V/H/S Beyond(2024)(Review)

The yearly tradition has come upon us – a new entry in Shudder’s beloved V/H/S series. We’ve covered the ones from the last few years in the past here, (let us know if you’d like a list of our favorite segments – as if we were making one ‘best of’ film), so we must take the time to dive into this year’s participant.

‘V/H/S/Beyond’ places the focus this time around on sci-fi/alien embraced horror stories rather than focusing on a singular year like year’s recent pasts. Due to this, there is a small microbe that removes a sense of mystery because for the most part, we already expect the threat of the danger to be. There are a few surprises along the way, but unlike all the others, it’s almost like you know how they’re going to end and are just embracing the ride to get there. However, this is only a small problem, as a whole this entry is rather successful.

We have 5 stories and one wraparound segment. The wraparound segment involves the story of a man who knew he was going to be abducted and he filmed it, and the house has been absent ever since. It’s told in a ‘The Fourth Kind’ fashion where it combines found footage with talking-heads interviews and, really blurs the lines by making the interviews to be from accredited researchers and discussing actual footage. It’s disorienting and trippy in a way that made me very uncomfortable. It’s also directed by Jay Cheel – the guy who made the ‘Cursed Films’ series on Shudder, and it’s very true to his style. The 5 main stories we get are all different from one another and go to some bizarre places. The directors we have on board here are: Jordan Downey (Thankskilling, The Head Hunter), Virat Pal (Recapture), Justin Martinez (V/H/S [1}, Southbound), Christian & Justin Long (yes – THAT Justin Long), & Kate Siegel (written by husband Mike Flanagan).

Overall, the only story I didn’t like was Virat Pal’s. It was predictable and boring. But all the rest are entertaining at the very least. The Long brother’s section is the most disturbing and darkly hilarious, Jordan Downey’s is silly video-game style fun with a terrifying creature reveal, and my personal favorite was Justin Martinez’ who is already familiar with this style of movie presentation. I won’t go into the stories details themselves since the film is too new, we will save that conversation for another day.

If you’re a fan of the V/H/S series, you’ll most likely enjoy this one. It’s my personal favorite since ’94, and probably in my top 4 from the entire franchise. I can’t wait to revisit it once I forget about most of the images I’ve seen.

3.5/5
“V/H/S/Beyond” is currently streaming on Shudder.

‘Til Next Time,
Mike Cleopatra

The Gruesome Gazette

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