NOW ON SHUDDER! A long-running indie franchise shows no sign of degradation in the sci-fi/horror found footage anthology V/H/S Beyond, directed by Jay Cheel, Jordan Downey, Christian Long, Justin Long, Justin Martinez, Virat Pal, and Kate Siegel from segments written by Evan Dickson, Downey, Mike Flanagan, Long & Long, Martinez, Pal, Kevin Stewart, and Benjamin A. Turner. The concept that is carried over from the previous installments is a selection of videotapes from a particular time period or about a particular subject that screened, all showing real-looking instances of horror.
It is basically short form found footage segments, in this case, horror stories that also have science fiction elements. Kinda makes it hard to summarize, as there are six segments that are all short enough to where describing the concept ruins the surprises. Almost all the stories start off in the normal realm, with the reveal of the abnormal influence being also the main kick of the segment. Even the titles tend to give away the game too much. So you get a wrap-around story with five different stories, all shot in the POV found footage format. All of them have excellent gore on display, which is really all that matters.
“…sci-fi/horror found footage anthology…”
This is my first foray into the V/H/S anthology series, so I am jumping into the 7th installment, blind and naked. The fact that it is the “Goes to Space” installment is not coincidental, as this is how I approach a lot of horror franchises that I haven’t caught up on. I wait until the sci-fi installment of the series and see how well the franchise handles the hybrid stress test. Did this on Critters, did this on Leprechaun and had avoided 25 years of Friday The 13th sequels until Jason X got me back to the drive-in. Why sci-fi horror? Because when I was 7 years old, my parents wouldn’t get me an Alien action figure for Christmas because it would scare my little brother. Locked me in on the scent of anti-gravity blood ever since. So, the way that V/H/S Beyond gets the space in your face is by tackling the UFO footage video format.
"…a sci-fi horror piñata that is filled with plenty of bloody bug-eyed goodies"
