V/H/S: Viral (2014/MagNet/Magnolia Blu-ray) + Zombie Killers: Elephant's Graveyard (2015/Starz/Anchor Bay Blu-ray)

V/H/S: VIRAL

Picture: B+ Sound: B+ Extras: B+ Film: C

Innovative editing, impressive special effects, but hit or miss stories etch out the latest entry in the V/H/S franchise. I wasn't too impressed with the first film, still haven't seen the second, but this third film, V/H/S: Viral, caught be my surprise by being pretty interesting and watch-able. It goes without question that the directors on the film (Nacho Vigalondo, Justin Benson, Marcel Sarmiento, Aaron Moorhead, and Gregg Bishop) are talented filmmakers but the best entry in the film is entitled Dante The Great - where a struggling Magician inherits a cloak owned by Houdini that is alive and cursed but more on that in a minute.

If you are a fan of anthology films then you might want to give this film a shot. I definitely thought that it was stronger than the ABC's of Death 2 - which I felt was too long and complicated for its own good.

For those not familiar, V/H/S: Viral is a continuation of the horror series based that revolves around the terrifying images on found video tapes, leading to their deaths. The 2014 installment follows this same formula as the other two films only now the creators of the series have no moved onto the new media.

V/H/S: Viral's segments include the story of a deranged illusionist who obtains a magical object of great power; a homemade machine that opens a door to a parallel world; teenage skaters that unwillingly become targets of a Mexican death cult ritual; and a sinister, shadowy organization that is tracking a serial killer. The bridging story between the segments centers around a Los Angeles police chase involving an stolen ice cream truck and sends a fame-obsessed man on a wild ride to save his girlfriend from a cybernetic terror.

Sound and Picture on the disc are pretty solid with a 1080p high definition transfer and a 16 X 9/1.78 X 1 digital High Definition widescreen transfer complete with a strong, lossless DTS-HD Master Audio (MA) 5.1 track that doesn't disappoint.

Extras include

Gorgeous Vortex - A Short Film by Todd Lincoln

Audio Commentary with Directors

Bonestorm: Behind the Scenes Featurette

FX Storyboards

Galleries

Dante the Great: Behind The Magic of Dante The Great

Photo Gallery

Director Interviews

AXS TV: A Look at V/H/S: Viral

ZOMBIE KILLERS: ELEPHANT'S GRAVEYARD

Picture: B+ Sound: C Extras: D Film: D

The Walking Dead has indeed spoiled zombie fans over recent years with interesting characters, incredible gore scenes and make-up effects, and un-predictability when it comes to death. That being said, Zombie Killers: Elephant Graveyard is one of the worst Zombie films that I have ever seen. Riddled with some of the worst computer generated graphics to memory, hardly any blood or guts, and a majority of throwaway performances, your endurance of what you can sit through will be tested. The only respectable actors in the film are Billy Zane, Dee Wallace, and Felissa Rose who do the best they can with what they are given. It's almost like going to a terrible party and seeing a few of your old friends there that refuse to leave. It's no wonder this film is being released as a Best Buy Exclusive for now.

In a world devoid of the living and filled with the walking dead, a handful of survivors, led by a man named Doc (Brian Anthony Wilson), struggle to maintain some semblance of normalcy and security in a town called Elwood. Young soldiers are trained, via paintball, in the ways of war against the zombies under the guidance of an ex-military man named Seiler (Billy Zane). They uncover what they believe to be the roots of the outbreak and come to learn that their town may lay in the path of certain destruction.

The worst scene of the film involves digital Zombie Deer that run in herds (not unlike the Gallimius' scene in Jurassic Park) and somehow run right past the main characters and do not smell or sense them. Any scene involving a gun is hilariously bad with the gunshots looking highly fake. With a lack of nudity (though many opportunities) and gore (though many opportunities) in this, I struggle to wonder what sort of reactions they were expecting from the horror crowds that film was presumably aimed for. Judging from many other online reviews the verdict is that this film is a stinker.

The 1080p high definition transfer is sharp and clear throughout the film and has a 2.35:1 widescreen aspect ratio. The sound mix, though it is lossless Dolby TrueHD 5.1, has some noticeable flaws with scenes that feature the voice over track, with the terrible score overpowering the dialogue. Whoever mixed this film originally didn't really know what they were doing.

The only extras are three featurettes - totaling fifteen minutes in length including Blood Bath and Beyond, a Behind the Scenes Featurette, and a piece on the look of the film.

- James Harland Lockhart V

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