What with the welcome renaissance of the anthology horror film, indie filmmakers are pooling their resources to deliver films that can showcase everyone’s talents while entertaining an audience. “Horror Anthology Movie Volume 1″ is by no means a masterpiece, but it’s a very solid horror film with directing and storytelling that’s above par in comparison to many other anthologies I’ve seen in the past. Composed of six short films sewn together as one movie, “Horror Anthology Movie Volume 1” attempts to side step common horror tropes in favor of something new and unique.
“The Cordyceps Principle” is a great revenge tale about a photographer whose wife is a resentful workaholic who makes his life miserable. When he ventures out in to the wild, he and an explorer discover a mysterious new spore that can take over its host, transform them in to zombies, and finish them off in the most horrific means possible. After murdering the explorer to keep the discovery for himself, he brings the spore home for his wife to inflict horrible vengeance. Creepy and disgusting, the segment is well acted, and very well directed. I also really loved the final scene and its implications. “Five Miles Straight Ahead” is another very good follow up about a troop of African American soldiers during World War II that discover they’re contracting a mysterious plague.
This sickness eventually ends with internal combustion, and they now scramble to figure out how to stop it, before returning to base. Filled with social commentary and a very good sense of tension, director King Jeff’s short mystery packs excellent tension and a great surprise ending. The next three tales “Thing In The Shed,” “Section 49,” and “Blood Of A Saint” are very big misses that begin with immense potential and dive in to incoherent stories, and zero scares. “The Thing in the Shed,” despite really creepy build up, had great potential but I was never quite certain what, if anything, the climax was supposed to indicate.
Finally, “Footage Found, Arabi” will probably be the best if only for its tribute to HP Lovecraft. Built around the found footage format, a descendant of Lovecraft discovers a box of mementos from the author, including old reels of footage where Lovecraft was interrogated by police, and eventually revealed his source for all of his horrific horror fiction. This final segment is the perfect note to go out on, as it’s creepy, beautifully directed, and features a fantastic final scene. “Horror Anthology Movie Volume 1” boasts itself as an anthology film without zombies, slashers, or vampires, and surely enough it makes good on its guarantee. It ends as a memorable anthology horror film that, while admittedly a mixed bag, is definitely worthy of being paired with great anthology films like “Horror Stories” and “Campfire Tales.”