Alright, sorry for this. I rarely review new mainstream productions, but my fascination for fake footage is something that's stronger than keeping the cred up for the blog. So sorry, once again. I kinda liked the first V/H/S, even if it was terribly uneven and nowadays I can't hardly remember the stories! Which is a bad thing. V/H/S 2, first titled S-V/H/S - a superiour and wittier title, but I guess edit changed because the marketing people at Magnet Releasing just don't think we, the audience, can't understand something like that.
It's all about the money. As usual.
Anyway, I'm gonna stop whining. At least the sequel gives the production a more even feeling. None of the stories are terrible bad (like the awful Tuesday the 17th in the first movie) and there's a sense that they've at least put the shorts in an order that will make it work better - I mean, it starts with a decent one, then brings on the bad one and the finishes things off with two great ones (not counting the wrap-around story). In Tape 49 a private investigator and his assistant discovers a house filled with TV-monitors... and tapes. Of course. They start to watch the tapes and... well, we're introduced to the first story: Phase I Clinical Trials. A guy gets an artificial eye after a terrible accident, the problem is that he's starting to see nasty, nasty dead people - and they obviously wants to attack him over and over again. A typical, standard story. Nothing special but still quite effective.
Next up is A Ride in the Park, which comes out as a disappointment considering the excellent Eduardo Sánchez is one of the directors. The idea is fun - a (cute) cyclist with a gopro on his helmet runs into a bunch of zombies, gets infected himself and then we follow his zombie-life when he eats his way through an idyllic park area. It's very light-weight and the gore feels quite cheap. I wasn't bored, but I expected more! WAY better is Safe Haven, directerd by the super-talented duo of directors Timo Tjahjanto (Macabre) and Gareth Evans (Merantau & The Raid). A documentary crew goes shoot a movie about a sect and gets stuck in the middle of the... well, you can maybe guess. It gets very gory, insane and intensive. THE best one ever in the so far short-lived VHS-franchise!
Last, not but not least, is Slumber Party Alien Abduction! Shot from the point-of-view of a gang of boys having a blast making fun of one of the boy's sisters and her boyfriend during a slumber party.Everything is fun and games until there's god damn aliens attacking! Creepy fuckers to! A huge part of this episode is also shot with a gopro camera attached to the family's small one-kick dog!
V/H/S 2 sure leads up to two fine stories, but the wrap-around stuff doesn't hold up. Nice acting, but like the first one it comes of as quite pointless. I wish they invested a bit more time on the story there.
Not the best one I've seen, but I still love the mix of anthology movie and fake footage. It's a fun idea and I'm sure it will end up in yet another sequel. Or two. Watch it for the two last episodes. Intensive, crazy stuff - no zombies, no ghosts - just the way I want it nowadays.
"Alright, sorry for this. I rarely review new mainstream productions, but my fascination for fake footage is something that's stronger than keeping the cred up for the blog. So sorry, once again."
I don´t mind mainstream reviews myself......I see quite alot of mainstream productions from time to time.
I don´t think you should worry too much......after all it´s your blog, and what can be more fun then breaking the rules now and again...?
"I kinda liked the first V/H/S,"
I haven´t seen it yet, neither have I seen this one.
"Last, not but not least, is Slumber Party Alien Abduction! Shot from the point-of-view of a gang of boys having a blast making fun of one of the boy's sisters and her boyfriend during a slumber party.Everything is fun and games until there's god damn aliens attacking! Creepy fuckers to!"
Say what...?
Now that sounds fun!
"V/H/S 2 sure leads up to two fine stories, but the wrap-around stuff doesn't hold up. Nice acting, but like the first one it comes of as quite pointless. I wish they invested a bit more time on the story there."
Yeah, but anthology movies are usuallly uneven, but fun to watch.
"Not the best one I've seen, but I still love the mix of anthology movie and fake footage. It's a fun idea and I'm sure it will end up in yet another sequel. Or two. Watch it for the two last episodes. Intensive, crazy stuff - no zombies, no ghosts - just the way I want it nowadays."
I guess that´s one of the better ideas of this franchise, the mix of found footage and anthology movie.
If they do decide on sequels, then I´m hoping we get to see more wellknown names, like Carpenter, Craven, Cohen, etc.
I would like that, good review and thanks.
Posted by: Megatron | June 15, 2013 at 22:41