Frayeur

Extremely Low-Budget Film-Noir that manages to entertain due to a strong Storyline (cribbed from Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment) and some nifty Camera Work and a creative overall Style. What it lacks in slickness it makes up for in Mood and some expressionistic flourishes.

There is a rather tacked-on, weak ending that is a misstep of the first order, but that disappointment aside, this is one of the better attempts at Bargin Bin Noir. There is a sombre and fatalistic tone throughout and there is much more Psychology found here than in most Bottom Rung Programmers. There is a good deal of Cat and Mouse and a lot of Soul Searching.

Despite its restrictions, this can entertain at a deeper level than a lot of Major Studio B-Movies. In fact it is downright amazing how well it works its Magic through tone, style, and execution. This is not to be missed by Fans of Low-Budget Noir's.

Peter Cookson (Larry) is a student who needs money – his college fees and rent need paying and he can't do it. He goes to College Professor Francis Pierlot (Prof Stanley) who moonlights as a loan shark to help him out. Pierlot keeps all his money in his apartment in a safe and he's also a pretty unpleasant character. Is he unpleasant enough to be murdered? Yeah, probably…….but will his attacker get away with things…

This film zips along and keeps us watching as to whether a crime will go unpunished and things are done in a suspenseful manner. Unfortunately, the ending doesn't quite live up to expectations so view this film as a bit of fun. You'll see what I mean.

Peter Cookson is a medical student who receives the bad news that the medical college he is attending is no longer able to afford to grant scholarships. His future becomes suddenly darker as he's faced with having to drop out with only one year to go. How this bad news affects his psyche is more or less what the film is about in a post-war 1940's era take on psychology and dreams. It seems to revolve around a sense of alienation portrayed through a surprisingly riveting dream sequence that occurs on a dark night on the railroad tracks. In spite of its meager budget this movie succeeds in rating fairly high up on the standards of my film scale.

Well, in this one we have actress Beatrice Straight's husband (Peter Cookson) and Chris Pine's mother (Anne Gwynne) along with Warren William starring in Fear from 1946, directed by Alfred Zeisler.

This is an American retelling of Crime & Punishment until the final moments of the film.

Cookson is a broke medical student who kills a professor (Francis Pierlot) who doubles as a pawnbroker. However, he leaves the man's apartment in a panic, without taking any money. His guilt consumes him, and it doesn't help that two police detectives (William and Nestor Paiva) are on his case.

What is interesting about this film is that the director was from the German expressionist school and gives us a wonderful dream sequence involving railroad tracks and makes use of angles and shadows effectively.

As for the end of the film - it's a device used in so many films during that time. It's really a cop out, even if I did get a kick out of it.

Poverty row Monogram Pictures produced Fear based on Dostoevsky's Crime And Punishment. We've seen better adaptions.

Medical student Peter Cookson is really up against it financially. Rent is overdue, he owes the college money. He goes to a professor who doubles on the side as a shylock. In a moment of anger he kills the professor.

The plot follows fairly closely the Dostoevsky story, but it has one big cop out of an ending. In addition leading man Peter Cookson gives a rather bland performance.

Police captain Warren William and dpgged detective Nestor Paiva do a lot better.

For a Monogram feature and Sam Katzman this is fine art.