambushes him. Goodwin desperately reaches for the magnet, but it is in vain. He is engulfed and devoured. The wad next spits out his clothes, types up another letter to another victim, then spools itself back onto the reels. The end. Oh, I forgot! A jolly piano song plays.This film did freak me out, but I could not turn away! I even dreamed that thing was loose in my grandparents house and we tried to get it! I think if I had the magnet and scissors, I would have dived onto the thing! What the heck! I was surprised to find out that the team behind TREMORS started out here! John Goodwin was also in that film too! He did an excellent job and he should be proud! There was also a music video which came out around 1984 called VIDEO and was sung by Jeff Lynne. At the end of that video, a man rolls around on a wad of videotape on the floor and that instantly reminded me of RECORDED LIVE! Thats my rant. Bodger1.

This film was frequently on the HBO "Short Takes," which were short films that played in-between the full-length movies in the 70s and 80s on the network. The movie involves a man who attends a job interview in a building, and when he arrives he is attacked by 2 scheming and murderous videotapes. He tries to escape the videotapes, even running down the hall and shutting himself into a room by himself. But they find a way to slither underneath the carpet and continue attacking him. Ultimately, they "eat" the man! As a child, I remember being terrified of this movie. And yet, I would watch it each time it came on TV! I'm surprised that this movie does not have many votes or comments (less than 5 votes as of 2/15/06), as there must be thousands of people who remember seeing this movie on HBO, since it played so often. This movie, "Hardware Wars," and another movie about drinking out of a chalice were staples of the HBO "Short Take" movies during this time frame.