Review of In Fear (2013) by Brett B — 06 Mar 2014

For the bulk of its runtime, IN FEAR is a confident and highly effective little horror story, coursing with dread and carried by two strong lead performances. Iain De Caestecker and Alice Englert make for a pair of very likable central characters, and as the situation in which they find themselves becomes more dire and disturbing, they are very convincing in selling their increasing terror.

The early sections of the film have some rather lovely, pastoral cinematography of the English countryside, which sets the stage for a transition into darkness, of both the literal and metaphorical kinds.

The film preys upon the relatable anxiety associated with being lost in an unfamiliar place, and though the premise is very, very simple, the movie is never boring, and it features several highly unnerving moments and images; the ambient and atmospheric musical score adds an extra eerie edge to the proceedings, too.

Up until the final, say, fifteen minutes, the movie's an almost perfect example of doing a lot with a little, but it's in those final minutes that the movie drops itself down a notch. Without getting spoilery, I wouldn't call the ending "bad," per se, but it does leave something to be desired.

Even so, IN FEAR works very well, for the most part, and as a tense mood piece, it's quite solid.