The Fear

I liked "The Fear", but not that much. It seemed to waste the few elements it had that might have made it a better film. It does not deliver many chills, and the opportunities it has slip by in what ultimately comes across as a poorly thought out and chaotic film. I found the best moments took place in Uncle Pete's Christmas Village. This sequence showcases some of the movies only eerie scenes, turning familiar Christmas elements into a strangely spooky backdrop. Nevertheless, one feels that Vincent Robert (making a directorial debut), allows too many chances to develop his story slip away. He fails to make use of the generally interesting masks and tree carvings that plague Richard's (Eddie Bowz) dreams as anything more than dream fluffery. The legend of Black Peter, another interesting idea, also fails to get more attention. One may surmise that this motif somehow has entered Richard's subconscious (thus explaining the similarities between Black Peter's face and those of the masks in Richard's dreams). Instead, the director moves along ploddingly, showcasing characters stumbling along forced conflicts which feel contrived. When Ashley (Heather Medway) decides to call off her engagement to Richard because he tries to help Tanya (Anna Karin) the audience gets left wondering what they missed. Most of the character interactions feel this artificial. Watch this movie as part of horror marathon, or at the very least, with its sequel `The Fear: Halloween Night', but do not expect too much from it.

A group of college students go on a field trip to help out a fellow student do his psychology major. He studies fear, and it's effect on people. After going to his childhood home/cabin in the woods, he discovers his old "childhood friend" Morty- an old wooden dummy. He uses the dummy in his sessions for his friends to tell their fears to. Twist is, this dummy is alive, and soon kills everyone off using their fears.

I actually enjoyed this film. I first saw it about 8 years ago- after buying it for $10 on video. The first thing I noticed about the film was yes, it is cheesy as hell, but the story and acting made it worth watching. It's one of the better acted B-Grade horror/thriller films out there. It cameos Wes Craven as the professor allowing the whole "field trip".

I particularly liked the soundtrack to the film. Each song is about fears and death. Esham's title track (The Fear (Morty's Theme)) is a great song.

I recommend this film to anyone who likes a good night in with a campy horror flick or two.

7/10

Recently picking up this film on DVD I was disappointed to find the film HEAVILY cut. All the profanity has been cut out, and it looks/sounds terrible. AVOID THE FILM ON DVD.

I wasn't really expecting much from this low budget horror movie, especially considering how cheap it is to buy and the numerous negative comments on IMDb about it, but in all honesty I was pleasantly surprised by ‘The Fear'.

Richard (Eddie Bowz), a psychology student, decides to conduct a group experiment in controlled fear for the purposes of his thesis. After this idea is approved by Dr. Arnold (one of two brief appearances from Wes Craven) he organises a weekend away with his `subjects' at his childhood home. Richard is haunted by nightmares which go back to his childhood, but he is unable to think of what it is that bothers him so much….and what does this wooden mannequin named Morty have to do with his fears?

The first half of this movie is almost like a psychological thriller with a few unnerving parts and some eerie sequences but mainly concentrating on introducing us to the characters. Throughout the first half of movie the viewer learns more about each character as the story progresses but we are also treated to some rather interesting and occasionally dramatic moments. The second half of the film is more like a straight horror film and unfortunately loses some of its appeal due to some rather confusing sequences and unexplained happenings.

The acting was fairly good from all the cast, particularly from Heather Medway who played Ashley and Darin Heames who played Troy. Heames previously played Z-Boy in ‘Night of the Demons 2' and for those who have seen that movie his character was very similar in ‘The Fear'. Also worthy of comment was the direction from Vince Robert which was of fairly good quality and created a certain dark atmosphere to the movie.

It's probably not everyone's cup of tea and the ending left a lot to be desired, including the answers to many important questions but ‘The Fear' is still fairly entertaining in my opinion. There is a distinct lack of action and no real gore to speak of which is why I consider this a fairly adept thriller. My rating for ‘The Fear' – 6.5/10

Group of college students go up to a friends wooden cabin for a weekend of romance and fun. However, they fall prey to a wooden dummy that makes there worst fears come true with deadly consequences. Not nowhere near as bad as I expected. This is decently made flick, but never generates much in the way of suspense and terror. It owes more then its fair share to Sphere however.

Rated R; Rape, Sexual Situations, Violence and Profanity.

Very few horror franchises delve into the psyche of the victim's mind with a unique antagonist. The most memorable villain was Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) because of his power to invade peoples' dreams. In this movie, instead of dreams, the danger is created by fear (which is where the title comes from). When fear is present, a spirit called Morty enters the real world. It's an interesting concept, unfortunately, the execution of this movie needs some work for it to really peak in its value of entertainment. There are a few good parts and they will be covered.

This plot surfaces when a psychologist Richard (Eddie Bowz) gets a project approved for a fear therapy session up in a remote cabin owned by his parents. Upon getting there they begin to encounter strange events that are far from coincidental. Helping with the creepy factor is the character of Morty - a hand carved wooden mannequin that gives very little comfort. This particular aspect to the film is its strongest point. The suit that the actor plays in has looks of wooden textures and moves rigidly as well. Adding to that is the rickety sound that is used for every movement that Morty makes. It's very convincing that this wooden creature isn't the newest thing around. Perhaps what makes this character the most likable is the fact that he says very little. It creates mystery.

The writing by Ron Ford who continues to write today, did an OK job with the concept but everything else needs work. The concept of this creature appearing when fear is in the air is different. Considering that everyone has fears, no one is safe, so that works. However, when it comes to main characters, not one actor ever has scene that means anything more than what is being shown. The motivations behind a few characters are also misguided. One minute a girl is flirting with another man, then later she finds him repulsive - ummm OK. This is just one of a couple. Also, the fact that the casting crew hired a white actor with dreadlocks - just no. In this cast there are a few actors that go on into bigger movies but do not play roles any bigger than this. Surprisingly, Wes Craven has a small part in here. What exactly did he see in this movie? Another mystery.

Other than that there's the music, scares / violence and cinematography. Picture wise, it's OK. It's not bad nor is it anything worth the time mentioning. The music by Robert O. Ragland was average too. It would've been even better though if there wasn't insertions of 90s pop music. It seriously dates the film - not to mention those dreadlocks from earlier. Finally, because this is in the horror genre, the film is practically non-scary. There are a number of scenes where the viewer will question to how even the characters on screen did not see the scare coming. How do you not see something through a transparent surface? Also, for what it presents the gore is very low here. It's probably lower in blood than even John Carpenter's Halloween (1978). If you want gore, it's not your film.

The concept of fear being brought to a reality is commendable and so is the actual design behind the antagonist. Yet, with writing that is unclear, poor scare tactics and other dated elements, the movie rarely works.