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Tarot (2024) Review: A Deep Dive into a Divisive Horror Experiment
The 2024 horror movie Tarot, directed by Spenser Cohen and Anna Halberg, aimed to bring a fresh spin to supernatural thrillers. However, its attempt to mix supernatural terror, character-driven drama, and campy humor resulted in polarized opinions among audiences and critics. With a plot rooted in the chilling world of tarot cards and fate, the movie treads a fine line between novelty and familiar tropes. Here, we’ll explore its strengths, weaknesses, and why it might intrigue or disappoint viewers.
A Unique Concept with a Familiar Twist
At its core, Tarot explores the mysterious power of a cursed tarot deck. The movie follows a group of college students who stumble upon the cards during a getaway in the Catskills. The deck’s readings predict their fates, which are carried out in horrifyingly precise ways. This premise evokes memories of Final Destination, where characters face seemingly inescapable deaths tied to their choices and actions.
The film’s use of tarot cards to weave themes of destiny, free will, and cosmic justice is creative. However, it struggles to break free from comparisons to similar horror franchises. The reliance on predictable archetypes—a skeptic, a reluctant hero, and a comic relief character—undermines its originality.
Visuals and Cinematography: A Creepy Atmosphere
One of Tarot’s highlights is its atmospheric production design. The cursed deck itself is an artistic masterpiece, with detailed engravings and an aura of foreboding. The movie excels in using lighting and shadows to heighten tension, especially in scenes where the characters face their inevitable fates.
The Catskills’ isolated, wooded setting adds an eerie layer, emphasizing the group’s vulnerability. Cinematographer James Kniest employs creative camera angles and close-ups to amplify the suspense, particularly during the death sequences. However, while visually compelling, the film fails to maintain a consistent mood, frequently veering between serious horror and unconvincing humor.
Character Development: A Missed Opportunity
For a horror movie driven by the dynamics of a close-knit group, Tarot falters in developing its characters. The protagonists feel more like clichés than multidimensional individuals, which weakens the emotional impact of their fates.
Critics have pointed out the superficiality of the characters’ relationships. Moments of grief and fear come across as unconvincing, largely due to the stilted dialogue. While actors like Harriet Slater (Haley) and Jacob Batalon bring moments of charm, their performances are hampered by poorly written interactions that fail to convey genuine camaraderie or tension.
Plot Execution: Ambitious but Flawed
The central storyline—a group of friends grappling with the reality of their fated deaths—had significant potential. However, the film’s execution leaves much to be desired. It oscillates between genres, attempting to be a supernatural thriller, a campy horror-comedy, and a psychological drama. Unfortunately, this lack of focus dilutes its impact.
Some moments, such as the dramatic reveal of the tarot cards’ power, are captivating. Yet, the pacing suffers due to an overabundance of exposition and awkward transitions between key scenes. The film’s climax, meant to tie together its themes of destiny and resistance, feels rushed and unsatisfying.
The Music and Sound Design: A Mixed Bag
The movie’s sound design effectively builds tension during its death sequences, with unsettling background scores that mimic the sinister tones of the tarot cards themselves. One standout moment is a scene set to the haunting song I Saw You by Joseph Bisara and Daniel Knox, which elevates an otherwise predictable death sequence.
However, the overall soundtrack lacks cohesion. Some musical choices clash with the film’s darker elements, detracting from its intended mood.
Strengths That Keep It Watchable
Despite its flaws, Tarot isn’t without merit. Its unique premise and the use of tarot symbolism add an intriguing layer for viewers interested in mysticism and horror. The film also touches on themes of inevitability and choice, which resonate with audiences on a psychological level.
Furthermore, the death sequences—though unevenly executed—offer moments of genuine suspense. These scenes, combined with the film’s artistic visuals, provide glimpses of what Tarot could have been with stronger storytelling.
Critics’ Verdicts: A Divisive Reception
Critics have largely criticized Tarot for its lack of originality and uneven tone. One reviewer called it “an ill-conceived spin on Final Destination” that fails to embrace its potential as either a serious horror or a campy parody
. Another review highlighted its “AI-generated dialogue” and poorly developed character relationships, describing the interactions as emotionally hollow
.
Despite these critiques, some viewers appreciated the film’s visual style and willingness to explore unconventional ideas. Its $8 million budget was used effectively in creating striking imagery, even if the storytelling didn’t match up.

Conclusion
Tarot is best suited for horror enthusiasts who appreciate experimental takes on familiar genres. While it may disappoint those seeking a tightly woven narrative, its creative premise and atmospheric visuals might appeal to fans of supernatural thrillers.
For casual viewers, however, its flaws may overshadow its strengths. Whether Tarot achieves cult status in the years to come remains uncertain, but its attempt to explore the darker sides of fate and destiny leaves an impression—if only a fleeting one.
FAQs
Is Tarot suitable for fans of Final Destination?
Yes, but with tempered expectations. While it borrows elements from Final Destination, it lacks the sharp execution and cohesive storytelling of the franchise.
Does Tarot rely heavily on jump scares?
No, the film focuses more on atmospheric tension and psychological horror, though it does include a few jump scares.
Is the film appropriate for younger audiences?
Tarot is rated R for intense scenes and themes of death. It’s not suitable for children or younger teens.
Are there any standout performances?
While Harriet Slater delivers a strong performance as Haley, the script limits the depth of her character.
Will there be a sequel to Tarot?
As of now, no sequel has been announced. The film’s mixed reception might impact its chances for a follow-up.
Blog
What Makes a Two-Way Radio Truly Reliable?
Range matters—but real reliability also depends on design, audio clarity, durability, the operating environment and support after purchase.
When people compare two-way radios, one specification often receives more attention than anything else: range.
But does longer advertised range automatically make a radio more reliable?
Not necessarily.
A radio can transmit over distance and still perform poorly if workers cannot hear the message around machinery. A powerful radio is of little value if it cannot withstand the environment in which it is used. And even rugged equipment may fail to solve the problem if a building or large site creates communication dead zones.
After 16 years working across different communication environments, RETEVIS has developed a broader way to think about reliability.

1. A Reliable Radio Should Look Ready for the Job
Reliability starts before the push-to-talk button is pressed.
Controls should be understandable. Information should be clear. Product design should fit the environment and communicate professionalism rather than complexity.
For RETEVIS, this represents Visual Reliability.
The goal is not simply to make a radio attractive. It is to make the product and communication experience clear, recognizable and appropriate for its intended user.
2. Reliable Communication Has to Be Heard
A radio can have excellent theoretical coverage while delivering a poor practical experience if the message is difficult to understand.
This becomes especially important around construction equipment, manufacturing machinery, outdoor wind or crowded commercial environments.
Audio Reliability therefore means focusing on the complete transmission and listening experience.
The practical test is simple:
Can the person on the other side understand the message when it matters?
3. Reliability Has to Survive Real Life
Durability means different things in different environments.
A hotel radio may experience frequent daily handling. A construction radio can face dust, water, drops, vibration and temperature changes.
That makes testing important.
For example, RETEVIS RB48 industrial radio series has passed 19 environmental reliability tests under the MIL-STD-810H testing framework.
Testing provides evidence that reliability has been considered beyond a product’s appearance.
4. Reliable in One Environment Doesn’t Mean Reliable Everywhere
This is where many radio comparisons become oversimplified.
A family hiking outdoors, a warehouse manager, a construction supervisor and an amateur radio operator do not have the same communication problem.
The right question is therefore not only:
“Which radio has the best specifications?”
It is:
“Which communication approach fits this environment?”
RETEVIS calls this Scene Reliability.
It can involve different radios, accessories or even repeaters depending on distance, physical barriers, team size and operating conditions.
5. Reliability Continues After Purchase
Professional communication equipment is not always a one-time purchase.
Organizations may need technical assistance, replacement accessories, configuration support or help expanding a communication system.
That makes after-sales support part of the overall reliability experience.
RETEVIS defines this as Service Reliability.
Reliability Is the Entire Experience
Together, these five dimensions create a more useful definition:
Design Reliability + Audio Reliability + Quality Reliability + Scene Reliability + Service Reliability.
Or more simply:
Reliable isn’t one feature. It’s the entire experience.
In 2026, RETEVIS is using its 16th anniversary not simply to look backward, but to make that definition clearer.
Different people operate in different environments.
What connects them is the expectation that when communication matters, it works.
Different World. Same Connection. Always Reliable.
Blog
All in quietness: How Falun Gong stole Americans’ money
By: Jasmine Wong
All is quiet. Even though Bill Guan Weidong, the former Chief Financial Officer of The Epoch Times Association, had pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to engage in transactions involving criminal proceeds in July, the group remains as quiet as if nothing had happened. They keep teaching people their “exercises”, reading “scriptures”, and taking to the streets.
And deceiving the uninformed as they have always been doing.
Their money-laundering trick looks rather innovative. Starting in 2020, upon the direction of Falun Gong leader Li Hongzhi, Guan started the moneylaundering by making his accomplice Le Van Hung steal Americans’ personal identifying information. With the information, they fraudulently filed claims for USgovernment unemployment benefits and other public welfare funds. Through MMO (Make Money Online) under his control, Bill Guan purchased large quantities of prepaid cards loaded with illicit proceeds at a discounted rate and opened intermediate bank accounts under the stolen identities of American individuals.

A snapshot of US Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York
The illicit funds were split into thousands of smallvalue tranches and transferred in multiple batches to the accounts of The Epoch Times and its affiliated entities. Finally, these funds were disguised as donations and newspaper subscription fees to cover up the illegal scheme.
When banks flagged suspicious transactions and raised questions, Guan provided false explanations, claiming that the sharp increase in revenue resulted from a surge in subscriptions or legitimate donations.
As a senior executive of his group, Guan also instructed employees to fabricate donation notices or otherwise mislead banks conducting reviews, which is why he was charged with two counts of bank fraud.
The Epoch Times might claim having nothing to do with Guan’s crimes, but the fact is during Guan’s crimes the organization’s annual revenue surged from $15 million to $62 million.
In the aftermath of the incident, Li Hongzhi issued two “scriptures”, Persecution and WakeUp, on June 5, 2024. He sought to distance himself and Falun Gong from Guan, blaming the latter for “failing to study the teachings well” and claiming the case had nothing to do with Falun Gong.
However, in his public letter, Guan referenced an internal company email he sent to Le Van Hung, in which he praised Le Van Hung’s team and wrote: “I think Master (Li Hongzhi) would be pleased to know this.” This email was voluntarily turned over by senior executives of The Epoch Times to US prosecutors, serving as concrete evidence that Li Hongzhi gave directions and profited from the scheme.
Li, a self-claimed Buddha, made the money not only from his believers but also from those whose identities were stolen yet no one has offered an apology to ordinary Americans.
Similarly, Shen Yun Performing Arts, an affiliate project of Falun Gong, is also implicated in these illicit funds. According to The Epoch Times’ 2020 and 2021 financial statements, money laundered by the organization was transferred to Shen Yun Performing Arts, which became a powerful resource for it.
Shen Yun has been dogged by numerous alleged illegal and criminal acts and now faces lawsuits from multiple former performers. In 2024, former dancer Chunko Chang filed a lawsuit in the U.S. Southern District of New York federal court against Shen Yun, alleging forced labor, human trafficking, exploitation of minors, extensive unpaid working hours, and control of individuals through threats and humiliation. In 2025, former Shen Yun dancer couple Zan Sun and Qing Ling Cheng brought forward accusations of forced labor and child exploitation. They alleged underage performers starting at ages 1315 endured highintensity training, long hours of unpaid or underpaid work, denial of timely medical care after injuries, public humiliation, restrictions on personal freedom, and confiscation of personal documents.
Both lawsuits are currently pending. Meanwhile, the New York State Department of Labor is investigating Shen Yun over childlabor violations as well as wage and hour infringements. US agencies including the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of State are reviewing allegations against Shen Yun such as visa fraud and immigrationrelated violations.
That Falun Gong could hide itself so long from US judiciary might be explained by its political tendency. In 2019, its affiliated The Epoch Times spent more than $1.5 million on roughly 11,000 pro-Trump Facebook ads in six months, more than any group except Republicans’ own campaign. Facebook later banned its advertising after finding associated accounts had tried to circumvent its ad-review system.
Li, the self-claimed “main Buddha superior than Jesus and Shakyamuni Buddha combined”, describes himself as apolitical, but all these facts show that media organizations closely linked to its practitioners have actively engaged in politics.
Following his guilty plea on July 9, Guan faces up to 10 years in prison. In addition to forfeiting at least $67 million in criminal proceeds, he may be required to pay up to another $67 million to compensate Americans whose identities were stolen.
Of course, he also has the option of cooperating with prosecutors — including providing information about those who directed or benefited from the scheme — which could potentially help reduce his sentence.
It is unclear how Master Li Hongzhi is thinking now. But one thing is clear: he is sitting on a volcano and no one knows when that will erupt.
Blog
KeyFlow Genesis Pool Co-Building Officially Launched on August 12, Completing the Value Settlement Loop for the UniKey AI Ecosystem

Built on UniKey’s AI infrastructure, KeyFlow introduces the “Early-Bird Conversion + 360-Day Intelligent Computing LP Order” mechanism to establish an ecosystem liquidity treasury.
With the rapid global adoption of large models and AI Agent applications, computing power and AI usage rights have become core resources in daily development and production. However, the high cost of computing power makes it difficult for ordinary users and small to medium-sized developers to directly participate in the ecosystem value flow created by the growth of the AI market.
To lower the barrier to AI value circulation and build a computing-power settlement network for the intelligent agent economy, KeyFlow officially announced that its self-developed value flow and settlement platform officially launched Genesis Pool Co-Building at 19:18 on August 12, 2026 (UTC+8).
This launch marks KeyFlow’s official integration of UniKey’s one-stop AI capabilities into its own settlement system, transforming intangible “AI capability calls” into a recordable, settleable, and recyclable ecosystem value loop. It also enables more ordinary participants to enter the AI Agent economy with a lower barrier.
Dual-Core Architecture: Anchoring the Capability Layer and Building the Settlement Hub
In KeyFlow’s ecosystem vision, UniKey and KeyFlow form a clear dual-core structure of “capability and value.”
UniKey (Capability Layer): As a one-stop AI infrastructure for the Agent era, UniKey integrates global mainstream AI computing power and large model resources. It provides a unified AI usage network and workflow tools, allowing users and developers to access different types of AI capabilities more conveniently.
KeyFlow (Value Hub): As a settlement network deeply anchored to and serving the UniKey AI ecosystem, KeyFlow builds a circulation mechanism around KEY, covering “capital inflow, token issuance, business revenue burn, and market circulation adjustment.” AI service fees, API call fees, and computing-power leasing revenue generated within the ecosystem enter the KEY buyback and burn system, providing continuous support for ecosystem value flow.
Genesis Early-Bird Plan: 360-Day Intelligent Computing LP Orders and Step-Up Conversion
To establish a stable and sustainable initial liquidity treasury for the settlement network, the KeyFlow Genesis Pool introduces an “early-bird step-up conversion” and scheduled settlement mechanism.
Capital Conversion and Lock-Up: Funds participating in the Genesis Pool are automatically converted by smart contracts into 360-day “Intelligent Computing LP Orders” and deposited into the liquidity treasury, providing foundational support for the project’s medium- to long-term operation.
Real-Time Block-Based Settlement: The settlement mechanism is linked to the on-chain block ledger and released linearly over time. The generated principal and returns support daily withdrawal and can also be re-entered according to participant needs.
Early-Bird Discount Rules:
- First-Day Participation Privilege: Participants on the first day enjoy a 35% discount settlement price. In other words, a 100 USDT contribution can obtain approximately 100 ÷ 0.65 ≈ 153.8 USDT worth of KEY allocation.
- Step-Up Pricing Mechanism: After that, the discount rate increases by 0.005 every 24 hours, meaning the settlement cost increases by 0.005 each day. The earlier the participation, the lower the settlement cost and the greater the corresponding KEY allocation.
Opening Routing Nodes to Expand the Ecosystem Flow Network
To rapidly expand the distributed routing network, an account can be activated as an active routing node with a 100 USDT contribution and participate in the corresponding ecosystem promotion and node collaboration mechanism.
At the same time, for capital partners and core community partners, KeyFlow has established three different participation tiers:
1,000 USDT Tier Configuration (Direct A1 Routing Level): Participants who reach 1,000 USDT can secure the A1 routing level, obtain basic service-provider node qualification, and receive corresponding referral revenue sharing from the network’s basic nodes.
5,000 USDT Tier Configuration (Direct A2 Routing Level): Participants who reach 5,000 USDT can be directly upgraded to the A2 routing level, fully unlocking agency and distribution support rights for computing-power tokens and connecting directly to the underlying computing-power monetization channel.
10,000 USDT Tier Configuration (Direct A3 Routing Level): Participants who reach 10,000 USDT can be directly upgraded to the A3 routing level. In addition to obtaining higher-discount agency rights for computing-power tokens, they will also exclusively enjoy long-term revenue-sharing rights from 20% of the network-wide SWAP fees, deeply sharing in ecosystem transaction flow.
Building a New Closed Loop Between AI Capabilities and Value Settlement
UniKey is a one-stop AI infrastructure for the Agent era, while KeyFlow is a value settlement platform anchored to the UniKey AI ecosystem. Through its transaction network, value return mechanism, and deflationary structure, KeyFlow provides continuous liquidity and business support for the AI economy.
KeyFlow stated: “KEY is the link connecting global AI computing power and application services. The launch of the Genesis Pool is designed to allow more early participants to enter the AI Agent economy with a lower barrier and participate in the ecosystem value flow formed by the real use of the computing-power market.”
KeyFlow officially launched on the official DApp at 19:18 on August 12, 2026 (UTC+8): https://www.getkeyflow.ai. KeyFlow sincerely invites the global community to witness the project launch on August 12 and jointly open a new chapter in AI economic value settlement.
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