Review – V/H/S 2

Movie Title: V/H/S 2

Directors: Simon Barrett, Jason Eisener, Gareth Evans, Gregg Hale, Eduardo Sanchez, Timo Tjahjanto, Adam Wingard

Date Released:  January 19th, 2013 – Sundance Film Festival

Date Seen: December 18th, 2013

 

Part 1 – Spoiler Free Quickie Review

A continuation of the first VHS movies.  A set of tapes containing very odd stories, that appear to be real.  We see the frame story first and then watch VHS tapes along with them.  Some of the stories are good, some are bad, one is AMAZING.  I liked this one better than the first VHS just because of this one story.  Definitely give this one a watch if you remotely enjoyed the first VHS or just like horror anthologies.

Frame story -A couple of private investigators going to a house to try and find a missing college student and find a room set up with a bunch of VHS tapes and TV’s. Of course they start watching them and find some weird things on them.  This one doesn’t have as much “meat” to it as VHS had in the frame story, but I liked this one a bit better.  It built on their idea of the tapes (you’ll see what I mean) and I enjoyed it.

Phase 1 Clinical Trials – A guy gets a new eye implant and starts seeing weird things. This was a great story.  It was a nice amount of development, build up and climax.  It was the perfect length of everything while also making me wish that I could see more of this story.

A Ride in the Park – This is a guy who goes on an innocent bike ride through the woods and ends up getting turned into a zombie.  The cool part about this story is that we then watch everything else through his eyes – so we see literally the zombie point of view. That was about the only cool part, though. It’s a bit too quick to the action. There are a few great lines like “I got a big fucking stick!” This story I have mixed feelings about because it couldn’t decide what it wanted to be – a sort of funny zombie short, purely over the top, semi smart zombies, it just wasn’t sure.  Because of that, when it ended I was kind of glad since it just never really went anywhere. It was like the director of this one just really really wanted to make a zombie thing and so finally had the chance to do it.

Safe Haven – Who doesn’t love a good cult story?  This one goes from being a pretty dang good cult story to then being quite hilariously gory and ridiculous.  But it is exceedingly well done.  This is by far the best short in the movie, and honestly I think my favorite out of both VHS and VHS2. It just kept getting better and better. I honestly don’t want to spoil anything because it just never stops.  It’s like the gift that keeps on giving. It is the perfect length, has just enough information on the characters, does a nice amount of build up, gore, etc. This one will have something for everyone no matter what you like.

Slumber Party Alien Abduction – Mildly interesting, quick, but not one of my favorites.  It is a group of different aged kids staying at home while their parents are gone, and from the title, you can guess what happens in this section.  I’m not a big alien person, so I didn’t really care for this one.  You should also be warned that there is a dog in this one, that you will feel bad for. Just go into it knowing that.  From the title, though, you pretty much know exactly what’s going to happen.  A slumber party alien abduction.  That’s all you get. Nothing more, nothing less.  So, don’t get too excited about it unless it’s your thing.

 

Part 2 – In Depth Spoiler Ridden Review

Frame Story – I like that the people decide to check on the missing college student and break into his house late at night, because that’s always the beginning of a series of smart ideas. Also, similar to CSI episodes – does no one believe in turning on lights? I also think that I would turn off the fuzzy TV screens just because they would drive me crazy.

Phase 1 Clinical Trials – Do people actually sit that close to their video game consoles? Dang, his chair is about as close as a computer monitor. Crazy. Clarissa made me pissed off for the “I was born deaf and at 16 got a cochlear implant, and it obviously worked.”  The results wouldn’t be that astonishing. I realize this is a minor thing but it really bothered me.

A Ride in the Park – The entire phone conversation with the girlfriend was completely stupid and unrealistic.  Probably the most unrealistic part.  “Omg I’m so mad at you for not taking me out! But just say I love you and it’s all ok!” This was another case of when I couldn’t understand how people don’t see zombies and understand immediately what they are.  You’d think pretty quickly, in the event of a real outbreak you’d say something along the lines of “what the hell, is that a zombie? WHAT?!” And just get the heck out of dodge just in case.  But, this is probably why I would survive and other people wouldn’t. I do like the kind of funny parts though like the zombie tasting various parts of the first guy and discovering if they’re good or bad, like the wallet is bad but intestines are good. Then the two zombies still slightly munching on him as he wakes up. I liked it. Otherwise, I felt this one couldn’t decide what it wanted to be – zombie, funny, intelligent zombie, or what.  It was just questionable.

Safe Haven – I like that they are using the shirt button that is a completely different color than her shirt, and think no one will notice.  Especially because it’s the top button closest to her face and they’re nearly always talking to people at close range.  Sheesh people. Of course that guy at the restaurant noticed.  How could he not notice?! The crew is also very rude almost immediately upon entering the compound.  Not directly to their faces, but with the girl taking off the necklace, then them throwing it on the floor. The next thing that I found hilarious is how long the boyfriend watching in the car waited to go inside and rescue his girlfriend.  How come the second you saw that lady ripped open on your friends camera didn’t you just run in and save him or your girlfriend? He waited until the real shit went down.  Geez. But holy crap – this story was incredible.  We get cults, we get sort of rape, we get suicide pact, we get demon possession kind of, we get explosions, we get people exploding, we get a demon cutting out of a stomach, we get zombies, we get more zombies, and we get to see the demon find his daddy.  I LOVED it.

Slumber Party Alien Abduction – If you want to know what happens to the dog – no it doesn’t drown, but it does end up getting dropped as one of the kids gets abducted and you see it wheezing and covered in blood.  So that is sad.  Otherwise, nothing I care to discuss about this story.  It’s exactly what you expect which is why I think it was one of the worse stories, unless that’s what you want.

 

Overall: 6.5/10

Better than the first VHS with one story that is the best in the two movies.  They clearly upped their standards a little bit, which helped.  But really, the Safe Haven story makes this whole movie worth watching.  It is great.

Review – V/H/S

Movie Title: V/H/S

Directors: There’s about 8…

Date Released: January 22nd, 2013 (Sundance Film Festival)

Date Seen: November 3rd, 2013

 

Part 1 – Spoiler Free Quickie Review

The movie is a found footage film, obviously, as the frame story is a group of guys trying to find a tape in an old house.  Not knowing which tape it is, they watch a series of the tapes, each one more messed up than the last.  Some of the stories are good, some bad, some depend on whether or not you like that type of story (supernatural, gore, slasher, etc.).  But overall, I was pleased with this movie.  Good for the budget, kept me entertained, and a couple of the stories I would have liked to see more because the idea was cool.  It’s not great, because it did take me a few weeks to watch it, but I could just come and go, watch a story as I wanted, and leave it and be fine.  I did like that about it.  With a little better budget, the stories could be taken just that extra mile to make it much better.

Amateur Night – Not bad, cool story about some guys who try to pick up girls at a bar and tape them having sex but man does it get weird and gory fast.  One of the weirder stories, just because it’s not something you’re used to seeing.  I liked this one quite a bit.

Second Honeymoon – This one has SO much development that is SO boring.  It takes FOREVER for anything to happen, and since the set up is so long, you just don’t really care about it.  This one had a chance to be good, but failed at it. It was just way too slow.

Tuesday the 17th – This story is sort of slasher-ish, and I really liked it.  It turned out much better than expected, despite the fact that it was a bit slow to get going. I think I liked it because it was more like the horror movies I watch on a regular basis (slasher) but with a nice twist. It was one of the better stories.

The Sick Thing that Happened to Emily When She was Younger – Emily is a weirdo. You should know that before you watch this story.  One example, is that she decides to have a conversation with a ghost, but isn’t going to open her eyes, because seeing the ghost will scare her.  She’s just very very odd.  She does something even more odd, that makes you wonder about her mental state.  Clearly she is messed up.  This story was just all around the weirdest.  I wanted to see more of it though, just because it needed more explanation as to what in the world was happening. I have no idea.  After reading a synopsis, no idea.  But, that does make it kind of cool, because you get to think for yourself what you think is really going on.

10/31/98 – This one is pretty quick to get going and keeps you engaged the whole time.  By now, you know that there’s always something else going on, so since it gets to the “action” quicker, that’s much better. It also appeared to have a bit more of a budget than the other ones, because it actually had some effects other than messy camera work.  Still not a lot, and they’re probably shitty, but the camera hides that better and it does a good job of not overdoing it.

 

Part 2 – In Depth Spoiler Ridden Review

Amateur Night – I’m guessing she was a succubus? That was pretty cool.

Second Honeymoon – Seriously, that girl kept recording them making out right after the murder, then asked if she erased the tape? Then why did you even record it.

Tuesday the 17th – I wanted to know more about his video, the others I was content with the ending, but this one left me wanting more, which is why I thought it was one of the better tapes.  I wanted to know why he didn’t show up on the tape, or if it was a man, or a demon, or something.  I just really liked this one.

The Sick Thing that Happened to Emily When She was Younger – So, the girl doesn’t leave the house after that first door slamming incident when there was clearly a little kid thing on the camera? Uh, no, would leave.  Also, the camera scene, when the girl is taking pictures to see the empty room, why not just turn on the light? It is your house, you use lights other times, why not now. Because that would be smart. Also – uh – WHY ARE YOU DIGGING UNDER YOUR SKIN IN YOUR ARM YOU FREAKING WEIRDO.  But, you know, I guess because she’s freaking weirdo is why they picked her to do this stuff to.

10/31/98 – A good lesson of why you should always double check the address of a party.  That way, you don’t go walking in on an exorcism, because you know, that’s usually not a good idea.  Also, lets just punch the guy who decided to go BACK in the house.  You just saw three guys get thrown through the roof, hands coming through the wall, and demon children everywhere, so yeah, going back in the house is a bad idea.  I also am wondering why the demon girl traps them in the house.  I mean, the guys just let her out, if I was the demon, I’d let them go then escape on my own to another house to demon-haunt, not where people know me. But since she kills them anyway, I guess it doesn’t matter.

 

Overall: 6/10

If you like horror anthologies, give it a watch.  It’s not great but it is good enough to pass the time and a couple of the stories are pretty interesting.

Review – You’re Next

Movie Title: You’re Next

Director: Adam Wingard

Date Released: August 23rd, 2013 USA, 2011 Toronto International Film Festival

Date Seen: August 24th, 2013

Seen With: Anna

 

Part 1 – Spoiler Free Quickie Review

A surprisingly decent horror film that follows a family celebrating their parents 35th wedding anniversary, before being attacked by masked murderers.  Yes, you’re familiar with the story, and will guess part of the plot, but it’s done in a refreshing manner.  The characters are actually well written, and stay true to their defined personality throughout the course of the night.  I liked the movie for that fact, and the fact that we get a nice mix of emotions when the killing begins.  Usually in horror movie it seems most everyone freaks out, with one person taking charge.  No, this movie you have a mix of emotions – no one really able to establish themselves as being “in charge”, one person going into shock and sobbing uncontrollably, one woman not being able to speak or move or get over what happens, some confused but trying to help.  It’s pretty satisfying seeing how each character reacts to the situation.

The acting was done well, for the most part.  One of the brothers, Felix (Nicholas Tucci), I found a little annoying. His character was pretty odd as well. He seems to be kind of OCD, but it’s never really explained or for a point.  Really, other than showing that he’s weird too – just like most people in the family.  There was SO much family tension and awkwardness in that family that was never explained. I was kind of let down by that. Erin (Sharni Vinson) was AWESOME.  Her character was well-written, she acted it out well, and she was just a bamf.  I wanted to see so much of her character, and luckily, she’s a main feature so that was great.  You figure out pretty early that this girl can handle her shit and won’t just sit and cry like some of the others in the house.

But, on the other hand, the killings are pretty great.  There’s a lot of satisfying moments. Especially with characters not just sitting there and taking.  A couple are pretty active at trying to save their skins, and even one guy who is shot through the shoulder and passed out from blood loss manages to lend a helping hand at one point.  The plot was decent, and there actually managed to be one surprise to me at the end.  If I really would have thought ahead about what was going to happen – I probably would have figured this part out, but I was having such a good time enjoying the movie that I just sat back and enjoyed the ride.  Definitely give it a watch.

 

Part 2 – In Depth Spoiler Ridden Review

If you’re wondering who the killers are – they’re three guys hired by one of the brothers to kill everyone in the family.  Apparently, the parents are SUPER rich.  As in so rich, that they are paying the killers $200,000 each (so $600,000 for 3 killers).  If that $600,000 is just what they are paying the guys to do the dirty work, you don’t even want to think about how actually rich they are.  But the twist, is that the nice brother we come to love who disappears halfway through the movie (gone to “look for help”) is in on it as well.  Didn’t see that one coming.  But, his girlfriend who has figured out what is going on kills him.  Yay.

There’s one home alone type scene where the girl sets up traps around the house that I LOVED.  It was a home alone for grownups with nail boards at windows, an axe waiting to slam someone in the head at a door (which you get to see).  It was exceedingly satisfying.

 

Overall: 7/10

Give it a watch, it is surprisingly good and fun watching how the people all react to the situation.