[31 Days of Halloween 2015: CREEP is now available on Netflix Instant and VOD. Not on
Blu-Ray/DVD as of this writing.]
Review by Bob Ignizio
Down-on-his-luck filmmaker Aaron (Patrick Brice) answers a
Craigslist ad to follow Josef (Mark Duplass) around and film him in CREEP, the new “mumblecore” horror
flick from writer/director/star Brice and co-writer/producer/star Duplass. At
first Josef presents himself as a dad dying of cancer who wants to record
messages to his son for posterity, but it isn’t long before that’s revealed to
be a lie. Josef claims he’s just a lonely guy looking to make a connection, but
there’s something about him that’s just, well, creepy. But beyond needing the
money, Aaron’s just too nice a guy to simply cut out on his employer despite
his nagging suspicions that the guy is more than a bit off. Sometimes it’s not
a good idea to ignore your gut instincts.
Like most films Duplass is associated with, CREEP is a minimalist affair. The cast
is just the two actors (and one voice), the film uses only a few simple
real-life locations, and the script is heavy on the dialogue and light on
anything that might cost money. It’s a found footage movie in the vein of THE LAST EXORCISM or THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, but it makes
those films’ production values look positively lush by comparison. But as
countless indie horror films through the ages have shown, sometimes passion and
creativity can turn limitations into assets.
Despite the found footage approach, the camera work in CREEP is quite good and clearly well
planned to slowly dole out little bits of information. The film takes great
care in ramping up both the suspense and the weirdness in such a way that the
situations are tense but believable. The performances are convincing as well,
with Duplass coming across like the dark flipside of the oddball title
character from his JEFF WHO LIVES AT
HOME. Only Josef isn’t some harmless idiot savant like Jeff.
While it may not be flashy, CREEP is a tautly constructed, well-paced little thriller that doesn’t
overstay its welcome and makes an impact, and does it all on a tiny budget, to
boot. With its minimalist design and not much in the way of action or violence,
it’s probably not everyone’s idea of a fun scary picture. But for more patient
viewers, it actually is both fun and, if not outright scary, at least
disturbing and shocking. 3 out of 4 stars.
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