Creep is a very solid (albeit, low-budget) horror film out of the UK, written and directed by Christopher Smith. The film centers around a young woman named “Kate” (played by Franka Potente of The Bourne Identity/Supremacy) who accidently falls asleep while waiting for a subway train. When she wakes up, she finds herself seemingly alone and locked inside the subway station. In truth she is not alone, but is actually being stalked by a sinister troglodyte.
“Creep” is an appropriate title for this film. While not exceptionally scary, I found the film to be profoundly creepy. Director Christopher Smith does an excellent job in establishing a dark and gloomy atmosphere right from the start. The mood and tone of the film is firmly established in the opening sequence, and with the exception of a cocktail scene to introduce the main character, the eerie ambiance is well-maintained throughout the film.
The creepy atmosphere is aided by an effective musical score by The Insects, and the proficient cinematography by Danny Cohen. Cohen makes excellent use of the camera, with the great utilization of lighting and subtle images.
There was not an overly abundant amount of gore, but there were a few truly disturbing scenes which included a gruesomely mimicked operation performed by the humanoid creature.
However, the film was not without its faults. Toward the end of the movie, the “creature” is shown a little too much and loses much of his ominous presence. Also, at certain times the creature inexplicably displays feats of supernatural strength, while at other times he seems to get easily overpowered.
There’s not much in plot or character development either. There’s a short scene inserted to allow the audience to speculate on the origin of the creature, but it falls short of any substantial story development.
Nonetheless, I think most fans of horror will enjoy this film, particularly if you’re into monster movies. But it probably doesn’t offer enough for the general mainstream movie audience.
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