Archive 81 is a very curious entry into the box set world, and I was mostly hooked on this horror TV series.
The premise is very interesting taking the now much cliched 'found/lost footage' story and making it all fresh. Our lead is a video tape restorer and has been given a lucrative contract to restore some sensitive videos found in a fire from long back, only to find that there's more than meets the eye!
What we have actually is 2-3 separate narratives which flow through the show that we have to follow, and each is very intriguing. You really are kept on your tenterhooks. It crosses so many lines, as we watch the psychological horror build with cults and cross time travel! There's detective & investigation aspects too, which you are yourself trying to figure it all out too.
None of the actors are well known (not to me anyhow) but you'd think they were mostly experienced as they capture so much so well, and you feel for them. The direction & cinematography is great and thankfully they are able to keep the tension despite it being spread over 8 hours of shows.
I'm trying to not say too much, but really this is a very cerebral show, far better than the usual stuff that is getting churned across the streaming sites. A lot of kudos to Netflix for giving this the green light.
I really recommend you to give it a chance, it's a genuinely great modern horror series.
