Lurking Fear (1994)


REVIEWER RATING: 
6/10


This is my third time viewing this film; first time on DVD thanks to German label X-rated Kult -- a company that has been releasing a lot of the out-of-print Full Moon movies on DVD. I remember enjoying this movie when I rented it many years ago as a kid, and now when I view it I can see a lot of the things I missed when I was back then. Now I notice a lot of the cheesy choreography and questionable editing among other things. Despite that I still enjoyed the movie.

Lurking Fear came out in a time when Full Moon was still at its peak, releasing solid B-rated horror for many thirsty fanatics like myself. They even treated us to a behind-the-scenes short documentary after the credits of each of their releases. Sadly, after the mid-90's we saw the decline in "quality" for the flicks and around that time the company that I once loved as a kid became just another wasted direct-to-video crap-maker. Full Moon originator Charles Band eventually turned it into the new "Shadow Entertainment". Reportedly the change was due to the fact that he felt the quality for the movies wasn't the same anymore.

Anyway, enough with the history lesson! The movie not only dishes out some cool monster make-up and effects, but even has stars Ashley Laurence (Hellraiser 1, 2, 3, & 6) and Jeffrey Combs (Re-Animator films) in the mix. Ashley plays the heroine who witnessed her tough sister die by the hands of one of the creatures that plague the small town. You'd never guess who Jeffrey Combs plays!... A doctor! Yes, he continues his role as the scientist/doctor character, playing an alcoholic Dr. Haggis.

To sum-up the story, it basically follows a man who's sent on a hunt to find money that was supposedly left for him by his father. Thanks to receiving a map from an old friend, he goes to an old town where the money is said to be buried inside one of the corpses in a small church's graveyard. On his trail are a few people who also have their eyes set on the money -- their money -- apparently it was stolen from them by the guy's father many years ago. Little do they know that they are in over their head as they walk into a battle between a group of survivors from the town, who were all set and ready to blow up the graveyard, where the "creatures" from underground dwell. Now the greedy people not only have to deal with the townies, but also the beasties from below.

This movie obviously had its faults, but what Full Moon movie doesn't? The biggest problem for me was probably the editing. At times certain scenes just didn't seem to pace well and other times where it felt as if something was missing. Obviously it wasn't edited sine the X-rated Kult company distributes all their films uncut. The movie also could have used a little more gore. Sure there's a nice grabbing-heart-through-chest scene and some brief shots of intestines here and there, but I felt like it could have upped the gore a bit more. Maybe it's just me, *shrugs*. Either way, this is another good entry in the Full Moon video series despite the simple plot and editing problems.

I personally enjoy this movie, but I know others may disagree. Either way, this is a fun cheesy horror flick that would be a good watch with some pizza and a group of buddies.
OVERALL: 
I personally enjoy this movie, but I know others may disagree. Either way, this is a fun cheesy horror flick that would be a good watch with some pizza and a group of buddies.


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