'V/H/S/99' Review: The FoundFootage Anthology Climbs To New Horror Heights
The first V/H/S was released in 2012 as an exciting new take on the horror genre. While avatars aren't uncommon, the idea of giving talented writers and filmmakers the freedom to explore their passion for found footage and VHS culture is great. However, the first V/H/S was uneven at best, acting more as a showcase for outlandish ideas than an interesting book. The problem became more pronounced with 2013's V /H/S/2 and 2014's V/H/S: The Viral , both of which made franchise problems more apparent. Thankfully, producer Bloody Disgusting decided to revive the franchise with V/H/S/94 , the best movie in the series, in 2021. Or at least because it's V/H/S/99 . It looks like he's finally mastered the formula.
As with V/H/S/94 , all parts are done in V/H/S /99 in the same year, helping to create a cohesive texture between the horror stories. In the case of V/H/S/99 , this means going back to the pre-millennium era, when skateboarding was still prevalent, everyone was afraid of the millennium bug that caused the end of the world, and all the young people were eager to get started. . The upcoming CKY series.
Rather than nods to a bygone era or Easter eggs in the background, distinct cultural themes of 1999 are at the center of most V/H/S/99 segments. Let's start with Maggie Levi 's chopping. And Flying Lotus 'Ozzy's Dungeon' is inspired by the legends of the Hidden Temple , creating a twisted and heartbreaking horror story that gives you a horrible new reason to cancel the show. Every V/H/S/99 director did his homework, turning V/H/S/99 from an anthology of random horror stories into a love letter for a specific year.
The V / H / S / 99 engine also speaks directly to the target audience of the franchise. While the younger generation may enjoy the horror stories in every episode of V/H/S , those who haven't grown up with a VHS player may not experience the same excitement when seeing the visual sound of the cloned tapes so clearly. Thus, creating each new V/H/S movie around a certain year, when cassette tape was still dominating the home theater market, provides the viewer with another nostalgic excuse to relive the bygone days.
The biggest improvement in V/H/S/99 over the previous films is the lack of an overarching plot. The first four V/H/S films had a major plot that attempted to give every horror story in the movie a supernatural origin. While the effort is commendable, the overall story has always been the worst aspect of any V/H/ S, cutting off the flow of experience without adding anything significant. However, in V/H/S/99 , we only get a short frame-by-frame animation of Tyler McIntyre from The Gawkers, which has nothing to do with the other clips. Each V/H/S movie is simply a collection of individual stories, and this gives V/H/S/99 a distinct advantage over its predecessors. Plus, each short animation is a hilarious laugh before the next scary story, giving the viewer a chance to catch their breath instead of asking them to remember all the events of the Broken Umbrella story.
Of course, V/H/S/99 is still a horror anthology, which means we'll see some clips that are better than others. For example, Johannes Roberts ' "Suicide Suggestion" is one of the most disturbing pieces in the entire series, dealing with the horrors of being buried alive. Vanessa and Joseph Winter took the hilarious part crown with "To Hell and Back," and it's no surprise that the duo brought us the coolest feature on Deadstream this year. Horror of found tires.
However, it's worth noting that while some parts shine brighter than the rest, each story in V/H/S/99 is a pleasant surprise for horror fans, and they're all worth watching. The biggest star of the show is the creature design. The monsters in every part are a nightmare, and both V/H/S Sirens and V/H/ S / 94's Raatma will have to compete with some new contenders for the best place to live in the franchise.
V/H/S/99 still has some problems with most anthologies, as the pace of the film depends on the pace of each story. The 108-minute V/H/S/99 might test the patience of some viewers. Still, it's the best thing the franchise has given us, and we can't wait to see the new V/H/S/85 horror. Next year will bring us.
Grade: B +
V/H/S opens October 20, 1999 in Shudder. Watch the trailer for the movie below:
