Fear the Night (2023) | Film Review

 

(First viewing via VOD) - A group of women throwing a bachelorette party are terrorized by a group of masked men. These men are convinced there is something of value within the house, and they will cut through everyone to get it. It’s up to ex-military and self-defense instructor, Tess (played by Maggie Q) to teach them what she can to survive the night.

I’m a fan of Maggie Q. While she’s not imposing physically, her attitude conveys a dark confidence that makes her believable on screen as a physical threat. And Fear the Night allows her to do what she does best, quip hard, and kick ass. 

As survival films go, I think Fear the Night does a decent job setting everything up. It is immediately established that the women coming together are not all on the same page. Tess is at constant odds with her sister, Beth (played by Kat Foster), yet share a mutual love for their younger sister Rose (played by Highdee Kuan), who is the recipient of the party. And Beth’s friends and some of the other women invited by Rose aren’t exactly chummy. But everyone decides to make nice in support of their mutual friend. Everyone except Tess, who seems to be constantly on edge, looking out for any lingering threats. She also seems to have a deep distrust of men.

We aren’t given a timeline on how long Tess has been this way, but based on some of the interaction she has with Beth, it’s been a while. Beth is resentful of Tess, because she finds her sister’s constant brood nature to be self-absorbed. It’s a bickering between the two that I doubt is all that uncommon between sisters. One is constantly looking for threats, or shutting others down so she doesn’t get hurt, and the other just wants her sister to lighten up. While I don’t think the film gives us very much to work with, it’s just enough to be able to see both sides. But given that this is clearly a Maggie Q film, and we know the fit is going to hit the shan at some point, one can’t help but dislike Beth a bit — even though in reality I think she’s got a pretty good reason to act as she does.

The biggest problem with Fear the Night is that, while the bad guys are absolutely brutal in their behavior and actions, their motivations feel a bit light. During one conversation between Dick (played by Philip Burke) and leader Perry (played by Travis Hammer), it’s revealed that whatever their plan is, it’s been six months in the making. This seems odd, considering they really didn’t seem to know what they were doing for the most part. It would have been nice to have a bit more backstory or theme to these guys to help viewers (or at least me) understand why they were doing what they were doing. I mean, aside from money.

I don’t want to go into too much detail, as there is so little detail as is, to spoil anything here. But I will say, given what we learn about Perry, the ultimate showdown between he and Tess goes down exactly as I expected it would, and it’s pretty satisfying. Travis Hammer’s performance definitely rises above what he was given to do, and he really makes you want to see him pay for his actions by the end. 

I’m not sure of the budget for this film, but I’m assuming it was pretty small. With that, I think they did a good job making the most of what they had. There are some decent visual kills, some relatively good acting amongst the group, and the film doesn’t pull any punches. If you’re looking for a solid flick to throw on, Fear the Night is worth a shot.

If you’re still reading this, thank you! I’m J. Kern Radtke, the Reformed Movie Geek letting you know that if you find yourself at a bachelorette party, and the only way to get cell service is to lean out the window upstairs, best not to lean too far.