V/H/S is one of those film series that I have heard lots about but never actually gotten around to watching. That changed today when my Blu-ray of the first in the series landed on my doorstep. It's really something I should have gotten around to watching sooner, as I love a good anthology. Anthologies are nothing without a unified concept and with V/H/S that concept is found footage. Both the wraparound segment and the five short films all use that idea to tell their stories.
The set-up for the film and wraparound story takes place within Tape 56, directed by Adam Wingard (Death Note, Blair Witch, You're Next) and written by Simon Barrett (Blair Witch, The Guest, You're Next). A group of low level career criminals who film their exploits in order to sell on the dark web are hired for what sounds like a simple job. They are to break into the house of an elderly man, in order to steal a V//H/S tape, being told that it will be obvious which tape is the one to take. Things don't go according to plan as they soon discover the corpse of the old man, as well as a pile of tapes which all seem identical. As some of the group search for the one they were hired to steal, another decides to check out some of them, which make up the various short films. Good wraparound films are always welcome, and while this initially starts off effectively, I found the short segments in between the films to not really do anything too interesting, least as a device for why the short films are being shown it worked.
It became clear with this story and the others that followed that this is very much found footage in the style of the first decade of this century. Namely lots and lots of shaky hand-cam footage and camera glitches. To be expected due to the time this was released, but I wonder if future entries in the series improve on this generic approach to found footage horrors.
It became clear with this story and the others that followed that this is very much found footage in the style of the first decade of this century. Namely lots and lots of shaky hand-cam footage and camera glitches. To be expected due to the time this was released, but I wonder if future entries in the series improve on this generic approach to found footage horrors.
The first proper short is Amateur Night, directed by David Bruckner (the new Hellraiser, The Ritual), who also co-wrote this along with Nicholas Tecosky (Siren). This one follows a group of friends who have recently gotten hold of some glasses that have a secret camera built into them. Their aim is to go to a club and pull some girls, so that they can take them back to their motel room and secretly film themselves sleeping with them. Things go down a bloody path when one of the girls they bring back to their room happens to be hiding a terrifying secret. I enjoyed this one despite lots of shaky footage. The found footage aspect felt believable and there were some great makeup and special effects, it all culminates in a fantastic looking finale.
Next is Second Honeymoon, directed and co-written by Ti West (X, Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever, The House of the Devil), and starring Sophia Takal and Joe Swanberg as a couple on vacation. This takes place in the form of a road trip the two have gone on, with their daytime adventures contrasting with the unknown horror that takes place as they sleep. I liked the part that occurs halfway through, but thought the eventual twist wasn't that exciting, mostly lacking in scares, though had a cool special effect towards the end.
Tuesday the 17th had great atmosphere to it, and some really effective looking digital effects. This was directed and written by Glenn McQuaid (I Sell The Dead) and had a group of friends heading to a remote lake at the insistence of the newest member of their group. Being the only short set out in woodland, this had a distinct look to it, I really liked how the killer lurking in the woods is never able to be shown on camera. What really let this down was the main protagonist who felt very unconvincing, and what happens also led to what appeared to be plot holes. Despite that this was still one of the better shorts to be found here.
The penultimate short is The Sick Thing That Happened to Emily When She Was Younger, and sadly that title is about the best thing to be found here. It takes the form of a webcam interaction between the titular Emily and her boyfriend, with Emily convinced her new apartment is haunted. It all leads to a bizarre twist that didn't quite work for me. That was also written by Barrett, and was directed by Swanberg (the main lead in Second Honeymoon).
With V/H/S having a near two hour run time I was beginning to get a little tired of the film, thankfully though, the final short film (which also closes out the movie as a whole) is also the very best. 10/31/98 was written, produced, and directed by the collective known as Radio Silence, and as the title suggests, this takes place on Halloween in 1998. A group of friends head to a mansion for a Halloween party, but instead they discover many horrors, including a cult who appear to be in the process of killing a chained up girl in the attic. When the action starts it really starts here, featuring lots of very entertaining digital effects, including objects flying around rooms, and spectral arms reaching up out of the floor and walls. I really enjoyed that final one and as always shows why anthologies are such a cool format to go for.
The penultimate short is The Sick Thing That Happened to Emily When She Was Younger, and sadly that title is about the best thing to be found here. It takes the form of a webcam interaction between the titular Emily and her boyfriend, with Emily convinced her new apartment is haunted. It all leads to a bizarre twist that didn't quite work for me. That was also written by Barrett, and was directed by Swanberg (the main lead in Second Honeymoon).
With V/H/S having a near two hour run time I was beginning to get a little tired of the film, thankfully though, the final short film (which also closes out the movie as a whole) is also the very best. 10/31/98 was written, produced, and directed by the collective known as Radio Silence, and as the title suggests, this takes place on Halloween in 1998. A group of friends head to a mansion for a Halloween party, but instead they discover many horrors, including a cult who appear to be in the process of killing a chained up girl in the attic. When the action starts it really starts here, featuring lots of very entertaining digital effects, including objects flying around rooms, and spectral arms reaching up out of the floor and walls. I really enjoyed that final one and as always shows why anthologies are such a cool format to go for.
I admit I had hoped for more from V/H/S, it was a collection of found footage films that were certainly from their time. While I wouldn't go as far as to say I didn't enjoy them all, some of them did have issues. It was cool however, discovering all the notable horror directors who worked on this, and with such a solid start I am excited to see how newer entries in the series pan out.
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