2023 was a year full of ‘pandemic’ horror, that is, set in the darkest days of 2020/2021. Among these we certainly remember the not exciting Sick by John Hyams (the review), which boasted a screenplay co-written by the mind behind ScreamKevin Williamson, and the even less successful Fear Of Deon Taylor.
Even under the threat of a global catastrophe, thirty-year-old Roma (Joseph Sikora) it is white (Annie Ilonzeh) still have a lot to celebrate. For this reason they convince some friends to spend a long weekend with them at the Strawberry Lodge, a remote cabin in the Californian countryside. But when a super-pandemic forces the small group to isolate themselves in that place, they soon find themselves under the yoke of a demonic witch who forces them to live out their worst nightmares while awake.
For an idea like the one behind Fear to work, the torments each character is forced to endure must serve to advance our understanding of something.
This approach would have at least allowed writer-director Deon Taylor (The House Next Door: Meet the Blacks 2) to extract something substantial from its modest technical system, such as a greater understanding of demonic mythology or even just the tensions felt by this handful of friends.
Instead, each death sequence is so isolated from the narrative that surrounds it that the entire story ends up falling immediately into the void. Fear is so much more a review of 21st century horror stereotypes than a real film in some way autonomous.
Take for example the scene where Lou (the rapper YOU) is forced into the basement. This is a standard moment for any apocalyptic thriller and the like – let’s ignore, if possible, the instrumental approach that Fear takes towards pandemic anxieties… – and, if nothing else, it should represent a definitive breaking point for the group.
But the ‘rules’ of Fear are so poorly thought out that this sequence also fails to work. The characters have simply been possessed by the fear of the title and when it comes to their turn to die, these deaths serve only as ‘glorified’ reminders of their confessions before the typical bonfire of some time before.
It’s frustrating to see Fear carelessly oscillate between subgenres creatures featurehaunted house and folk horror. Products like this don’t need to be innovative to the point of breaking the mold – horror is ultimately cinematic jazz, a series of variations on a solid central theme – but we should at least recognize why the artists we’re taking inspiration from have hit the mark.
Ultimately, the scariest thing about Fear is its opening montage of stock footage, a compliment no director wants to hear.
Below you will find the international trailer by Fear, in Italy available directly for rental on many streaming platforms:
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: the review of the pandemic horror film directed by Deon Taylor){kind=link}