"In Fear" (2013)

Having spent part of my childhood in the Pacific Northwest, I know just how dark and foreboding the forest can be. That sense of isolation and the feeling that something or someone was watching me whenever I had ventured too far out into the woods always spooked me as a child. Watching "In Fear" (2013), in which two characters find themselves lost driving along a wooded road, I was astonished at how well director Jeremy Lovering captured that sensation. The first half of this film reminded me quite a bit of "The Blair Witch Project" (no, it's not a "found footage" film at all) in the way these characters slowly come to realize their not alone and their growing sense of dread as they keep ending up in circles. Easily some of the spookiest moments I've seen in a film in the last few years, during which point I thought to myself that I didn't really want to know what was going on, simply because the unknown factor was so damn creepy. The second half, however, starts to lose some of that steam as we do indeed learn the source of their torment. And while in no way is it bad, it certainly defuses the mysterious build up of the first act and pretty soon becomes more suspense driven, like "The Hitcher". All in all though it's still quite a ride (pun intended) and well worth checking out! 8 out of 10 for me.