Film Review: The V/H/S Franchise
Sep. 9th, 2024 04:28 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rogueslayer452V/H/S is a found footage horror movie franchise that I have recently discovered. Its entire premise is that it's an anthology within an anthology, with each movie installment focusing on a series of short films done by different filmmakers with a frame narrative interwoven in between. The beauty of this franchise is that there's no continuity between them, so you don't have to watch them in order to understand what is going on. That's what I did, since out of all the movies I've only watched four so far: V/H/S/94, V/H/S: Viral, V/H/S/99, and V/H/S/85. Those are what I'll be talking about today.
As someone who enjoys watching short films, especially short horror/scifi films, this franchise absolutely draws me in. I like the storytelling format, the way that it truly feels like we're watching something on a grainy VHS tape. V/H/S/85 is probably the more effective one with the way it was shot and edited to have the convincing effect. I truly like how experimental it is, since it can range from being ridiculous and campy to outright intriguing and creative with its concepts due to having various filmmakers, with varying degrees of quality in their execution. I also like that the franchise has a more supernatural and otherworldly vibe to them, which in a way is the only thing that ties all of them together. I like to think that they all exist in the same universe, where somehow there are these bizarre and otherworldly events are occurring and being documented. Plus, I like how there's little explanation given for what is happening and why. You're just thrust in the middle of these "what the fuck" scenarios and are along for the ride, which makes it fun to watch, personally speaking. I also like that it has layers of comedy, too, dark comedy at times but also just sometimes ridiculous moments that contribute to the outrageous concepts which depending on execution works incredibly well.
Every short story featured in the franchise is unique in their own way, some are better than others though it mostly depends on personal preference. My favorite shorts from each are:
V/H/S/94: "Storm Drain", which has Anna Hopkins portraying yet another journalist (it must be in her contract since she does these kinds of roles very well) and although much shorter than I would've liked it was still quite effective, and the creature design for "Raatma" is perfectly grotesque.
"The Subject" is an Indonesian scifi short and is a personal favorite because I have a soft spot for anything involving robots or machines that are sentient, although this one features a human woman who was kidnapped and mutilated to become a half human, half mechanical hybrid and she has to fight her way to freedom. Most of it is shot through her perspective, so it looks like a first-person shooter video game. I couldn't help but get emotional and root for the poor woman and for the only one of the police force who tried to help her while everyone else seemed to view her as a monster.
V/H/S: Viral: "Parallel Monsters" is quite a memorable and unique one by a Spanish director, it's bizarre and grotesque in such an interesting way, I like that the doppelganger lives in a parallel world that seems identical and normal until we see that it's more demonic. The monster genitalia is perhaps such a fascinating and unique concept particularly with the design itself, that this could only work as a short film.
(Apparently V/H/S: Viral isn't well liked by most fans, which I guess I can understand since it does kind of break the theme of things being filmed on tape rather than digital, however I did like the frame narrative and the concept of something going viral causing harm and damage, spreading like a virus from person to person. So while not the best in the franchise I was fine with it, it kept me entertained.)
V/H/S/99: "Shredding", this one I like purely because of the vibe alone of the punk rock aspect, and that seeing these rude kids get their comeuppance after repeatedly being disrespectful to the dead. Also, Bitch Cat is such a dope name for a band.
"Ozzy's Dungeon" is worth it for the ending alone, honestly. That smirk on the girl as she got her revenge through her wish against those who wronged her was satisfying.
"To Hell And Back" was very creative with how they actually showed people who accidentally got transported into Hell and having to make their way back, it truly makes the terrain very oppressive and claustrophobic. I really liked the character of Mabel, the actress was delightfully strange and it makes me curious about who she is.
V/H/S/85: "No Wake" and "Ambrosia" are two shorts that are connected together, which is the first in the franchise and I liked how it was spaced out so once you got to "Ambrosia" it all clicked together, which I liked a whole lot. It makes the narrative connect together nicely.
Final Thoughts: The V/H/S franchise will most likely not be for everyone, however I thoroughly have been enjoying watching them. I remember being mildly curious after seeing some things from it a while back, but never sought it out myself until now. I have yet to see the first two (V/H/S and V/H/S/2) so it'll be interesting to compare those to the rest in the franchise when I finally do. When it comes to which of the franchise is my favorite, that's hard to say. I kind of lump them all together as being highly enjoyable for different reasons. If I were to choose though, I think I would rank V/H/S/94 a bit higher since it was the first of the series I watched and the emotions I felt from "The Subject" which remains the best longest short of the franchise, in my opinion.
As someone who enjoys watching short films, especially short horror/scifi films, this franchise absolutely draws me in. I like the storytelling format, the way that it truly feels like we're watching something on a grainy VHS tape. V/H/S/85 is probably the more effective one with the way it was shot and edited to have the convincing effect. I truly like how experimental it is, since it can range from being ridiculous and campy to outright intriguing and creative with its concepts due to having various filmmakers, with varying degrees of quality in their execution. I also like that the franchise has a more supernatural and otherworldly vibe to them, which in a way is the only thing that ties all of them together. I like to think that they all exist in the same universe, where somehow there are these bizarre and otherworldly events are occurring and being documented. Plus, I like how there's little explanation given for what is happening and why. You're just thrust in the middle of these "what the fuck" scenarios and are along for the ride, which makes it fun to watch, personally speaking. I also like that it has layers of comedy, too, dark comedy at times but also just sometimes ridiculous moments that contribute to the outrageous concepts which depending on execution works incredibly well.
Every short story featured in the franchise is unique in their own way, some are better than others though it mostly depends on personal preference. My favorite shorts from each are:
V/H/S/94: "Storm Drain", which has Anna Hopkins portraying yet another journalist (it must be in her contract since she does these kinds of roles very well) and although much shorter than I would've liked it was still quite effective, and the creature design for "Raatma" is perfectly grotesque.
"The Subject" is an Indonesian scifi short and is a personal favorite because I have a soft spot for anything involving robots or machines that are sentient, although this one features a human woman who was kidnapped and mutilated to become a half human, half mechanical hybrid and she has to fight her way to freedom. Most of it is shot through her perspective, so it looks like a first-person shooter video game. I couldn't help but get emotional and root for the poor woman and for the only one of the police force who tried to help her while everyone else seemed to view her as a monster.
V/H/S: Viral: "Parallel Monsters" is quite a memorable and unique one by a Spanish director, it's bizarre and grotesque in such an interesting way, I like that the doppelganger lives in a parallel world that seems identical and normal until we see that it's more demonic. The monster genitalia is perhaps such a fascinating and unique concept particularly with the design itself, that this could only work as a short film.
(Apparently V/H/S: Viral isn't well liked by most fans, which I guess I can understand since it does kind of break the theme of things being filmed on tape rather than digital, however I did like the frame narrative and the concept of something going viral causing harm and damage, spreading like a virus from person to person. So while not the best in the franchise I was fine with it, it kept me entertained.)
V/H/S/99: "Shredding", this one I like purely because of the vibe alone of the punk rock aspect, and that seeing these rude kids get their comeuppance after repeatedly being disrespectful to the dead. Also, Bitch Cat is such a dope name for a band.
"Ozzy's Dungeon" is worth it for the ending alone, honestly. That smirk on the girl as she got her revenge through her wish against those who wronged her was satisfying.
"To Hell And Back" was very creative with how they actually showed people who accidentally got transported into Hell and having to make their way back, it truly makes the terrain very oppressive and claustrophobic. I really liked the character of Mabel, the actress was delightfully strange and it makes me curious about who she is.
V/H/S/85: "No Wake" and "Ambrosia" are two shorts that are connected together, which is the first in the franchise and I liked how it was spaced out so once you got to "Ambrosia" it all clicked together, which I liked a whole lot. It makes the narrative connect together nicely.
Final Thoughts: The V/H/S franchise will most likely not be for everyone, however I thoroughly have been enjoying watching them. I remember being mildly curious after seeing some things from it a while back, but never sought it out myself until now. I have yet to see the first two (V/H/S and V/H/S/2) so it'll be interesting to compare those to the rest in the franchise when I finally do. When it comes to which of the franchise is my favorite, that's hard to say. I kind of lump them all together as being highly enjoyable for different reasons. If I were to choose though, I think I would rank V/H/S/94 a bit higher since it was the first of the series I watched and the emotions I felt from "The Subject" which remains the best longest short of the franchise, in my opinion.
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