V/H/S vs. Trick 'r Treat: Battle of the Anthologies

[NaturesMistake]

I think most of us can agree that these two films are the best horror anthologies in the last ten years, but which one is better? This should be an interesting comparison. Choose either one and explain why, or choose "other" and explain.

[dave13]

I didn't like Trick 'r Treat, and haven't seen V/H/S. I haven't actually heard much good stuff about V/H/S, though. I thought it was generally poorly regarded...?

[maybrick]

If VHS rates among the best horror anthologies of the past ten years, then it's only because they're not making enough horror anthologies. I couldn't make it past the ten minute mark. It's fucking pathetic what passes for film making nowadays.

[Anthropophagus]

I enjoyed Trick R Treat, the V/H/S trailer totally put me off. After Bigfoot County and The Amityville Haunting I've pretty much had it with shaky cam crapfests.
Give me Creepshow or the original Tales From The Crypt any day.

[NaturesMistake]

Check it out Dave, you may be surprised and I agree about the first ten minutes Maybrick, but it gets so much better after the horrid intro... As for reviews...

Dread Central seemed to enjoy it
http://www.dreadcentral.com/reviews/vhs-2012
Five knives out of five knives

Shock til you drop gave it 8/10

http://www.shocktillyoudrop.com/revi...225-vhs-review

Most reviews seem pretty positive, but who cares about reviews right?


The film is actually scary in some spots. Despite its flaws it's a pretty good piece of horror fiction so if you guys haven't seen it you should! It should also be noted that I'm not much of a fan of POV horror with the exception of a select few films.

This is great though, if you hate it, let it rip!

[Paff]

Trick r Treat wins this one hands down (and the poll results reflect it). If anything, it's due to the wraparound story (a town celebrating Halloween, with all the individual stories being part of the town's history) is so good at tying everything together. V/H/S is a bunch of random stuff thrown together with no real coherency (ex: why is a Skype feed on a videotape??).

I do like the "I Like You" girl from V/H/S though, as I'm oddly attracted to girls with bug eyes like that

[Chomp]

The first time I viewed Trick r Treat, I was floored. I loved it. I watched it for a second time I think this past Halloween, and it didn’t hold up for me very well…at all.

I haven’t seen V/H/S yet.

[bigdaddyhorse]

Originally Posted by Chomp

The first time I viewed Trick r Treat, I was floored. I loved it. I watched it for a second time I think this past Halloween, and it didn’t hold up for me very well…at all.

I haven’t seen V/H/S yet.

I just watched TrT for the third time a few weeks ago and I love it just as much each time. Picked up lots of stuff I missed the second time, not so much the third.
Haven't seen V/H/S yet but can't imagine liking it better. I'll hold my vote for fairness, but feel I should just check TrT as it's one of my favorite overall movies from the last few years. Just wish it was longer.

[Ash28M]

Easy one for me. I loved V/H/S while on the other hand thought Trick r Treat was way overrated.

[Katatonia]

Trick 'r Treat, no contest.

[Ash28M]

Originally Posted by Paff

Trick r Treat wins this one hands down. V/H/S is a bunch of random stuff thrown together with no real coherency (ex: why is a Skype feed on a videotape??).

Taping a skype feed is no less plausible then a couple taking down their Halloween decorations on Halloween while it's still light out.

[Paff]

Originally Posted by Ash28M

Taping a skype feed is no less plausible then a couple taking down their Halloween decorations on Halloween while it's still light out.

If we discussed questionable actions by movie characters in horror films, we'd be here till this site ran out of bandwidth. Like, if there's a zombie apocalypse, and I'm a marauding biker in a shopping mall, I'm probably not stopping to get my blood pressure checked. But hey, that's just me.

My point was that the unifying concept in an anthology film is critical. Otherwise, we're just watching a random collection of short films. "Classic" anthology films can tie all the stories together successfully. Creepshow is great because all the shorts have the look and feel of the old EC Comics.

And that's why I clearly prefer Trick r Treat. Instead of watching a handful of random stories, it feels like ONE movie. V/H/S could have done this, had they created a plausible and enjoyable wraparound concept (and I do think some of the stories in V/H/S, particularly the first and last, are quite good).But this garbage about the B&E and finding some "cursed" videotape are beyond horrible. Not only does it not tie the film together, it actually drags it down.

Worst part is, with the "found footage" style, I don't think it would have been difficult to make a cohesive element encompassing all the stories. Here's a couple right off the top of my head: Make it part of some reality TV show. Or, some kind of Youtube from hell. But the idea that these films are all located on various videotapes is just beyond ludicrous.

That said, Maybrick, take Nature's Mistake's advice and try getting into the actual STORIES of V/H/S. The first one and last are quite entertaining.

I'm tempted to import V/H/S into my video editor and make a version that just links the short films and eliminates the horrendous wraparound segment.

[maybrick]

Originally Posted by Paff

That said, Maybrick, take Nature's Mistake's advice and try getting into the actual STORIES of V/H/S. The first one and last are quite entertaining.

Ugh. I don't know. Maybe I'll give it a second chance, but my patience for the found footage/shaky cam movie is pretty much worn out. I just can't take them, ANY of them any more.

[NaturesMistake]

If it helps, my girlfriend absolutely hates POV horror, but enjoyed this one... We watched it the other night and I forgot how much I liked this one... That said, I believe Trick 'r Treat is much better made and is essential Halloween viewing, but V/H/S has a huge fun factor and is way scarier... I actually can't pick myself. Love them both for different reasons.

[Myron Breck]

V/H/S was so poorly done that, once the credits rolled for the individual stories, I couldn't remember them.