Not counting a couple of spin-offs, this is the seventh feature in the V/H/S horror franchise, which since the first edition in 2012 have packaged together short films by different directors to tell creepy tales involving found footage or aliens (or both) as well as lots and lots of gore. Usually anything this many generations into its evolution is pretty exhausted – but this is pretty good, or at least in parts. It probably helps that Brad Miska, the producer behind the original concept, is still involved. More importantly, Miska has kept things fresh by finding new directors and writers for each edition, some of whom have gone on to make films on a bigger scale (such as Joe Swanberg, Ti West and Adam Wingard, all of whom contributed to the first V/H/S) or came aboard after having already become relatively successful just for the fun of it (Scott Derrickson).
Naturally, this latest package is a pretty mixed bag. The framing story, Abduction/Adduction, is a haunted house snoozer that poses as a mockumentary, complete with VFX guys explaining how they can tell footage is faked. (Usually being shot on VHS or low-grade digital is the giveaway, with its glitches and artefacts that make things harder to see – which is funny because that applies to so much of the footage here.) Stork is next, and is just an excuse to try out a ton of in-camera and special effects as a Swat team specialising in paranormal situations raids a house and meets a freaky avian-like alien monster.
