Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

V/H/S/85 Blu-ray Movie Review

Suck it, Betamax.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III March 17, 2024

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.

"Total Copy" (dir. David Bruckner) is the obligatory wraparound segment, kicking off the film and intermittently reappearing between each featured short before a brief epilogue. Essentially, it presents footage of a young boy (?) named Rory, who's been taken to fictional Stamer University for scientific research. Entertained almost exclusively by exercise videos, his form gradually changes from human to something else entirely. It's capably made, maintains a sense of dread that keeps viewer interest between short films, and the ending gave me a good chuckle... but in most other respects, it's a bit too minor and formless to leave a lasting impression. Rating: 2.5/5.

"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.

V/H/S/85 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

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.

V/H/S/85 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

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.

V/H/S/85 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

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.

• Audio Commentary - The only "whole film" extra is this energetic group track hosted by Bloody Disgusting's "Boo Crew" podcast contributors Leone D'Antonio, Trevor Shand, and Lauren Shand with additional participation by almost all of the shorts' writers, directors, and producers including David Bruckner, Mike P. Nelson, Gigi Saul Guerrero, and several others. The first-hand contributors don't just pop in during their respective shorts, either: they stay on board the whole time, asking questions and often offering praise for their fellow creative types. It's a fun and engaging "family first" commentary that covers a solid amount of ground, ranging from the technical (equipment used, special effects), to story concepts, casting, and more. Definitely worth a listen.

• Uncut Super 8 "Dreamkill" Footage (15:36) - Presented without sound by design, this is the uninterrupted Super 8 footage seen during the final short and, as such, contains more than a few cut pieces of particularly gruesome footage. Not for the faint of heart, but great for lovers of squishy practical effects.

• Uninterrupted Cut - "Total Copy" (16:48) - A start-to-finish version of the wraparound segment.

• Uninterrupted Cut - "No Wake / Ambrosia" (29:18) - Nothing new here either, but still nice to have.

V/H/S/85 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

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.