Beginning Thursday, June 5th on NBC
Wrenching itself from its chrysalis, NBC’s Fear Itself sprung from the minds of those who created Showtime’s Masters of Horror (notably Mick Garris). They dropped the arguably pretentious title (what dictates a “master,” really and who qualifies?), slapped on a new moniker, found the series a loving, albeit demanding, home, and retained the same ol’ conceit: Harvest some of the most familiar names working in the genre today and pair them up for an hour’s worth of undiluted, skin-crawling small screen frights. In this round, however, the filmmakers face network television terrain, and with it, unsympathetic censors. A warning flag for any red-blooded horror fan worried they’ll be spoon-fed toothless terror tactics. Fear not, Fear Itself has its share of grotesqueries, viscera, and even suspense, however, there is a homogenized feeling about the first three episodes offered up by NBC for review. Unlike, Masters of Horror, however, there’s a pleasing level of narrative consistency where each chapter feels appropriately right for the time frame. They don’t seem stretched for running time or sloppily truncated when it’s obvious there’s more room for development. With the exception of one, none of the available episodes yield the wanted deep-seated chills one wants to feel from a series with this title.
The Sacrifice
Cast:
Jesse Plemons as Lemmon
Jeffrey Pierce as Point
Stephen Martines as Diego
Rachel Miner as Chelsea
Mircea Monroe as Virginia
Directed by Breck Eisner
Rating: 5 out of 10
Review:
Ripped from the pages of Del Howison’s short story “The Lost Herd,” and adapted for the screen by Mick Garris, Sacrifice is a puzzler. It was selected to lead the series and for that, you would expect the powers-that-be to select a strong debut. Eisner’s effort is a tepid affair with one or two decent shocks, solid acting turns from the cast and palpable atmosphere up its sleeve. But why Garris would eschew the source material’s delicious twists for a more pedestrian series of by-the-numbers thrills is unknown.
Lemmon and Point are brothers in a quartet of thieves on the run. When their car breaks down, the men have no choice but to hole up in a nearby, secluded fort (the same Canadian location used in Ginger Snaps Back). The fact that one of their own sports a nasty chesty wound lends an air of immediacy and when they arrive, they find they’re not alone. Three sisters live a colonial existence within the walls of this labyrinthine shelter and, at first, they’re an accommodating triumvirate. Coy, sexy and completely shut off from the outside world, they manage to separate the men (understandably so) not for their own needs but for something living in the fort with them.
Sacrifice goes through motions we’ve seen before, yet Plemons – as the hesitant, verbose member of the group – instills some freshness in this old hat of tricks with his school boy goofiness. Rachael Miner’s Chelsea, the would-be leader of the sisters, jerks just enough empathy for us to care about her sheltered life. Eisner makes it a point not to put any of his leads in the backseat to the mystery monster lurking in the dark and makes the wise decision to keep him there (some early stills of the creature thrust KNB EFX’s handiwork in the garish daylight and they were none too flattering). The full introduction of Eisner’s monster – seen hanging upside down – is one of the many cool visual gags which also include an unassuming bed that spells a certain doom for one character.
What also works in Eisner’s favor is the locale. Fort Edmonton Park, the recognizable prime piece of real estate where the episode was shot, lends itself to some choice, eerie ambiance Eisner fully taps. Even outdoors, as the thieves trudge across the snow with their ailing friend in tow, Eisner and director of photography Attila Szalay (a Masters of Horror alum) make the most of the stark white negative space for some fine compositions.
But damn…that story. Even though it leaves you with a smirk, at the end of the day you’ve got to wonder: What’s the point?
Spooked
Cast:
Eric Roberts as Harry
Jack Noseworthy as Rory
Cynthia Watros as Meredith
Directed by Brad Anderson
Rating: 8 out of 10
Review:
The first thing you notice with this installment is that Eric Roberts is metamorphosing into Mickey Rourke. The second thing you pick up is how much more emotionally invested you are in the main character than any of the leads of The Sacrifice. Writer Matt Venne accomplishes this wasting no time with our introduction to Roberts’ Harry Siegal, a cop accustomed to using brute force on his witnesses to extract information. He takes his methods too far on one crumb, Rory (Noseworthy), who is concealing the whereabouts of a senator’s son. Harry finds the boy, but breaks the baddie, accidentally slicing the man’s throat. Rory’s resulting death robs Harry of his badge and fifteen years later we find him working as a private investigator helping wives and husbands catch their respective others in extramarital affairs.
Harry takes on a new case that requires him to stake out a house. With his partner (Larry Gilliard Jr.), he sets up in an empty, graffiti-covered abode. It’s the kind of joint that has a history with the teens; for example, Harry finds a bunch of goth kids messing around in the basement where – look at that – there’s a pentagram painted on the floor. You think it has anything to do with the strange noises Harry begins to hear and the visions he starts to see? You bet it does! Spooked has all the trimmings of a haunted house story as the demons of Harry’s past, both personal and occupational, begin to creep up on him.
Anderson, Venne and Roberts do a believable job painting Harry as a conflicted soul, one who does try to do good, only through questionable means. And when Spooked probes the depths of Harry’s inner-turmoil the viewer finds a helluva twisted backstory that ropes in themes of domestic tragedy and gun control. Anderson has the most fun playing with the sound design, manipulating the voices Harry hears through his recording equipment (shades of the Masters of Horror episode Sounds Like), and the production design of ramshackle house which is awash in bizarre images.
Venne, who also penned Dario Argento’s Pelts in Masters of Horror season two, continues to prove he’s comfortable and adept at telling bite-sized horror tales. He keeps Spooked brisk and every commercial break cliffhanger is a riveting one. The only thing saddling this episode is predictability when all is revealed in the final act; details of the who’s and the why’s and the how’s are a bit muddled as well. Still, Spooked opens the door to 60 minutes of involving, well-structured chills.
Family Man
Cast:
Colin Ferguson as Dennis
Clifton Collins Jr. as Richard
Josie Davis as Kathy
Nicole Leduc as Courtney
Directed by Ronny Yu
Rating: 6 out of 10
Review:
Freddy vs. Jason and Bride of Chucky helmer Ronny Yu forgoes the Argento-esque color palettes that he adopted in his previous two feature films for a visually flat, tame, yet mildly entertaining twist on the ol’ “body switcharoo” plot. Here, Ferguson plays Dennis, a literal family man, who swaps bodies with Richard, a serial killer known for slaughtering whole families. The whole wonky mix-up occurs in a hospital after the two collide with each other in a car wreck. Yu graces this scene with the episode’s only stylistic flourish during which time seems to freeze while Richard and Dennis walk amongst the hospital staff, their respective bodies laid out in the emergency room before them.
With their identities switched, Dennis now finds himself facing death row or a life sentence, the latter if he cooperates with the law and gives up the location of the bodies of his past victims – a slice of info he obviously doesn’t know. And Richard is now struggling with the archetypal lifestyle of a happily wed father of two. Writer Dan Knauf sets up an effective ticking clock element to the story – how will Dennis evade authorities and are Richard’s attempts to turn a new leaf going to succumb to his killer instinct?
There are two sides of this coin, one works more than the other. Ferguson is a delight to watch; he savors his moments playing the wolf in sheep’s clothing and this leads to a few choice moments as he tries to get a grasp on the good life. The flipside with Clifton Collins rings a bit dull and illogical. He plays the 180-degree change well, Knauf sadly gives him little to do. And one has to question why the authorities allow Richard to visit Dennis in jail for tips on how to manage his newfound family.
Viewers may love the role-reversal, as implausible as some of the story elements are, horror fans should enjoy the final few minutes where Knauf delivers a shotgun blast of a twist. Otherwise, a lackluster entry from Yu.
