• StudSpud The Starchy@aussie.zone
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    9 days ago

    More horror film reviews. Please note that all these films below feature

    TW

    gore to varying degrees, and mental health issues and suicide (especially Fréwaka).

    V/H/S/Beyond (2024) -4/5 Hobbits

    I enjoyed this anthology film, all the segments as well as the framing wrap-around were very intriguing and engaging, except for one which didn’t fit at all with the theme of this being about aliens.

    Definitely worth a watch, especially for the segment called Stowaway, directed by Kate Flanagan and written by Mike Flanagan (actress and creator, respectively, of Haunting of Hill House, Haunting of Bly Manor, and The Fall of the House of Usher, which is probably why it’s my favourite segment lol)

    V/H/S/Halloween (2025) - 1/5 Hobbits

    Very meh for me such that I did not finish it. Perhaps this anthology hits harder for audiences that celebrate Halloween, but it felt very tropey and made me feel quite bored.

    V/H/S/94 (2021) - 5/5 Hobbits

    So far my favourite of the V/H/S anthology film series. Perfectly gory and disturbing, the wrap-around framing was very interesting, and each segment had me on the edge of my seat. This one is definitely not for people who are squeamish, the gore effects are very well done!

    Fréwaka (2024) - 5/5 Hobbits

    I thoroughly enjoyed this Irish folk horror. Exploring themes of paranoia, the Aos Sí, Magdalene Laundries, and familial ties. Blends the mythology of The Fair Folk expertly with the human emotions of grief and bargaining. No real jumpscares, I won’t go on so as to not spoil too much, but I definitely highly recommend this.

    Death Valley (2021) - 2/5 Hobbits

    Also meh but I finished this one, so it gets one more star than V/H/S/Halloween. Blending resident evil, Nephilim, zombies, and sci-fi, I would have had a better experience if it just picked a lane and leaned into it instead of trying to everything and making a mediocre film. Watch if you want something on in the background and don’t care about the stupid plot. I’m not sure how the film wanted me to feel about the antagonists - one moment it seemed I should me sympathetic, the next made them completely irredeemably evil, and then switches again and again. MEH

    Belzebuth (2017) - 4.5/5 Hobbits

    This is the opposite of Death Valley (2021) in that it does pick a lane (Catholicism and demons) and blends it well with a little bit of sci-fi. Great acting on Joaquín Cosíos part, and was pleasantly surprised to see an actor (Tate Ellington) I saw in The Endless (2017) as one of the protags. Well worth a watch if you’re into possession and demon horror. The ending felt like it would be right at home for Catholics who love religious horror (not sure what the overlap is for that haha).

    Note: this one does feature mass child murder (not actually shown on screen but is the main plot points).

      • StudSpud The Starchy@aussie.zone
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        9 days ago

        I wish they had the first and second V/H/S films on Shudder, but they do have all the others.

        I’m also hanging on for the 30th of Oct because I binged all the Hell House LLC movies and the last one comes to Shudder on that date! I fucking love those films! I haven’t rated Hell House LLC yet but overall the 1st and 4th films are the most solid, with 2 and 3 being only slightly less good. I fucking LOVE found footage horror, and I think it’s why I ADORE analog horror so so much

          • StudSpud The Starchy@aussie.zone
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            9 days ago

            I LOVE LOCAL 58!!! Kris Straub is a fucking legend (also a part of Acquisitions Inc (a DnD campaign) and a comic artist!) and Vita Carnis is just -chefs kiss-

              • StudSpud The Starchy@aussie.zone
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                8 days ago

                Kane Pixels - Creator of the original The Backrooms analog horror. His series The Oldest View is awesome, and currently has a new series that’s out on YT but not finished yet

                This House Has People In It by Adult Swim

                The Walten Files is an adult version of Five Nights at Freddy’s (which I hate lol, but love The Walten Files)

                The Mandela Catalogue is great from a lore pov, the images are a bit overdone but that’s because every other mediocre analog horror series tends to take inspo from TMC with making human faces look stupid. I recommend this one though.

                Angel Hare is amazing!

                Gemini Home Entertainment is a 10/10 for me

                Midwest Angelica is another 10/10 for me

                Greylock is also fucking awesome

      • StudSpud The Starchy@aussie.zone
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        8 days ago

        Shudder does have a 7 day free trial, hence why I’m going absolutely ham on watching all these films 😂

        If you like a slow burn found footage, The Borderlands is on YT in its entirety (not on shudder in Aus yet). It’s one of my favourites. No gore, just a haunted church lol