Fear The Night

The atmosphere built up during the slaughter is positively lethal, with no one questioning how grave the situation is for these women. This is done through an unusual way of sideways character-building where LaBute goes out of his way to avoid apparent expository background-building. The pieces come together in their own time, which can seem to alienate until it is too late and we care about everybody. It also allows the threat to resist definition and remain omnipresent longer than usual.

There are also lots of hidden touches at work. A deceptively natural lighting setup has shadows put to work for expressionistic purposes. The violence is painful looking and well-played, with each act having an emotional consequence thanks to the effective writing.

“…Maggie Q transforms into the new Charles Bronson.” 

In Fear The Night, Maggie Q transforms into the new Charles Bronson. I can see her going from movie to movie like Billy Jack, delivering cathartic deathblows for justice-hungry throngs. Her white-knuckle performance of the anti-social tundra that those who have PTSD live in is truly genuine. That Q-cano turns all her wounds into weapons comes across clearly and is very satisfying. I hope she goes up against a biker gang or the Klan next.

Crovatin brings another standout performance. Mia starts as bubbly, being used for pure comic relief. However, when s**t goes down, all those bubbles pop, and the actor gets to show how much range she has. The rest of the ensemble maintains a high standard of seamless suspense, as LaBute will not light his tunnels.

Considering how well-suited LaBute’s talents are to the old-school vigilante genre is intriguing. It is similar to how Don Siegel caught fire late in his career with the Dirty Harry franchise. Q looks very fashionable wearing someone else’s blood. Please look at Fear The Night; you may agree that Q and LaBute should rise, kill, and kill again.