After the 2012 horror anthology “V/H/S” fan reactions were mixed, but the opening segment “Amateur Night” garnered quite a following and even made a celebrity out of its star Hannah Fierman. After four years, Chiller Films decides to adapt the very popular horror segment and realize it in to a feature length film. Now on VOD, DVD, and limited release, “Siren” is a larger version of the original story with the gorgeous Hannah Fierman reprising her role. In honor of “Siren,” here are five of the best segments of the “V/H/S” horror trilogy. What are your personal favorite segments from the acclaimed found footage horror series?
Second Honeymoon (V/H/S)
Directed by Ti West
Ti West’s abilities haven’t entirely been translated well in to the short form storytelling that is necessary in anthology horror, but “Second Honeymoon” is still a damn good short, nonetheless. Though it’s kind of a thinker with a slow boil narrative, it culminates in a pretty disturbing climax overall. When married couple Sam and Stephanie go to Arizona for a second honeymoon, Sam begins to notice something is amiss as money begins going missing and a mysterious woman shows up at their hotel room begging for a ride home from Sam for the next day. After some mysterious occurrences, “Second Honeymoon” closes in a gory note, but a pretty mind blowing one that I was keen on re-visiting just to comprehend the disturbing circumstances.
Slumber Party Alien Abduction (V/H/S/2)
Directed by Jason Eisener
Jason Eisener goes whole hog with a closing segment to the sequel of “V/H/S” that is both fun, creepy, and shocking. During a seemingly care free weekend involving a small group of kids and teenagers having a slumber party while their parents are away, everything seems to be going as planned. The kids are immature, raucous, and have a good time scaring one another. But things go from weird to horrifying, as their house is soon raided by alien intruders, all of whom are intent on hunting down and abducting everyone in the house. Filmed through the lens of a camera mounted on their poor Yorkshire Terrier named Tank, Eisener films a virtual fight for survival and films some memorable moments, including a blink and you’ll miss it horrifying moment underwater, and the finale that mixes horrific and heartbreaking well.
A Ride in the Park (V/H/S/2)
Directed by Eduardo Sánchez and Gregg Hale
You wouldn’t think there could be much done with a zombie segment that is also told through the found footage format, but leave it to Eduardo Sánchez and Gregg Hale to prove us wrong. Focusing on cyclist Mike who decides to go for a ride one afternoon with a helmet mounted camera, he accidentally rides right in to the middle of a zombie apocalypse. Barely being able to escape the clutches of a group of zombies, he’s attacked and dies. After rising from the dead (while being eaten, mind you!), he and a group of other newly re-animated zombies head towards a birthday party being held down the road. From there, we watch through Mike’s basic POV as he and other zombies begin wreaking havoc on poor human victims, eating their prey, and watching as some of them even fight off the onslaught of the dead. While “A Ride in the Park” goes for a mix of creepy and darkly funny, the finale is oddly heartbreaking and caps off a great segment.
Amateur Night (V/H/S)
Directed by David Bruckner
One of the few segments from “V/H/S/” that garnered a ton of fans and a slew of memes, “Amateur Night” is a wonky and chaotic segment. Three friends rent a hotel room and plan on bringing some women back for some sleazy sex. They intend to film their conquests with hidden cameras for the sake of creating amateur porn. While bar hopping they meet a young naïve looking girl named Lily who is lured back to the room. Muttering merely, “I Like You” to friend Clint, things completely spiral out of control with seemingly normal Lily reveals herself to be a man eating monster with a penchant for eating her victims and disemboweling their genitals with her claws. As Clint bears witness to Lily’s horrific abilities, he struggles to escape her grasp, as she stalks him and seems hell bent on capturing him. With a great turn by Hannah Fierman, “Amateur Night” was so popular it eventually spawned the feature length adaptation “Siren.”
Safe Haven (V/H/S/2)
Directed by Timo Tjahjanto and Gareth Huw Evans
The longest of the segments in “V/H/S/2,” and arguably the best segment in the entire anthology trilogy, “Safe Haven” is a shocking and very scary tale of an Indonesian Cult and the documentary crew that infiltrates them. Directed by Timo Tjahjanto and Gareth Huw Evans, “Safe Haven” is pretty much the “Fist Full of Yen” of “V/H/S/2” where in we watch a group of filmmakers be given access in to the inner sanctum of a very secretive Indonesian cult. Little to the filmmakers realize that they’re being watched by the cult as tensions rise among the crew as two of the male filmmakers are involved in an inadvertent triangle over crew member Lena. Lena happens to be secretly pregnant with the baby of one of her lovers. Before long, the group gets a full view of what the cult is readying for, and fight to escape, as the cult proceed to engage in a mass suicide, and a ceremony that neither of the intruders can comprehend. Filled with amazing direction, incredible special effects, and an absolutely loony final scene, “Safe Haven” steals what is a considerably strong sequel.