The Maryland Film Festival ran from May 8-12, featuring over 50 feature length films and 75 short films. This yearly festival shows films primarily at The Charles Theatre in Baltimore along with other local screens. Feel free to check out the link for the full listing of films. I was fortunate enough to catch three titles (even though I wish I had the chance to see many more). Since these three films won’t be out in theaters for awhile, I’ll give you a little preview here.
V/H/S/2 picks off with the same concept as the first and connecting framework to the story in the first where the boys break into a house where there are some horrific video tapes. In this sequel a private detective is searching for one of the boys from the first film who are missing, taking him to the same house. His girlfriend/partner is along with him and she starts to watch some of these tapes. If you liked the first, this one is just as enjoyable with some unique uses of found footage and fresh concepts for the short films. There’s more of an overall steadiness in the quality of the shorts in this sequel while the first had some shorts that were really great (better than the four new shorts here) and others that were just bad. I’m down for this anthology series to continue as long as horror directors can keep stretching themselves to create these shorts. I’ll just give a short preview for each story from my favorite to least.
- A Ride in the Park, Dir: Eduardo Sanchez (The Blair Witch Project) & Gregg Hale– This short involves a biker with a Go-Pro attached to his head cycling in the woods when he becomes the victim of a zombie attack. The rest of the short is really fun, viewing a new zombie as he torments anyone he comes across in the woods. It’s really creative, funny, and features great effects.
- Safe Haven, Dir. Gareth Evans (The Raid: Redemption) & Timo Tjahjanto – A documentary crew gains access to the compound of a cult, lead by an enigmatic man who claims to be connected to a higher power. As the saying goes, everything goes to hell in a handbasket. While I really liked the set up to this one, I wasn’t quite as thrilled with how it played out. It still included some great visuals and was the creepiest of all the shorts.
- Clinical Trials Phase 1, Dir. Adam Wingard (You’re Next) – A man receives a new eye with a camera installed in it from a research clinic who’s using it for a study. That night he realizes this new eye reveals some supernatural beings haunting him. While I didn’t like the look of the ghosts very much in this, I thought the idea was pretty original. A few elements just took me out of it at times.
- Alien Abduction Slumber Party, Dir. Jason Eisener (Hobo With A Shotgun) – There’s not much more to describe than what the title tells you. Siblings invite friends over when their parents are out of town, just as aliens descend to their house on the water. I thought this one was pretty fun, but there’s nothing that specific that left a big impression.
Overall, a very fun anthology to go along with the first. I love the concept, and the execution is at least always earnest even if it can’t always find its stride. Unfortunately no Q&A on this one, but horror fans should seek this out. You can however check out a trailer below.
V/H/S/2 will be distributed in theaters starting July 12.