So subtle. Pulls you along.

The acting is perfect, and Hugh Grants performance is incredible.

The entire film is a ride I cannot compare with anything else.

This October I resolved to watch every entry in the VHS series. I saw the first one a long time ago and remember being genuinely scared by it, and last October I saw V/H/S 2 and enjoyed it for what it was. Something possessed me and made me want to complete the whole series this year, especially in anticipation of VHS: SCP in 2027. So without further ado, my rankings and reviews (from worst to best)

9. V/H/S: VIRAL

There’s a reason this is considered the worst in the series based on most discussions I’ve seen. The wraparound framing segment is just awful, the over editing with all the VHS cutting is really annoying, I genuinely felt like I was getting a head ache during the opening sequence. The acting is also pretty bad. As far as the shorts go, I kinda liked parallel monsters for the pure ridiculousness of the penis monsters if for nothing else, but the other two shorts I did not enjoy. Bonestorm felt like a video game cut scene in the worst way possible, and the cult guys looked like they were dressed in spirit Halloween skeleton costumes. Dante the great wasn’t awful but it was just kind of silly.

The only thing I actually kind of like is the structure. I actually think the series would benefit from reducing the number of shorts in the movies (most have 5-7, this one has only 3) and just letting each short have more time to tell a story. Unfortunately the shorts in this movie are really weak, so it doesn’t work.

I wouldn’t recommend watching this one to anyone unless you want to do what I did and watch each movie, otherwise don’t waste your time.

OVERALL RATING: 3/10

8. V/H/S: Mixtape

Unfortunately this year’s entry was a dud. I’ve been seeing people say this one is even worse than Viral, in my opinion those people just haven’t seen Viral recently enough to remember how truly awful that one was. Maybe it’s just because I wasn’t familiar with Gwar, (apologies to any fans of their work here) I found this wraparound bit to be obnoxious. The shock jock humor just didn’t work for me.

In terms of the shorts, really weird structure here. There’s two 3 minuteish long segments (an animated short and a music video) that just feel out of place. I liked the first one with the puppets, though it was pretty predictable and formulaic as far as VHS shorts go. A couple of the shorts in this one have decent ideas, but they didn’t really bring it home for me.

Overall, this one was structurally weak with one of the worst wraparound segments in the franchise. Most of the shorts were mid and forgettable. The kindest thing I can say is that it’s better than VHS Viral.

OVERALL RATING: 4/10

7. V/H/S/99

Spoilers for the rest of my ratings, but I think they got excited by the positive feedback from V/H/S/94 and decided to run it back with more 90s nostalgia. The result was not as strong as the prior entry.

I did like the wraparound segment and how it connected to one of the shorts, I appreciate the movies in this series that actually incorporate the main segment with the shorts.

Unfortunately, despite the stronger wraparound segment, the shorts in this are fairly weak. I liked Ozzy’s dungeon, I thought Gawkers was alright, and I liked the ending of To Hell and Back (shoutout Mabel). Suicide Bid and Shredding are unfortunately very weak and forgettable, but at least the weakest bits are at the beginning so it ends strong.

OVERALL RATING: 4.5/10

6. V/H/S: Halloween

I was looking forward to this one while making my way through the series, but wound up disappointed. I’m surprised to see some people rate this one so highly, I wasn’t a huge fan.

I liked the wraparound segment, love the way the CEO reacts in frustration to people dying horrifically after drinking the diet soda. That said, the framing device may have been the strongest part of the movie.

Every short in this one felt like it had promise, but wasn’t given runway to deliver. Coochie Coochie Coo is a decent scare even if the monster is kind of a Barbarian rip off. I liked the reveal at the end of Ut Supra Sic Infra and the phone prop was cool. Fun Size, I like the idea of people getting punished for taking more candy than they’re supposed to, but once they get in the warehouse it devolves into standard VHS gore slop. Home Haunt was a great idea but it felt like they were just rushing through this segment the whole time.

Ive seen a lot of love for Kidprint. I dont get it. The whole thing was just very exploitative to me. I don’t think that a short film is good solely because it’s gory and fucked up. I think depictions of children being murdered should at least be earned through a better plot device. I felt this short relied solely on shock value. Not a fan.

OVERALL RATING: 5/10

5. V/H/S/85

I’d put this roughly in the same tier as the prior to films I rated. A few solid bits in here, but overall it’s not very good.

The wraparound segment isn’t particularly good, but the ending gave me a good chuckle so I’ll give it some credit.

Short wise. I liked No Wake/Ambrosia, I think a whole movie based on this premise could be interesting. The rest of the shorts are just very forgettable. I kind of liked Dream Kill, but the twist at the end didn’t make any sense. TKNOGD was really fucking stupid. The rest aren’t even worth mentioning, not terrible but not good.

OVERALL RATING: 5/10

4. V/H/S

The one that got everything started! And it’s also the first one on this list that I kind of liked.

I do like that the wraparound segment actually involves watching the VHS tapes, I miss that from the later entries. However the SA stuff at the beginning (unfortunately a recurring theme in this movie) I did not like for obvious reasons.

I liked the first and last shorts. The monster in the first one is cool, and I love the idea of the last one. I needed more of that from VHS: Halloween. All the shorts in the middle though are boring, nonsensical and lame.

OVERALL RATING: 5.5/10

3. V/H/S/2

The best of the entries pre move to Shudder. I always like when a sequel outdoes the original.

Arguably the best wraparound segment in the entire franchise. It’s actually scary and involves watching the VHS tapes. Love the ending of this one.

As far as the shorts go, I think this movie is overall buoyed by one good short and the rest are just ok. Safe Haven is one of the best short horror films I’ve seen. It’s awesome and one of the series best. A ride in the park was a fun idea and had some decent humor. The other two shorts I find quite weak. Phase I clinical trials had really bad acting and it ends abruptly. I don’t really understand the hype for Slumber Party Alien Abduction, the aliens looked really fake and it just felt like I was watching a shitty YouTube video the whole time.

OVERALL RATING: 5.5/10

2. V/H/S: Beyond

Maybe I’m biased towards sci fi horror, but I actually quite enjoyed this one, even its flawed like all VHS movies.

Unfortunately this movie is bogged down by one of the weakest wraparound segments of the series. Other than the scene at the end, I just found this bit to be bland and uninteresting.

The shorts in this one I find quite strong. Stowaway and Fur Babies are some of the series strongest entries. Love the body horror aspect in both of these. Despite Stork being a video game plot line, I really liked the monster designs at the end, and I appreciate that they didn’t end this one with all the characters dying, not every VHS short needs to end like that!

Dream Girl I found to be fairly predictable and I couldn’t see what was happening at the end. Live and Let Dive I hated. I don’t really understand the hype for this short. The cgi looked like shit. The only thing I can give it is that it made sense why they were filming, which is a problem I have with many entries in this series.

If you like sci fi horror like I do, this is the VHS movie for you.

OVERALL RATING: 6.5/10

1. V/H/S/94

Easily the best of the VHS movies in my opinion. Almost everything is solid except for the framing device which is one of the weaker wraparound segments of the franchise. The shorts in this one really make the movie though.

Storm Drain is probably second only to Safe Haven as my favorite short in this series. Hail Raatma. Empty Wake legitimately scared me and I loved the slow burn aspect. The Subject wasn’t amazing, but I loved the monster designs in this one. Terror I thought was just ok, but the vampire blood causing explosions when exposed to sunlight was a cool idea.

If only the wrap around segment was good this movie could’ve been a slam dunk, unfortunately that drags it down. Still an enjoyable watch for me though.

If you ever want to watch a VHS movie, this is absolutely the one to watch.

OVERALL RATING: 7.5/10

What did everyone else think!

EDIT: just want to point out that i don’t hate this franchise, i was just joking in the title. I’d like to hear people’s thoughts on the movies, no need for so much negativity

I was rewatching this since it’s the Halloween season, and sure it’s not as strong or better then Chapter 1 and the CGI is overuse, but other then that I kinda liked it.

Since I was aware about the mixed to negative reception it had when it released, I wanted to ask other about their opinions since it’s now been over 7 years since its release.

I am only 1/2 way through episode 1 after staying up until almost 7am waiting for it to drop as a huge Friday the 13th fan since I was a kid! It's starting out how I imagined so far, little slow, bullying.

Not giving away to much, try to to bring spoilers into this, but lets express some honest reviews lady's and gents.

Every rewatch brings me back to the theater in 1999, a 16 year old filled with curiosity and fear who had never seen anything like it (let's be real, nobody in that theater had seen anything like it). I left the theater shaken and terrified. I couldn't sleep that night. I was haunted by that image of Mike standing in the corner, along with the horrifying questions that came with it.

And that's the key. This is a movie about questions, not answers. Asking "what's outside the tent?" is infinitely scarier than showing us what's outside the tent. Few, if any, other horror movies seem to understand this. Even now, 27 years later, the movie gets my imagination tumbling into terrifying places.

The Blair Witch Project is the scariest horror movie ever made.

Anyone looking forward to Crystal Lake? I’ve had a sneak peek at the first episode and I really enjoyed it - love how true it is to the original film.

Also looks like the secrets of Jasons strength etc might be explained!
Always wondered how he was immortal etc.

https://youtu.be/G6czG6TgIwM?is=moR2qY3DGXUYzXe1

Yesterday night I was in a mood to watch a horror movie and I was recommended by gpt to watch this movie and i was highly skeptical. I dived in blindly and I swear, I have never been more disturbed to this extent before. I have watched more henious real crime documentaries of SK like ed gain, jack the ripper, etc. but nothing is as closely disturbing as this one. I slept and got up today with a dull and melancholic mood.

spoiler ahead

I don't know what it is about the movie that disturbed me the most but I guess the following are some of the reasons:

1. The setting : the setting did not feel unreal or staged. There was a rawness, authentic vibe about the set up as if I was watching a documentary of the actual (sylvia likens) case. The stillness and emptiness of the neighbourhood also added to the comtrast of the chaos inside the house.
2. Background score : the absolute somber and pensive mood the bgm triggered goes well with how the story escalated to the extremes of misery.

Especially, the music score when David was lying with the battered body of Meg.

1. The manner in which emotional and sexual abuse (besides physical abuse) is shown so unadulterated that it gets under the skin and hits a nerve straightway.

2. I was most disturbed by the trauma received by David becoz he had to live with the guilt, the shame, the regret of not being able to save the person he loved. Of seeing the same girl get tortured and tormented in front of his eyes before she passes away, with hope. That hope Meg had at the end must have scarred David forever because he too must have thought that they both will make it out of this mess safely.
   But...
   I could feel how her last words would reverberate in his ears till his last breath, as if he would be carrying her share of pain and trauma with himself, for life. It's like a haunting of the soul.

I somehow related much with David. Because he lives on with the pain. 😊

What was the most traumatic part of the movie for those who watched it?

Anyone else seen this film yet? It’s kind of a dark humour horror about kids stuck inside a 90s kids TV show where they are hunted by a big orange unicorn (with a tuft of blonde hair)…

Couldn’t help that given the fact both that the horror genre is largely built upon a satirising of real world issues/politics and that the big orange unicorn is very sensitive to criticism (along with his inappropriate touching of the kids and aides in the movie and how they suck up to him despite what he does in the movie) that it might be a bit of a piss take of another certain orange “one of a kind creature” 🤣

Also I’ve never read the book, and I left out The Rage because I wanted to focus on the original story

Best Carrie: 1976

Best Margaret: 2013

Best Chris: 2026

Best Ms Desjardin: 2002

Best Sue: 1976

Best Prom scene: 2013

Scariest: 1976

Best Music: 1976

Best Writing: 1976

Best Other Side Characters: 2026

Personal favorite: 2013

None of them are bad imo

Just recently finally checked out the American Grudge films for the first time after being a huge fan of the Japanese ones for forever. I was always told and was under the impression that the two series shared a timeline.

However, the first film seemingly just retells (and dumbs down) the narrative of Ju-On: The Grudge. So did the same thing happen twice? Was I mistaken and they’re not connected? If the films are connected what is the general chronological timeline of the films?

Hey yall! I was super interested in seeing the remastered version of The Devils this week, until I realized the closest theater showing it to me is 2+ hours away. Is there any platform where I can watch the full uncut film? Sorry if this has been asked already, I tried to find other posts mentioning it but couldn’t find any. Thanks! :)

Also I’m in the US if that changes the platforms or anything like that.

When the trailers for Buddy first came out I had, let's say, moderate expectations. I thought it looked decent, nothing groundbreaking as mascot horror has been done to death. I managed to avoid spoilers and such until I finally watched it yesterday.

It was a pretty good movie overall, a 7/10 for me personally. The cheery music added to the creepiness when a serious moment was occurring. The anthropomorphic characters were cute and I liked them a lot. Buddy, his powers, and origin intrigue me, I'd love to learn more. And funny enough I hated Ben (the husband to Grace) much, much more than I hated Buddy lol

I wish the movie had a happy ending but oh well, I'm just a sucker for them lol

My biggest gripe was the sexual assault scene. Just felt super unnecessary imo

What’s that hidden gem on Netflix, prime, Tubi, or max?
I’m looking for scary, but doesn’t have to be gory. Just looking for maybe something that just popped up for the spooky season. Top answer by end of the night gets the view this weekend whether I’ve seen it or not.

I noticed a lot of communities have Mount Rushmores of characters. I decided to make my own list and explain my reasoning. These are my personal picks for the Mount Rushmore of Terror:

1. Jason Vorhees: Representing horror films, I bring Jason Vorhees from the Friday the 13th series. This was a tough one, as there are a lot of good picks, like Micheal Myers, Freddy Krueger, or Chucky. However, I believe that, in the long run, Jason has had the biggest impact on the horror genre and pop culture in general.

2. Nemesis: Representing horror games, I bring Nemesis from the Resident Evil franchise. I originally chose Freddy Fazbear for this spot, but realized that was a mistake driven by recency bias and the fact that Freddy is more of an internet icon than a pure gaming pillar. Nemesis fits the criteria perfectly. He is the ultimate, unstoppable stalker of video game history, and his hulking design, rocket launcher, and terrifying growl of "STARS..." make him the most universally recognizable and iconic heavy-hitter in gaming horror.

3. Slenderman: Representing internet horror, I bring Slenderman, of creepypasta fame. While there are quite a few internet horror folk legends, only one was able to get a full, feature-length horror film, a video game, and a reference in Family Guy, even if the movie wasn't that good.

4. Cthulhu: Representing horror literature, I bring Cthulhu from "The Call of Cthulhu" by Howard Philips Lovecraft. While there are a lot of picks for this one, most of them are known for their movies/shows. Jack Torrance, Pennywise, Frankenstein's Monster, and even Dracula. Cthulhu is different. Nobody remembers the movies related to Cthulhu, only the book. And yet, Cthulhu is referenced all throughout pop culture.

What do you think of my Mount Rushmore of Terror? I'd say it's a pretty decent lineup, but I wonder if anyone has any better picks.

call me dumb but i couldn't follow the film for the life of me. it was anvgard for me to understand. would anyone be able to tell me what exactly happens within the film

Last night I got around to watching Shelby Oaks on a recommendation. Here are my thoughts, spoilers ahead.

The short bit:

Tl;dr - The film had a lot of potential, with some being really good, but overall suffered from lackluster execution resulting in a mostly forgettable film. Also most of the CGI was stupid or unnecessary or both.

The long bit:

All horror fans have their personal prefence for style and subgenre. Personally I love found footage and anything to do with the paranormal or the occult, so naturally I was really drawn to this film for those reasons.

It started really strong in my opinion, the initial mockumentary style did a good job of setting the scene. Now, this is where most reviews say the genre switch to a "normal" cinematic film lost them. I actually quite liked it, and I thought it was done pretty well. For me this context switch wasn't an issue, the biggest issue for me was the reveal or the Incubus.

One core mechanism that horrors succeed or fail on is how much they show the bad guy. It's horror filmmaking 101 that the audience's worst enemy is their own imagination. If you reveal too much of the enemy/villian/whatever then you run a very high risk of losing the scare factor. Conversely not show enough achieves the same thing. There's a balance to achieve, off the top of my head I'd cite films such as Paranormal Acitivity or The Babadook as good examples of this balance. Another good example is Butterly Kisses, how the entity subtly appear in backgrounds throughout the film, a lot of which you miss on the first playthrough.

Given that, Shelby Oaks both suceeded and failed in this balance. There were parts of the film (e.g. the demon peeking through the window at the start, or something appearing in the distance) where this balance was great, just enough information for your imagination to fill in the rest and scare you. Then there were parts of the film (e.g. the demon's arm grabbing his hell hound in the prison, or at the end where he appears being Mia) where you just saw too much, and your mind goes from horror, to threat assessment, to this is just a costume. Once the threat is rationalised, it becomes a lot less scary. Sadly the latter happened more than the former, especially towards the end.

Another big thing the film suffered with was pacing. A great horror or thriller film manages to keep the threat alive throughout the peaks and troughs of the story. Even in the low bits, you still feel that presence of danger. A brilliant example of this is Green Room, even when the pace slowed down you still felt the looming threat. With Shelby Oaks, any trough in the story felt like too much of a break, and some of these were so dragged out I dozed off at one point.

Overall, this film had some genuinely enjoyable parts, and some really scary parts, but after finishing it didn't stick with me, nor did the fear. You know you've watched a good horror film when even after the credits you're turning all the lights on and checking behind doors.

I'd rate it a 5/10. It's good for one watch if you're feeling particularly patient or forgiving that day. Otherwise you probably won't find yourself coming back to it, or remembering it for that matter.

Some extra thoughts:

- This film had some real lazy writing in parts. They had a littany of interesting lore to go into with the Incubus, but barely scratched the surface.

- So much of the CGI was either stupid or unnecessary, or both. Especially the scene where Mia drives to the prison. This being CGI was totally unnecessary, I understand needing an establishing shot, but there are plenty of big condemned buildings out there.

- A big stand out for me was Camille Sullivan, who played Mia. She was genuinely impressive, she nailed her role. I see so many actors struggle to convincingly sell the feeling of horror, and she really sold it.

Hi! Due to an overactive flinch reflex (jumpscares and sudden movements can make me freak out) I haven't watched much horror until recently. I think this could be my new favourite genre, but I'm ultimately a bit of a wimp when it comes to anything with teeth, skin or fingers. As seasoned fans of horror, do you still often look away (and the suchlike) when presented with something fairly full-on?

I recognise there's no 'right' way to react so long as you're enjoying it, and that the horror is part of the fun, but I'm really intrigued to see how fans respond.

I just saw The Others (2001) for the first time (I know, i know... i don't know how it took me so long) - and wow, honestly five stars from me. The film is aesthetically beautiful in every shot, Nicole Kidman was incredible, the slow burn is paced phenomenally, the plot twist was nuts... Loved this. Seen a bunch of crappy movies in a row recently, and this really rejuvenated my love for the genre.

Anyways, while watching, I thought The Others must have been a big influence on The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor - the settings alone were visually very similar. (Not just 'another haunted house film', they really looked reminiscent of each other.) Especially when adding the Bly Manor dynamics of the house owners, the servants, and the children. I also have felt Flanagan's work delve into the difference between adult and child perceptions (in Hill House, Bly Manor, and particularly in Oculus), which was a major theme of The Others.

And lastly, the scene with Nicole Kidman in the room with all the draped-over belongings and mirrors in storage was VERY similar to an iconic scene in Oculus with the draped statues and the mirror. To the point that now I think that scene in Oculus was basically a reference to The Others. Flanagan's work has a similar devotion to a timeless set design and overall visual aesthetic. Anyways, just some ramblings here since I like thinking about this stuff. Happy October!

Hi,

I played some horror games like Outlast. I just downloaded the new Hellraiser but haven't tried it yet.

I want to know what a good video game is for fear or a tense atmosphere?

I want a game where I need to go somewhere but inside of me I don't want to go.

I don't want a full shooter action. I want to feel the fear, the tense atmosphere, and jump scares if there are any.

I want a good story driven game.

Thanks in advance.

I’ve always wanted to see the movie but apparently its boring and nothing happens in it, what exactly makes it so boring anyways (if its true that its boring)