Character Relationship Map: Video Violence

Characters

• 1st Store Owner (played by Gary Schwartz) — protagonist

  One of the video-store owners at the center of the first film's story.

• 2nd Store Owner (played by Chick Kaplan) — protagonist

  The other video-store owner central to the first film's setting and story.

• Customer (played by Robin Leeds) — supporting

  A customer connected to the video-store setting in the first film.

• 1st Victim (played by Paige Price) — supporting

  A victim figure in the first film's horror narrative.

• Rick Carlson (played by Kevin Haver) — supporting

  A supporting character in the first film's video-store horror setting.

• Steven Emory (played by Art Neill) — supporting

  A supporting character appearing in the first film.

• 1st Yokel (played by Bill Biach) — supporting

  A local character appearing in the first film, identified by a generic label.

• Eli (played by Uke) — supporting

  A recurring supporting character listed in both films.

• Howard (played by Bart Sumner) — minor

  A recurring character listed in both films; specific actions are not established by the available summaries.

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• 2nd Store Owner → Customer (Professional Customer Service) — Interacts with the customer at the video store
• 1st Store Owner → Customer (Professional Customer Service) — Rents the videotape to the customer
• 1st Store Owner → 2nd Store Owner (Professional Colleagues) — Work together at the video rental store

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Howard → 1st Victim (Conflict Perpetrator) — Appears as an aggressor in the videotape
• Eli → 1st Victim (Conflict Perpetrator) — Appears as an aggressor in the videotape
• 1st Yokel → 1st Victim (Conflict Perpetrator) — Appears as an aggressor in the videotape
• Steven Emory → 1st Victim (Narrative Witness) — Witnesses the violence on the tape
• Rick Carlson → 1st Victim (Narrative Witness) — Witnesses the violence on the tape
• Rick Carlson → Steven Emory (Social Friends) — The couple who discovers the violent videotape

Story Analysis

A couple's descent into obsession with a mysterious violent videotape

Plot Progression

1. The Discovery — A customer rents a mysterious videotape from a local store, setting in motion a chain of disturbing events.
2. The Descent — The couple becomes increasingly obsessed with the tape's violent content, watching it repeatedly despite growing horror.
3. The Transformation — The couple's relationship deteriorates as they become desensitized to the violence, culminating in an ambiguous ending.