Pretty Good

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Good concept, poorly executed.

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

I read the Edgar Allan Poe story, The Premature Burial, and this doesn't even have any similarities whatsoever, except the buried alive theme. Michael Berryman is a fine horror film actor, but how the Hell, did he end up in this? Karen Black, is an amazing actress, but also why the Hell, did she end up in this dim witted trash compactor worthy, Fred Olen Ray video. Another bad thing. This is not a Motion Picture not a Film, but this is a Video! B-Movie mania. Trash actresses and actors = Brinke Stephens, and many others, that are so bad I can't even remember their names, (and that's a good thing)! If you want some good suspense, watch "Motion Pictures," by, Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock. If you want good Giallo Era horror films, watch Dario Argento films, from 1970-1990. Avoid all Fred Olen Ray, trash compactor worthy films. This "Video," is crap!

A by-the-numbers thriller from director Fred Olen Ray, renowned for making exploitation films on an extremely low budget. This passes the time but offers up little in the way of story or intrigue, as is the case with lots of these films, not much happens for three quarters of the film until the action of the finale. To pass the time there are a number of gratuitous nude and sex scenes. Brinke Stevens is forever taking her clothes off to have a bath, while Delia Sheppard is constantly writhing about while naked. These scenes get boring quickly and are obviously tailor-made for the dirty mac brigade. The story is loosely based on Edgar Allan Poe's theme of being buried alive, but director Ray just doesn't have the budget to do justice to the story, his tale lacks the lavish costumes and sets of Roger Corman's Poe series of the 1960s.Along with the central story (woman is cheated on, buried alive by husband, then comes back from the dead) are a number of sub=plots to lengthen the running time. The most obvious of these is the story involving the husband's embroilment with a debt collector, whose assistant sits around in a car for the whole film before finally taking action at the end. The husband's affair also gets tiring quickly, although to be fair Ray does intertwine the plot threads quite well.The cast is probably the most interesting thing about the film; Ray has once again gathered together a group of talented exploitation has-beens, past-its, and nobodies. Jan-Michael Vincent is probably the biggest name but doesn't have much of a role, while Jay Richardson manages to put a fine balance between a cold-blooded murderer and a human being who cares about his wife. Brinke Stevens has never been much of an actress but carries the pivotal role fairly well. Robert Clarke is believable as a doctor while Robert Quarry and Karen Black fill out minor roles and are welcome faces in the cast. Added to this is Michael Berryman in a cameo appearance as a creepy morgue assistant.The special effects are kept to a minimum until the finale, where Ray murders off just about every major character in the cast. Things are quite bloody here with a number of brutal stabbings, but we've waited a long time for the action so it is quite disappointing. The various 'supernatural' aspects are handled amateurishly and are therefore embarrassing, take the disappearance of Stevens at the end for example, a cliché or what? HAUNTING FEAR comes across as very empty and lacking, but for undemanding fans it will pass the time.

I purchased this video quite cheaply ex-rental, thinking that the cover looked quite nice. And it was nice, but the movie is trash. I can handle B-grade, I sometimes even enjoy a good B romp (ie. 'Surf Nazis Must Die' is a classic example of how entertaining the genre can be), but this was just bland bland bland. Incredibly dull scenes were broken up too sparsely by good wholesome cheap porn and entertaining dream horror sequences. This movie has very little to offer.

Well the B movie antics are packed to the max in this film. But it is very enjoyable. If it is on go ahead and watch it and it might be worth a .99 cent 3 day rental from your video store.