fear dot com on DVD

Horror movies must be the hardest type of movie to make. That’s the only logical explanation for why so many of them are as bad as they are.

Fear dot com is the latest scare-free Hollywood horror movie, directed by William Malone (House on Haunted Hill).

A deranged maniac has invented a website that kills its viewers within 48 hours by bringing their greatest fear to life. It’s up to a detective (Stephen Dorff) and a health inspector (Natascha McElhone) to put the pieces together and stop the madness.

But can they do it without viewing the site personally, thus putting themselves on the waiting list?

Because horror movies are so hard to make properly, we’re always willing to be a little more lenient when reviewing them. But there’s no excuse for making a movie this bad, and so devoid of anything remotely terrifying. In fact, it’s actually closer to a comedy than a horror, considering it unintentionally makes you laugh numerous times.

Dorff and McElhone provide the movie’s only redeeming qualities; the story and writing are so weak that there’s nothing that could make it worthwhile.

In a year in which we were given movies like Signs, Frailty, The Mothman Prophecies and Panic Room to provide more than adequate thrills and suspense, there’s really no room or point for ones like fear dot com.

If you’re going for a spot in the Guiness Book of Records for watching the most horror movies, fear dot com is probably worth checking out (barely). Otherwise, you be more frightened by turning off the lights and listening to the creaking floorboards.

Despite a box office take of about 85 cents, the DVD provided for fear dot com is pretty good. It’s available in only anamorphic widescreen, and the picture is quite impressive. It’s a dark movie, so a lot of grain would make it pretty hard to see what’s going on (whether you want to or not). Fortunately, the quality of the print is perfectly clear.

The audio is also very good, with some very nice surround use. During the opening sequence with the subway, the rear speakers are at full throttle, and there are a few other scenes in which they’re used very effectively. Better movies deserve an audio track like this.

Extras include an audio commentary with director William Malone and director of photography Christian Sebaldt, an additional scene (about as good as the rest of the movie), a short “Visions of Fear” featurette, which features interviews with the main players, some production stills, and the trailer.

fear dot com, from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment
101 minutes, anamorphic widescreen (2.35:1) 16x9 TV compatible, 5.1 Dolby Digital
Starring Stephen Dorff, Natascha McElhone, Stephen Rea
Produced by Moshe Diamant, Limor Diamant
Written by Josephine Coyle
Directed by William Malone

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