Hi-Death (2018)

Director: Brad Sykes, Tim Ritter, Amanda Payton, Todd Sheets, Anthony Catanese

Year: 2018

Country: USA

Alternate Titles: N/A

Genre: Anthology

Plot:

A pair of friends find a flyer noting the existence of a tour around the city promising plenty of thrills and danger, prompting them to reluctantly take part.

Review:

Death Has a Conscious-Arriving in the suburbs of Los Angeles, a woman takes a stop at a run-down motel to get her feet under her but is soon entangled with a mysterious drug that alters her reality. Confronted by the real demonic being behind the experiences, she's plunged into a far more deadly and eternal battle for her soul than she expected. This one was a somewhat enjoyable effort but comes off as a confusing opening. The idea of the corruption taking place and her descend into the underbelly of their society comes off rather nicely as is the finale involving the overall resolution involving the demonic entities coming for her in the hotel room. That said, it's way too reliant on inference and supposition as to what's going on with her deteriorating mental capabilities that make them seem like a confusing entry that comes off with some slow-burn antics that might not be appreciated in such a short.

Death Dealers-After breaking into a strangers' house, a man finds the pilfered contents to contain evidence of a serial killers' handiwork that contains the perfect addition to his collection of serial killer memorabilia. When he and his girlfriend are confronted by the truth about how they came into possession of the material, they're forced to extreme lengths to pay back their debt. This was a somewhat disappointing segment that doesn't really go anywhere. The whole thing is way too talky and doesn't generate anywhere near the kind of suspense it thinks it is where the exploits of the guy sharing his collection or the confrontation with the drug-dealer that lead into a wholly predictable and unimpressive finale really undo this segment. With the underwhelming twist that doesn't make any sense and a just bland and dull feel combined with the overlong feel, this one misses the mark completely.

Night Drop-Working the closing shift at a video-rental store, a clerk is confronted with a series of strange events and occurrences that results in his finding of a strange tape in the store. As he tries to uncover the secret inside the tape, he soon finds the disturbing truth too much for him to handle. This was a rather fun and enjoyable effort. The familiar setup of the strange videotape left behind and leading to the viewers' doom is so familiar it's a recycled concept from the first film, but the far-more genuinely unnerving and freaky footage shown here on the main tape results in a far more terrifying setup which leads to the one downfall in that it tends to end way too early. It features such an abrupt end that it doesn't feel like a payoff of any kind, but this is the only real downfall of the segment.

Cold Read-Forced to take an audition at the last minute, a desperate actress is put through her paces by a tyrannical director looking for his perfect leading lady. As the audition carries on and she's forced into more extreme tactics by the maniacal director, she reaches a breaking point no one on-set expected. For the most part, this was a solid thriller that has a lot to like about it. Carrying on the trials and tribulations that are the result of most auditions for low-budget filmmakers, the constant mistakes and verbal abuse being spouted which results in some suspenseful moments as they put her through the wringer regarding her performances that they're attempting to find. The end result is a solidly unexpected sequence that comes off rather nicely but does tend to make this feel more like the genuine thriller it really is which is a personal preference matter for the most part.

The Muse-Stuck in a hotel room desperate to finish his latest work, a painter takes on an unwilling hooker to be his muse until he finishes his latest work. Unaware of what she's signed up for, the end result of their meeting brings about his latest creation to light in truly unexpected ways. There was a lot to like here although it does have a few minor missteps. The idea of the demonic temptation and corruption at play here tends to make everything here rather easy to spot and figure out, yet that doesn't mistake the fact that there's still plenty of enjoyable action here with the supernatural entity bringing the final twist to light. The segment is also nicely driven by some fantastic gore effects and some top-notch nudity to help sell the apocalyptic tone rather nicely and giving this a great conclusion.

Wrap-Around-While taking a walking tour around Los Angeles, a pair of friends decides to embark on a series of grotesque side-quests seeing the dark underbelly of the city around them. The longer they're on their journey, the more dangerous and unpredictable their lives become as they find themselves in greater danger. As a whole, this is another weak and underwhelming effort. The general idea of a walking tour around the city and visiting creepy locales doesn't serve much purpose to the setup of the shorts themselves, and with a wholly redundant finale, there's not much to this part that works here beyond the tense atmosphere to be found in the caves at the end.

Overview: ***/5

While it's a slight step-down from the first effort, there's still a lot to like here regarding most of the segments which is the hallmark of a solid anthology. Give this a look if you're a fan of the creative crew, the first one or the format in general while those who aren't into any of these elements should heed caution.

HI-DEATH Official Trailer from Hi-8 on Vimeo.