Creep – Film Review
Patrick Brice and Mark Duplass will impress horror films across the globe with Creep a film starring only three actors, and still manages to scare you and make you feel extremely uneasy.
A videographer that is tight on money named Aaron (Patrick Brice) accepts a job on an online site from a man named Josef (Mark Duplass). When Aaron arrives, Josef explains that he has to video tape him talking to his future son Buddy, as Josef has cancer and will not survive to see his son. As the night goes on however, more sinister plans are put into action.
This was one of the most surprising and refreshing horror films I have seen in quite some time. It was so amazing to see a horror film utilize only three actors, and have it be so effective and make your skin crawl.
Patrick Brice as Aaron in Creep (2014)
Throughout the film, we follow Duplass’ Josef. He is by far the most intriguing character in the entire picture. You are never quite sure whether or not you can trust him or not. Is he actually telling the truth about everything? Does he actually have a son on the way? You are never quite sure. This makes for some genuinely suspenseful moments along the way.
It is also an excellently paced film. Not once was I bored during the entire film. I was constantly questioning what crazy thing Josef would do next.
Another fascinating element to Creep is that with each passing scene, the tensions rise higher and higher. We always feel sympathy for our main protagonist Aaron, as he did not know at all what he was getting into. Aaron is just a simple man looking for money, whereas Josef is looking for much more than just a man to video tape him.
Mark Duplass as Josef in Creep (2014)
The chemistry between Brice and Duplass is also fantastic. The two are great friends in real life, and watching Creep you can feel the chemistry they clearly have on and off the camera.
Additionally, the film has a shocking ending that gave me goosebumps, which rarely happens to me when I watch horror films, but in the case of Creep, it certainly did.
The film does lack an extremely gripping plot, however. It would have been nice to see more substance to the overall story.
An effective and disturbing experience, Creep will leave viewers thrilled in part due to Mark Duplass’ chilling performance.
Overall Grade: A
MPAA Rating: Rated R for brief violence and language
Cast: Patrick Brice, Mark Duplass, Katie Aselton
Directed by: Patrick Brice
Distributed by: The Orchard
Running Time: 77 minutes