A Fantastic Fear of Everything

A Fantastic Fear of Everything is probably not what you're expecting from Simon Pegg. It's not horrifically funny like Sean of the Dead, as outright entertaining as Hot Fuzz and, mercifully, it's not as tepid as Run Fatboy Run or as stagnant as Paul or Burke and Hare. Actually, it's not very funny at all to start with.

So what is it? Well, it's a journey and if you decide to embark upon it you'll need to see it through to the end to decide if it was worthwhile. It begins with an engaging, gentle, animated title sequence before introducing us to Jack (Pegg) a flailing children's author engulfed by his research into Victorian murders for a prospective TV series that nobody wants. We quickly discover he has an all-consuming paranoia of being murdered. How do we know this? Because he tells us. And that's when it starts to go downhill.

It's a steep decline that director Crispian Mills (yes it is, but more about him in a minute) seems incapable of avoiding. He seems unaware of any filmic devices to portray the protagonist's thoughts and emotions without resorting to plodding, turgid exposition and painfully obvious statements. It's part way down this terrible slope that you'll feel the urge to pick up your coat, head for the exit and sneak into the screen next door even if it is only Top Cat: The Movie.

Don't! Stick with it. Somewhere around the halfway point the decline into cinema hell slows, stops and gradually heads up to a satisfying peak via some strange and thoroughly enjoyable scenery. For the patient and slightly off-kilter, it's a very satisfying escapade indeed.

At some point you'll discover that it's evolved into a most amusing and very dark trip through a world inhabited by the likes of Tim Burton (when on form), Wes Anderson, Dr. Seuss and Roald Dahl. It's a world I feel very comfortable in but doesn't suit every reader of my blog. There's murder in mind, paranoia at large and animation sequences akin to Fantastic Mr Fox and The Nightmare Before Christmas on LSD.

Cast-wise there's nothing remarkable on display; Pegg is good but ill served by the stodgy first act and Amara Karan as Sangeet occasionally forgets how to act but gives enough to be enjoyable if not memorable. The absolute star of A Fantastic Fear of Everything is Crispian Mills and it has nothing to do with him being son of Hayley, grandson of Sir John, nephew of Maxwell Caulfield or lead singer of Kula Shaker, although it's all interesting trivia.

No, he's a star because this is his directorial debut. And his first outing as producer. And the first screenplay he's written. As debuts go, it's not up there with Duncan Jones' Moon but it's one heck of a start and he's the star because he's dared to be both dark and different at a time when Hollywood is determined to be predictable and repetitively upbeat.

A Fantastic Fear of Everything is far from being a perfect movie but it's a solid, enthralling film that hints at the possibility of Crispian Mills becoming a very fine filmmaker indeed and a hero of the off-kilter cinephiles who are tired of Tim Burton's ever-downward spiral and in need of someone new to rely on for their fix of surrealism.

I was feeling very down one evening and wanted to watch something that would distract me from my thoughts. I went through a couple of lists of so-called "feel-good movies" but after realising that I can't take advice from anyone that finds the Hangover funny (no offence, just different tastes), I decided to see what Simon Pegg has been up to, as Shaun of the Dead is one of my biggest favourites.

This isn't Shaun of the Dead, and if you watch it expecting it to be, you will be bitterly disappointed, as others have said. However, the movie still has a certain dark humour, which I greatly enjoyed, and it carries a story, which for me was very meaningful.

The first half of the movie might seem a bit dragged-out (I enjoyed it though, perhaps because I know all too well how easy it is to think yourself crazy, so I was able to relate to some of what was going on on the screen), but the second half is truly excellent The negative reviews were a bit too harsh in my opinion and that was what prompted me to write one of my own. I'm not going to say you are guaranteed to like it, all I want to do is suggest you give this movie a chance, you might be pleasantly surprised.

The script is intelligent, the direction is smart, the "camera move" is supreme and Simon Pegg's performance is outstanding. It's a black comedy with a rather 80's touch that renders the whole atmosphere so mystical and hysterical. The humor is totally "black" orchestrated with extreme behavioral moods, spastic grimaces, and unbelievable dream sequences that you'd love to watch over and over again. The character Simon Pegg is playing, is a kind of paranoid intelligent looser that is trapped between 2 worlds. The fears and insecurity he has carried over from the past (as a kid) have reached a point where they've become phobias, projecting outwardly in schizophrenic behavior. The character believes or rather is obsessed with the idea that he is going to be murdered. I am not going to say anything more about the plot as it's worth seeing it afresh.

This film captures some amazing ingredients of good black comedy films: mystical atmosphere, sound/music synchronization with sudden camera moves, funny faces (extreme), smart script, dream sequences and spontaneous direction. It's British humor, which I personally love, with a few deeper meanings (behind the whole phobia thing projected from a traumatized subconscious which tries to come to peace with the past).

Having read a few other reviews before watching it, I must say that I find it sad that people expect American style productions and high budgets in order to like a film. How rare good comedies are these days? I loved the film and if you like black comedy and other Simon Pegg's movies I suppose you'll at least like it, since it carries a cinematic seriousness in its humor.

I admit I like Simon Pegg, a lot, so I watched this movie just because of him. The first time I tried to watch the movie I turned it off just like after 15 minutes, today I tried again and I was very tempted to stop it at least a couple of times during the first half an hour, but in the end I sticked with it and I'm very happy of my decision. Yes, everybody knows this movies is not hilarious but that's not its goal, it's a movie about how Simon Pegg's character tries to overcome his fears. I found it funny from time to time but mostly I loved Pegg's acting and most of all I loved the direction. The animated part at the end of the movie is awesome, that alone makes the movie worth watching

I went to see A Fantastic Fear of Everything with no expectations as I hadn't read any reviews and had been underwhelmed by a couple of Simon Pegg's recent efforts. To use a crude rating system i'd say that this was marginally better than Paul and a lot better than Burke & Hare.

I liked the originality of the story and the journey the character took through the movie. It was frequently amusing without ever getting to real laugh-out-loud comedy levels. Silly humour mixed in with quite clever stuff. I'm not sure how it'll go down outside of the U.K. and indeed I felt that it was more suited to a television rather than big- screen format. It's the sort of film I think you could really appreciate if you put it on after coming home completely inebriated from the pub, although you'd probably have to shave 10-15 minutes off the running time in order to stay awake till the end.