LogFAQs > #976546557

25. V/H/S 85 (Shudder)

In what seems like another yearly release... the new V/H/S movie is out! And this has now become something to always look forward to, in my opinion. Especially since this one has a couple surprising directors in it.

How I normally do these is by going over the movies, then saying what the directors have done after it. So let's keep that up. I will say, however, this might be the most consistent quality V/H/S movie yet though.

The first story is by Mike P. Nelson, in which a group of campers are all going out to a camp by a lake. There are signs warning people not to go swimming in the lake though, which they all defy. This one threw me for a fucking loop. I never would have expected any of this happened. It was done extremely well and I loved how it played out. Freaking gruesome stuff here and I thought it was a great first story here.

The second story is by Gigi Saul Guerrero who does a Mexican-themed story where a giant earthquake destroys a news building that sends them into an underground path. What they find there is unbelievable. And I like this one a lot too. I think it goes a little slow, but when the shit hits the fan, it's extremely unique and I loved how it played out.

The third story is by Natasha Kermani where a woman is on stage claiming God is dead, and he's been replaced by a new God of Technology, and she shows them a Virtual Reality world to meet this God. This one is simple, but it's very jarring and I loved how it played out too. I don't have much to say--I just appreciated this short little story that does everything you need it to.

The fourth story is by Mike P. Nelson again, and it relates to his other story. This one is about a teenager who is meeting up with her family for a big party. And she's going to continue a tradition they all do. It gets insane. I thought this one was excellent, and the tie-in with the previous story was great too and really surprised me. Did not expect it or make that connection, but it's great.

The fifth story is by the legend Scott Derrickson, who is probably the biggest director they've gotten for these movies so far. This one is very inspired by Sinister, in which a home invasion murder plays out, and we're actually watching a VHS tape that was sent to the detective a week earlier that depicted the murder that just played out. This one was awesome, and I loved being able to see Scott Derrickson do these home video sort of shorts again, being such a huge fan of Sinister. This story plays out rather fun, it turns into some really grisly stuff that Derrickson probably hasn't been allowed to do lately. I think this might be the best one out of the whole bunch. James Ransone and a teenager related to Derrickson, maybe his son, were in it.

The framing story is by David Bruckner, another big director, where a bunch of scientists have a young boy watching TV and researching him, trying to see if they can have a scientific breakthrough. And uh, they sure do alright. This one is simple, but it's pretty fun. Easy watch, pretty funny

So like I said, I think this one is one of the most consistent entries. I don't think any of them hit the peaks of this series and really blew me away, or kept me as enthralled. But it's all just consistently good stuff. There's not a single one I was disappointed in or did not enjoy. There's usually at least one of them I don't care for that much, but this one clears. It's definitely one of the better entries, and I think you're missing out if you don't watch this one, especially if you like Scott Derrickson movies!

So what's everyone done before?

Mike P. Nelson directed the newest entry in the Wrong Turn franchise that came out a couple years ago, but nothing else notable. I haven't seen it yet, but I'd be interested to now.

Gigi Saul Guerrero has directed Bingo Hell, an Amazon Prime movie I wasn't interested in at all. She also did Culture Shock from the Into the Dark series I haven't really touched in these marathon topics. I remember enjoying that one though.

Natasha Kermani directed Lucky on Shudder, which I thought was an awesome movie. I was thinking about watching it again this month too. She's also set to direct Abraham's Boys, which is based on a Joe Hill story, who you may as the author of The Black Phone, recently adapted by Scott Derrickson!

Speaking of, Scott Derrickson has a large pedigree. Most recently he did The Black Phone. He's also done The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Sinister, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Deliver Us From Evil, and Doctor Strange. Upcoming, he's set to direct a movie called The Gorge, which is supposed to be a clever romantic action movie. Anya Taylor-Joy, Miles Teller, and Sigourney Weaver are all set to star in it.

And finally, David Bruckner who got his start mostly with the V/H/S franchise. He did the Siren entry in the first one and the follow up movie based on it. He also did The Ritual, The Night House (which I absolutely love), and the reboot of Hellraiser that was very well-received.

So yeah, the V/H/S franchise since returning after a lengthy hiatus has done nothing but hit with each new entry. It's a yearly tradition that I'm always excited to watch, and I'm glad there's a platform like this where people can get their short films noticed. While I said it's most consistent, I don't think it's my favorite overall entry (which is V/H/S 94), but it's definitely worth checking out if you're looking for an easy and fun anthology movie to watch!

Rating: 8/10

And don't forget, Hail Raatma