TIFF 2022: V/H/S/99 Review

This will be one of many reviews during this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, to keep up with our latest coverage, click here.

One of the OG found footage film horror franchises is back with another anthology. The V/H/S franchise has earned a legion of dedicated fans ever since the original film back in 2012 and despite the evolution of the format over the last decade, they keep coming back which will likely still be the case here. That being said, they are far from the only game in town as the subgenre just isn’t quite the same as it used to be. There’s only so many things it can do at this point in terms of little quirks though to its credit, VHS99 throws in some 1990s and Y2K nostalgia to try and set itself apart. While this twist is admittedly endearing at times, its VHS quirks do get old and its five segments that range the spectrum are for the most part lazy and dull in spite of some interesting premises that are unfortunately squandered. The film certainly won’t be for everyone, segment subject matter aside, as it can be brutal and unrelenting at times but nothing really jumps out as its scares are not new or original by any means.

Unlike recent films in the franchise, VHS99 does not feature a wrap-around story to tie its segments together and is merely each segment running concurrently. Be it Shredding where a group of insufferable 1990s teenage hooligans disturb the site where a rock band was trampled to death, Suicide Bid where a prank on a desperate girl looking to join a sorority going wrong and escalating in a much different situation, Ozzy’s Dungeon where the mother of an injured injured former game show contestant gets her revenge, The Gawkers where a bunch sexually-charged teens have the table turned on them, or To Hell and Back where a pair of filmmakers suddenly found themselves going to hell and back, the film offers something for everyone. Though some of these are admittedly interesting and some of them have nice touches here and there technically via camerawork and creature design in spite of a low budget. Ultimately, they are not quite enough to save them from inconsistency issues where they either take too long to get going or fizzle out before they end.

The performances over the course of VHS99 also range the spectrum from good to okay, varying with the writing and direction of each segment. This fact inevitably leads to some inconsistency. The dialog wasn’t always the best but the film’s embracing of the campiness of its segments is commendable.

At the end of the day, VHS99 will definitely mean more to fans of the franchise more than anyone else but is essentially just more of the same for better or worse.

*still courtesy of Shudder

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.