It remains nice to see the V/H/S franchise continue to survive, especially after some strong entries back to back. Previously, we’ve seen the series swing back and forth in terms of quality over the years. Initially, it was a solid if never spectacular anthology outing, one that seemed to have its time come and go a while ago. Then, perhaps unexpectedly, V/H/S/94 gave the property new life five years ago. Four years ago, V/H/S/99 moved forward in time, if somewhat of a step back in quality. Three years ago, we had something new in V/H/S/85, which was in the upper tier, overall, as well as being the first to have no bad segments. Two years ago, we had V/H/S/Beyond, which again didn’t really have a lowlight, while also featuring a genre shift of sorts that really gave it a fresh feeling. Last year, we had V/H/S/Halloween, which was maybe the goriest one yet, in some ways, while having fun with the entire film being centered on the spookiest of holidays. Now, it’s music that’s the theme with V/H/S/Mixtape, more of a middle of the road installment. Is it doing anything particularly new? No, aside from the sonic element of it all. Is the movie fun enough to recommend to gore hounds? Overall, yes.
V/H/S/Mixtape has one of the best segments of any within the series to date, which actually ends the flick on a real high note. That’s huge, especially since the wraparound segments this time are some of the worst the franchise has had. Not only are they bad, they’re longer than expected, and really only for fans of the band Gwar. While they can be amusing in small doses, a little bit goes a long way, and here, you overdose on their schtick quickly.
The anthology segments this time around center on sound as the source of horror. First up is Dance, Dance, Dance, Dance from Renee Zhan. There, a television studio is planning to reboot a once popular puppet show, though soon those involved come to realize that the puppets are far less cuddly than they appear. Heartbeat, coming from David Moreau, finds an influencer couple exploring a decommissioned Russian military facility, only to become trapped in a deadly experiment. The Music of Mr. Sze, from Ernest Dickerson, has a college film student becoming obsessed with the music of his upstairs neighbor. The enchanting sound masks a terror he can hardly imagine. Then, it’s Death Note, from RZA, which has a sound engineer mourning her recently deceased father by following his gruesome instructions for creating the perfect track. The segments, aside from the second one, which is the weakest, get better as the film goes on, only interrupted by more Gwar annoyances.
As always, the cast is largely unremarkable, though Barbara Crampton in Dance, Dance, Dance, Dance, as well as Neela Jolene in Death Tone stand out. They understand the assignment best here, while everyone else mostly just overacts. This is just what comes with the territory of a V/H/S flick, as the filmmakers are the real stars, along with the gore, of course.
The wraparound segment, directed by Flying Lotus, not only gives us too much Gwar, there’s a music video in there as well, seemingly just to pad out the running time. Making them host an MTV style show is clever, but the execution doesn’t work. Zhan’s use of actual puppets from Jim Henson’s Creature Shop is a lot of what makes her segment stand out. At the same time, it has the least to do with sound, so it’s somewhat out of place here. Moreau has a heady segment, yet overshoots the mark. Dickerson manages to showcase some surprising escalation, as well as a bit of scale that the series doesn’t usually attempt. RZA is the best filmmaker in show, actually, as Death Note feels like the rare V/H/S segment that could have been extended out to feature length. It really impressed me, mixing some dark laughs and surprising violence with a really unique hook.
Without the porous wraparound segment, V/H/S/Mixtape would feel like a solid single up the middle. The decided lack of quality with that element of this flick holds it back, even if it does contain one excellent segment. Overall, it’s another worthy installment in the franchise, trying something thematically new. What will they think of next?
SCORE: ★★★
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