Despite the small and loyal fan-base and the slew of positive reviews, I haven’t had the chance to check out V/H/S: Viral yet. To be honest, I haven’t seen V/H/S/2 either! But when I started to hear a lot of cool things about this particular segment, I knew I had check it out for myself!Come to find out, there’s a lot more to this one than meets the eye!
Gorgeous Vortex is written and directed by Todd Lincoln. Mr. Lincoln is most known to horror fans as the creator behind 2012’s The Apparition and co-produced this short film alongside Jeremy Lamberton (Biker Fox) and Christopher White (My Super Psycho Sweet 16). It features cinematography from Morgan Susser (“Cold Case”) and creature creation from Vincent J. Guastini (Silent Night, The Taking of Deborah Logan). Cast members include Jayden Robison, Lindsay Clift, Jade Gotcher, Jeanine Harrington, Taylor West, Rim Basma, Laura Eschman, Tiffany Hamill, Cheyenne Scarborough and Mark Stephen. Gorgeous Vortex also features original scores from Joseph Bishara (The Conjuring, Annabelle).
It’s hard to comment on the synopsis of Gorgeous Vortex without giving away parts that Todd Lincoln would rather stay hidden until you get a chance to view it for yourself. I will reiterate my sentiments, though, that there is a lot more here than meets the eye. The level of suspense and mystery is sky high and will have you guessing all the way through. But just to get your interest going, here’s the smallest of summaries from IMDB: “A sinister, shadowy organization is tracking a serial killer.”
Gorgeous Vortex is awesome from a cinematic standpoint, with Lincoln and his cinematographer Susser working in tandem to produce a short film that is of the highest quality. There is not one critique to be made on the angles, lighting, audio, editing or anything else that could possibly subtract from this superbly polished film. I’m happy that, despite being a short film, all of the stops were pulled out in making Gorgeous Vortex stunning, professional and a dark look into the unspoken subculture of modeling. Let me not forget to mention that the film is a mix of top notch Hollywood quality and dingy, fuzzy, VHS or static porn channel on a retro TV quality. The latter of the two added a layer of nostalgia and voyeurism to the flick, which was much needed in a story about a vortex of mediums.
What struck me the most about Gorgeous Vortex was the fact that very little dialogue is spoken throughout the whole thing. Besides some screaming and victims begging for their lives, Vortex relies more on the accompanying musical scores, action, the character’s facial expressions and your own interpretations to drive the plot along. It’s kind of reminiscent to the ‘Hush’ episode of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” and I see several similarities between Joss Whedon’s work and Todd Lincoln’s. What those similarities are exactly, you’ll just have to get your copy of V/H/S: Viral and see for yourself!
Really, Gorgeous Vortex is a modern horror film but also a groundbreaking achievement in terms of its success as a fundamentally basic story. Remember, the first films to ever exist had subtitles and other forms of dialogue to tell you what was happening. With Gorgeous Vortex, Lincoln went back to the grassroots basics of telling a simple story…and he smashed it! I am highly impressed. I’m aware that, while I enjoyed and own it, The Apparition was not as financially successful at the box office in 2012. That shouldn’t stop you from following Lincoln’s career and you really should get a copy of V/H/S: Viral so you an see this. Exquisite cinematography, high class fashion models, nostalgia and smooth storytelling and suspense that’ll have you at the end of your seat… Gorgeous Vortex was great in every sense of he word! And, really, there’s nothing creepier than a cult in black ropes with white ski masks stalking someone. Sometimes simple, even in horror films, just works!
Gorgeous Vortex is available now on the V/H/S: Viral on Blu-ray, DVD or the purchased (not rented) version from iTunes. On the Blu-ray it plays at the very end of V/H/S: Viral directly after the end credits.
FINAL RATING: 8.5 out of 10
