6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
An ominous broadcast brings viewers forgotten nightmares of the 1980s: a disaster recovery crew unleashes the wrath of an ancient god; a lake that brings the dead back to life; a performance art piece makes contact with a creature from the beyond; an all-guns-out undead bloodbath, and a disturbing vision of videotaped murders.
Starring: Freddy Rodriguez, James Ransone, Jordan Belfi, Dani Deetté, Chelsey GrantHorror | 100% |
Thriller | 21% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1, 1.33:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
The sixth entry in this (apparently never-ending) found-footage horror franchise and the third to emulate a specific time period, Shudder's V/H/S/85 continues the trend set by other installments such as 2021's V/H/S/94 and 2022's V/H/S/99. Like most anthologies, both entries had their fair share of hits and misses, and that track record continues with the franchise's first foray into the decade of excess. Five short films by new writers and directors are featured, as well as a wraparound segment from original V/H/S contributor David Bruckner, who also produced.
"No Wake" (dir. Mike P. Nelson) is the best of the bunch, even in unfinished form as it appears here and wraps up in a later short. In it, we follow a group of twenty-somethings on a relaxed weekend trip to the lake; sadly, their day in the sun is ruined by a random shooter who stalks them from the shoreline and mortally wounds everyone. That is, until they sail right back to shore, gaping wounds and all, somehow continuing their day as if nothing happened. Narratively interesting, solidly acted, and appropriately tense at the right moments, "No Wake" a great way to kick off the film... even if "the 1980s" doesn't really have much to do with its overall plot. 3.5/5.
"God of Death" (dir. Gigi Saul Guerrero) travels south of the border, following a day in the life of a Mexican morning news crew as they prepare for their broadcast. When an earthquake all but decimates their city -- even taking out at least one member of the news team -- the remaining crew, aided by a rescue team, attempt to escape the building but end up in an undisclosed location underground, where they're met with terror of a supernatural nature. Though tied in nicely (tastelessly?) with footage from the 1985 Mexico City earthquake and home to a few admittedly good scares, "God of Death" is a slightly less effective and worthwhile effort in my book. 3/5.
"TKNOGD" (dir. Natasha Kermani) isn't as much a drop in quality as some critics might have you believe, but it's still almost inarguably the weakest one of the bunch. In it, performance artist Ada Lovelace (Chivonne Michelle) performs for a small audience and goads the arrival of the "God of Technology" by way of a VR-like device... until he shows up, that is. Though a few minutes too long even at its relatively brief length, there's still some decent entertainment value to be found here and it also has some of V/H/S/85's more seamless visual effects. 2/5.
"Ambrosia" (dir. Mike P. Nelson) is the appreciated follow-up to "No Wake", presenting viewers with portions of the same story from an alternate perspective. (I'm keeping this one vague for new viewers.) Luckily it soon continues the narrative which involves a violent standoff and at least one more resurrection. It ends a bit abruptly and is pretty goofy in the home stretch, but at this point in the film you might as well go along for the ride. 3/5.
"Dreamkill" (dir. Scott Derrickson) concerns an unusual series of grisly murders in which recordings of them are sent to a homicide
detective (Freddy Rodríguez) a day or more before they actually occur. When a suspect is brought in, the truth gradually comes out... but it's not
as interesting as you might think. Though certainly entertaining on the whole, tonally this one might be the black sheep of the bunch: it's awfully
tough to watch at times, the ending is flat, and it's the only short that plays in 16x9 widescreen (this also applies to a few appropriately grainy
Super 8 clips). Apparently, this one's also connected to his previous film, 2022's The Black Phone, so that's something.
2.5/5.
There's not much to say about this ugly-on-purpose 1080p transfer that I didn't already cover in my reviews of both V/H/S/94 and V/H/S/99 which, much like the other films in the franchise, obviously have a scuzzy analog aesthetic to keep viewers in a retro state of mind. Tracking lines, artifacts, fuzzy edges, a 1.33:1 aspect ratio*; almost everything about these short films feels authentically VHS aside from the framerate, which for some reason mimics a film-friendly 24fps rather than that format's more common 30fps as seen in your parents' home movies. As before, it's difficult to decipher where intentional shortcomings end and potential encoding issues begin... so depending on your perspective, this (again intentionally) bad-looking production could either be a 1/5 or a 5/5. I'll split the difference.
* - As mentioned above, the outsider is "Dreamkill" with a uniform 1.78:1 presentation; its "VHS" footage likely isn't panned and scanned, but more probably created from 16x9 digital video that has been intentionally degraded. As also mentioned above, sporadic scenes during this short were actually shot on Super 8 and look appropriately grainy.
Like its predecessors, V/H/S/85 thankfully doesn't attempt to mimic the notoriously thin mono or stereo capabilities of its designated source format, instead presenting a decently weighty and largely effective DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix. (Again, I'll refer you to my reviews of V/H/S/94 and V/H/S/99 for a general overview of what to expect, as the formula hasn't changed much.) Bottom line: V/H/S/85 continues to favor a distanced and somewhat basic soundstage where dialogue is concerned, occasionally (and aggressively) ramping up the sonic intensity for sporadic jump scares and other moments of tension. It's a fine effort overall and gets the job done; nothing more, nothing less.
Optional English (SDH) subtitles are included during the main feature only. A second set of English subtitles is enabled automatically to translate the Spanish dialogue in "God of Death", but they can be disabled.
Similar to previous time-specific V/H/S volumes (which have been helpfully also grouped together in a just-released triple-feature Steelbook), V/H/S/85 ships in a standard keepcase with a matching slipcover and promotional insert. Several interesting bonus features are on board, some of them being specific to individual shorts.
Shudder's latest installment in the never-ending found-footage horror franchise (which is apparently going into outer space in the next installment), V/H/S/85 carries the torch with five more short films flanked by a wraparound segment. Like before there are definite highs and lows, but overall I enjoyed this one a little more than most... not only for its slightly better batting average, but they've been sequenced with a bit more care. (Then again, I liked V/H/S/99 more than V/H/S/94, which is apparently the wrong opinion in most circles.) RLJ Entertainment's Blu-ray likewise matches earlier discs with a fitting A/V presentation and several decent extras for a relatively low asking price.
2022
2021
2014
Unrated Theatrical and Rated Versions
2013
2017
2018
Collector's Edition
2013
1988
2021
Extended Cut
2021
2021
20th Anniversary Edition
2003
2022
2016
Collector's Edition
1978
Unrated Collector's Edition
2007
1987
2003
30th Anniversary Edition | Includes "Terror in the Aisles"
1981
2014