Shudder Saturday: V/H/S/Halloween (2025)

Did I ever expect the V/H/S horror anthology series to become something of a tradition around this time of year? I did not. Am I happy enough with this development? I am. Which is why I was happy to get around to watching V/H/S/Halloween, despite being hugely disappointed by the previous entry in the series, V/H/S/Beyond.

It's the normal format. You get half a dozen stories with a wraparound tale interspersed between each one. Each story is distinctly pumpkin-flavoured this time around, and the wraparound tale - showing a group of people testing out a new fizzy drink on some unsuspecting subjects - is my favourite of the entire series.

Although the various segments vary wildly in tone, from the Willy Wonka surreal silliness and the body horror of "Fun Size" (my personal favourite, written and directed by Casper Kelly) to the very dark and disturbing "KidPrint" (written and directed by Alex Ross Perry), everything has a sense of belonging to the bigger picture. That's all thanks to the easy linking theme of Halloween, with many of the segments allowing the film-makers to simply revel in all of the seasonal atmosphere. Once Bryan M. Ferguson has set the tone with the first of the wraparouns sections, Anna Zlokovic starts things strong with the bonkers "Coochie Coochi Coo". Things then seem to settle down a bit with "Ut Supra Sic Infra" (co-written by Alberto Marini and director Paco Plaza), but there's an ending that delivers exactly what you expect from it. Then it's "Fun Size", perfectly placed in the middle of the movie. "KidPrint" comes along after that, one that some will find hard to stomach as things get worse and worse, before the whole thing ends in a double-whammy of the hugely entertaining "Home Haunt" (co-written and co-directed by Micheline Pitt-Norman and R. H. Norman) and a superb wraparound punchline.

There's not too much else to say about this though, and it can often be difficult to fully review and discuss anthology horror movies. The point of them is to draw you in and lead you to a great ending with every segment, which this does. To say too much about any one tale is to spoil the potential delight. Just know that this is a very strong entry in this series, and perhaps my new favourite. While everyone will inevitably react to the different segments in different ways, those who know the vibe and aesthetic of the films will be unlikely to be disappointed by this. The main concepts are often built around a great mix of fun and frights, the acting feels better than it has been in some of the previous instalments, and the end result is just a perfect horror "mix-tape" that will be even better to watch as you're sitting in the dark with the glow of a candle-lit pumpkin creating some lively shadows in the corners of the room. 

A huge turnaround from the last movie, although I may eventually rewatch that one and revise my harsh opinion of it, this not only kept me very entertained throughout, it had me wishing we could fast forward to next year and see what we'll get next in this series. I raise a hot cup of pumpkin-spiced latte to all involved.

8/10

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Adult Swim Yule Log 2: Branchin' Out (2024)

Recently making up for lost time, I managed to treat myself to a double-bill of Adult Swim Yule Log and this sequel. While I knew this was a sequel, I didn't expect it to actually lead on from the events of the first film. I mistakenly assumed that both films would just make use of the traditional yule log visual to frame whatever story writer-director Casper Kelly wanted to tell. What Kelly has instead delivered is something much more impressive, two separate instalments working in different ways, but also perfectly complementing one another to provide one brilliant tale of Christmas madness.

Andrea Laing is Zoe, a woman quite rightly terrified and scarred by the traumatic events of Adult Swim Yule Log. Still believing that she is in danger, she is convinced to get herself away for the holiday season, somewhere she can just lay low and avoid the trappings of Christmas. That looks far less likely when she ends up stranded in the little town of Mistletoe, a place that pretty much positions Zoe in the middle of a standard Hallmark Christmas movie. There are a number of clumsy hunks, a nice man who owns a small business (played by Michael Shenefelt), and an irritating influencer (Jesse Malinowski) who might be useful as Zoe tries to find a way out of the town. To say any more would risk spoiling some of the dubious delights here, and there IS a lot more packed into this.

With different targets in sight this time around, Kelly shows how good they are at crafting material informed by the style and genre tropes being played around with. This has a number of obvious gags and plot points, but also makes use of standard aesthetics to push things further (we have changes in lighting, music, and even aspect ratios as our lead character moves from potential horror to potential Hallmark moments). Arguably the most impressive part of the whole thing, however, is how it manages to feel like such a natural progression from the first film while also including even more head-spinning turns and tangents.

Laing is very good in the main role, playing her part as a pretty straightforward potential final girl, even when in the Hallmark festive rom-com scenes. She's the heart of the movie, and it helps that she is just as much aware of the tropes swirling and clashing around her as the viewers are. Shenefelt is good fun as he plays up the unbelievable sweetness of his character, Malinowski is a fun and brash presence, and Sharon Blackwood (playing Nana), Asher Alexander (as Jason), Chase Steven Anderson (as Jakester), and everyone else excel, whether they're providing comic relief or at risk of being caught in the middle of the surreal yule log terrors.

Absolutely superb stuff from start to finish, although it often feels a bit more subdued and traditional with how the narrative plays out (compared to the first film), Adult Swim Yule Log 2: Branchin' Out is further proof that people should keep giving Kelly the resources and opportunities to make any kind of films that he wants to make. Because the results have been consistently brilliant so far.

8/10

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Adult Swim Yule Log (2022)

Writer-director Casper Kelly may be some kind of demented genius, although I appreciate that not everyone will agree with me. And not everyone will enjoy Adult Swim Yule Log, a film created by someone who just thought "what if you were watching one of those burning yule log videos and someone walked into the shot?", but those who enjoy it should REALLY enjoy it.

It all starts with that standard burning log footage. Then a woman comes in and starts to clean the floor, getting everything ready for people who are booked to stay in the log cabin. Then something happens. It's not necessarily the focus of the film though, as the log continues to burn and viewers continue to watch it in the centre of the frame. Then Alex (Justin Miles) and Zoe (Andrea Laing) arrive, and things eventually get more and more bizarre from that point on. The camera eventually pulls back to show the bigger picture, and we are shown different viewpoints, and even different time periods, but that burning log is at the heart(h) of everything.

In case I forget before ending this review, let me praise the cast. Miles and Laing are excellent in what you could call the lead roles, and they are given enough to do in their first scenes to establish their characters well enough before things go completely bonkers. Tordy Clark and Brendan Patrick Connor make a strong impression with their characters, I won't tell you who they are (the constant surprises are part of the pleasure), Mark Costello and Jonathon Pawlowski are a couple of law enforcement individuals who stop by at the cabin, and Michael Reagan, Jessica Fontaine, Sean Hankinson, Hannah Alline, Skye Passmore, Danielia Maximillian, Thy Bui, and Charles Green play a wide variety of characters who end up dragged into the unfolding madness.

The real star here is Kelly though, someone who has a real knack for walking a line between comedy and horror, making use of surreal touches to comment on, but also still deliver, popular TV and movie tropes. If someone was to describe the opening scene and the final scene of this movie to you then you would laugh at the ridiculous distance between the start of the journey and the final destination, but Kelly crafts something that actually feels as if it moves logically from one step to the next. Nobody watching this will feel suddenly shocked, we're all frogs sitting in a pot as Kelly slowly and steadily turns the heat up to boiling point. 

The dialogue doesn't always feel as if it is more than filler in between a number of highlights, but the second half delivers a number of pay-offs that emphasise just how dense and smart the script is. Many horror fans may be put off by the silliness of certain moments, but there's a good selection of gory moments and nastiness throughout to satisfy those who can enjoy the ride.

The more I think about this, the more I love it. It's unlike anything else I have seen in recent years, and I'm already keen to watch the sequel. I encourage everyone else to check this out, as long as you're prepared for the parade of wonderful oddities that it delivers.

8/10

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