TheHorrorVault

The Horror Vault 2 (2009)

The Horror Vault 2 is a collection of five short films put together in an anthology format. The first of the shorts is called Invasion of Privacy and tells the story of a particularly unsavory fellow who likes to spy on his female neighbors. But the latest victim of his spying might just be a bit more than he bargained for. This is followed up with a short called The Dead Chick in the Closet. It is a cautionary tale against partying too hard and hanging out with unstable friends. The two of these can make for a really screwed up situation as the “hero” of the story finds out. The next short is by far the creepiest of the bunch and has to do with a medium on the trail of a restless spirit. As the spirit’s story reveals itself the medium finds himself in danger of history repeating itself. Next up is a story that takes place entirely in a men’s room and is called appropriately enough Restroom. Finishing things up is Mr. Happy Sunshine. All I can say about this one is that some people just take their news broadcasts way too seriously.

As a group this is a solid collection of short movies. Though Restroom is a bit to “artsy” for my tastes and lacks a cohesive narrative. My notes for this segment are simply, “strange” and “doesn’t make any sense”. But it does boast a talking pile of poo, which is always a plus. Thank goodness the rest of the short films follow a more traditional type of story telling. Invasion of Privacy taps in on the paranoia that cameras can be and might be placed just about anywhere. It has a cool twist at the end that is an excellent payoff. The Medium is hard to follow and jumps around, but again by the end it all makes sense and is a solid story. Mr. Happy Sunshine is honestly just plain weird, but has a manic sort of charm to it that works and can easily be sustained over the duration of a short movie like this. But hands down my favorite of the bunch is The Dead Chick in the Closet. See I have a very strange sense of humor, which I have to believe is something the filmmakers share with me. There are several twisted situations in this short film that just had me cracking up. Of the movies in The Horror Vault 2 this is the one that appeals to me the most. But again other than the Restroom I enjoyed all of them.

The one thing that I can say about all the short films is that there is a great deal of talent behind all of these projects. They are all shot well and in the case of both The Medium and Restroom have a visual style that sets them apart from most independent movies I’ve seen. I also wanted to mention how pleased I was with the collection of these movies. These low budget independent movie anthologies normally are built around one decent movie (if you are lucky) with 3 or 4 really bad ones. Even the one short from here that I wasn’t terribly fond of, Restroom, is still heads and shoulders above some of the nonsense I’ve been forced to sit thru.

As a big supporter of the independent scene I’m always pleased to find a movie, or in this case collection of short movies that deliver. I really recommend that everyone to go out of their way to find themselves a copy of the Horror Vault 2. For more information about this movie check them out at http://www.thehorrorvault.net/

3 out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer

Also for a killer written interview with director Kim Sonderholm click here.