SiREN

The low budget essence of the V/H/S horror franchise has caught many - including myself - by surprise thanks to mostly smart pieces and originality from independent horror film makers. Casting aside the most recent release V/H/S: Viral, the series is pretty good for cheap scares, and even had some great directors involved including Gareth Huw Evans (The Raid: Redemption) as well as Jason Eisener (Hobo With a Shotgun). That being said, one of the most beloved segments in the series comes from the first V/H/S titled Amateur Night directed by David Bruckner. 

The original short followed three friends on a night out to get laid as easily as possible. They eventually find a hypnotic woman with some big eyes and an odd personality. They bring her back to their motel room, things seem to be going okay, but then the girl transforms into some kind of demon and begins killing them off, taking one to be her mate. It was so well received that Amateur Night then went on to receive a full spin-off film titled SiREN. 

Unlike the original short, SiREN ditches the found footage angle and replaces most of the cast. However, the leading lady Hannah Fierman returns for her role as the titular siren. The plot of the story is different in the sense that the leading group of gentlemen are out for a Bachelor party. Wherein they find boredom at one club, they are presented the opportunity to go to a new, twisted night club that not everyone hears about. It is there that the Bachelor, Jonah, finds what he thinks is an imprisoned woman, frees her, only to realize that the woman he just freed is some other entity from a different plane of existence. 

I will not strike down Hannah Fierman as Lily the siren in any sense; if there is one thing you can take away from this film it is that Fierman has her role as a supernatural being down to a T. Her eyes are wide once more and light up the screen, she is a fearsome friend and foe, and when she is out for the kill you know someone is going to die. The rest of the actors, however, are quite cheesy but manage to get the job done well for an independent horror film. 

There is plenty of blood in the film though I believe some practical effects would have helped in a certain torture scene. One of the Bachelor's friends is supposedly pulverized and beaten, but when we see him after the sequence it looks like he only got punched once or twice and rolled around in some dirt. Unless you are a baby, the scares in this movie are non-existent. It is fun and whenever the siren appears I was always ready to see some carnage, but scary is one thing this movie does not have. 

The movie also expands on the weirdness with some interesting characters who all stem from the underground night club. A woman with leeches coming out of her head like Medusa that can steal and give memories, two gigantic brothers/bouncers who reek of a slasher villain, and the club's owner who has an almighty Jesus tone about him but seals away monsters for humanity's pleasure are just a few of those strange and uppity characters I met throughout the film. 

If you are looking for a fun, popcorn horror flick that does not heavily rely on your attention than SiREN is the film for you. If anything, Fierman's performance should help launch her career in the underground horror scene; at least that's what I'm hoping for. So, get out and go watch it.