V/H/S/Beyond is like all of the other V/H/S films… a mixed bag. Some good shorts, some bad… too many in the bad camp this late in the franchise’s life, honestly. In this case, the theme of the shorts is UFOs and UFO aliens (though, in one case, wildly not). It has one of my favorite shorts in the franchise… and one of the worst.
The frame story isn’t really a story so much as a random documentary that talks about the UFO phenomenon and brings in YouTube’s The Corridor Crew who have done some work debunking fake UFO footage. They also include a guy who sounds exactly like astrophysicist (and UFO debunker) Carl Sagan. They also mention Orson Welles’ broadcast of War of the Worlds and old UFO movie footage. Its all a lead up to a set of “Proof” videos which are utter horseshit nonsense of nothing. I was baffled. What was the point of this? I’d give everything up to the reveal a 3… but with the revealed footage, 1.5 out of 5.
Stork is the first official short and it’s a very familiar to this franchise. A camera-eye view of a police raid. Instead of zombies or demons, the cops confront… aliens? I guess? It’s a fine one of these sequences… but it’s really just an exercise in first person horror. 3 out of 5.
Dream Girl is an Indian short set on a Bollywood set… about the latest “it” girl who harbors a random secret. It’s not bad… but also feels a bit pointless. 2.5 out of 5.
Live and Let Dive is a pretty great short about skydivers and the UFO they run into. Takes place half in the air and half on the ground with a decently original alien creature. Kind of doesn’t go anywhere but it was a lot of fun most of the time. Also, love the title. 3.5 out of 5.
Fur Babies is a pile of horseshit that should have been cut from the film to get the runtime shorter… and the footage burned. It’s basically an even worse version of Kevin Smith’s Tusk. It’s ugly, stupid, and annoying… and doesn’t belong as a short in this collection about UFOs. Or any collection. 1 out of 5.
Stowaway spends entirely too long being predictable and pointless. It’s about a documentarian who chases down a UFO. Even when she finds it, it’s a little tiresome. Until it gets to a cool existential nightmare involving the realities of warp speed travel. Though if you’ve read The Hyperion Cantos by Dan Simmons you’ll be VERY familiar with its conceit. Most people haven’t so I’ll allow it. 2.5 out of 5.
The usual mixed bag but its highs more-or-less outweigh its lows. But I don’t think I’ll ever love this franchise’s inability to be consistent.
Score: 71