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Creep follows Aaron (Patrick Brice), a struggling videographer that accepts a one-day job to record a client, Josef (Mark Duplass), during his various daily activities. Josef claims that he was recently diagnosed with a brain tumor and that the video is meant to be a "video essay" for his unborn son. However, as the day progresses, the interactions between the two characters grow weirder and creepier.
The entire film is told through the lens of Aaron's camera (i.e. "found footage") which adds to the weirdness of the situation. The voyeuristic aspect makes these initially mundane and private interactions to feel more awkward and off-putting. These go from their first recording, which is Josef's "tubby time", to one where he shares the story of this weird wolfmask he had when he was a kid, which he called "Peachfuzz".
This is a film that was recommended by a good Internet friend a while ago, as we were talking about weird films, and weird it is. Although classified as "horror", it is more awkward and what-the-**** than it is gory or violent. Duplass, who co-wrote the story with director and co-star Brice, carries the film magnificently with a performance that keeps you guessing all the way to the end. Is he a creep, or is he just an eccentric oddball?
The main drawback that I might have is that Brice's performance isn't on the same level as Duplass. This is made more evident in the second half of the film, which mostly focuses in him dealing with the aftermath of his first meeting with Aaron. He's not bad, but he's just a bit wooden. Still, he excels with his direction delivering some genuinely eerie moments as the film reaches its climax.
Much like Aaron, the film is a bit of an oddball. This is not your typical "found footage" psychological horror, it lacks the cheap jumpscares and violence that we might expect from some of these films, but rather relies in how much we get into this weird dynamic between these two characters. It is not the most conventional, but it is certainly effective.
Grade:
CREEP
(2014, Brice)
(2014, Brice)
"You know, that moment I scared you in the woods. and it was - There was murder in your eyes, but it was like, it was baby murder, you're not ready to accept that yet, and I want to encourage you to embrace your inner wolf."
Creep follows Aaron (Patrick Brice), a struggling videographer that accepts a one-day job to record a client, Josef (Mark Duplass), during his various daily activities. Josef claims that he was recently diagnosed with a brain tumor and that the video is meant to be a "video essay" for his unborn son. However, as the day progresses, the interactions between the two characters grow weirder and creepier.
The entire film is told through the lens of Aaron's camera (i.e. "found footage") which adds to the weirdness of the situation. The voyeuristic aspect makes these initially mundane and private interactions to feel more awkward and off-putting. These go from their first recording, which is Josef's "tubby time", to one where he shares the story of this weird wolfmask he had when he was a kid, which he called "Peachfuzz".
This is a film that was recommended by a good Internet friend a while ago, as we were talking about weird films, and weird it is. Although classified as "horror", it is more awkward and what-the-**** than it is gory or violent. Duplass, who co-wrote the story with director and co-star Brice, carries the film magnificently with a performance that keeps you guessing all the way to the end. Is he a creep, or is he just an eccentric oddball?
The main drawback that I might have is that Brice's performance isn't on the same level as Duplass. This is made more evident in the second half of the film, which mostly focuses in him dealing with the aftermath of his first meeting with Aaron. He's not bad, but he's just a bit wooden. Still, he excels with his direction delivering some genuinely eerie moments as the film reaches its climax.
Much like Aaron, the film is a bit of an oddball. This is not your typical "found footage" psychological horror, it lacks the cheap jumpscares and violence that we might expect from some of these films, but rather relies in how much we get into this weird dynamic between these two characters. It is not the most conventional, but it is certainly effective.
Grade: