Know Fear Review: An Old School Feeling Indie Horror Film

Release date: March 12, 2021
Running time: 77 minutes        
Starring: Amy Carlson (“Blue Bloods”), Mallory Bechtel (Hereditary), and David Alan Basche (War of the Worlds)
Directed By: Jamison M. LoCascio

After discovering an ancient book of the occult in their new home, Donald Capel’s (David Alan Basche) wife Wendy (Amy Carlson) is seized by a demonic entity, nearly killing her. Donald’s niece (Mallory Bechtel) activates a dangerous ritual in the book used to identify and banish demons, a ritual forcing each member of the family to communicate with the demon in their own unique way: to see it, hear it, or speak to it.

Know Fear is just a well done, microbudget indie horror film.  The movie has a tight story, limited set of characters, and an overall smart use of its budget for effects.  The film starts off simply enough, and starts to slowly build the tension as the family beomces more entwined in this strange book and the dangerous ritual.  The film doesn't try to do too much, just keeps with the characters and this situation.  Know Fear focuses on the occult and practical effects to keep the movie simple.  And this is not a knock at all; I love when a film knows what it should do and does it smartly.  It has a good use of sound to keep you on edge and let you experience the different facets of the ritual.  It also will keep you on edge as sounds and creaks occur just outside of your vision.  And the film has a nice, small cast of characters who each bring something different to the story.  I especially liked the father character, but each has their own appeal in this film.  And overall, it just has a classic horror setup; family moves into house, finds creepy object, starts ritual they can't contain, and deals with the consequences.  And just like old school horror, the effects can be brutal at times.  Some scenes linger for a little longer than I expected as something terrible happens, reminding you of the consequences at play.  

And although Know Fear knows its limitations some of those do seep through.  The film has some forced delivery, though overall I really liked the characters and enjoyed my time with them.  And although the sound is overall very well done, especially the creepy sounds in the house, there are some times when the dialog does not sound uniform.  It's a minor complaint but one that will occasionally snap you back to reality or make you strain to hear something.  And when the film finally does have its big reveal, it was a little disappointing.  I almost would have rather had it been left unsaid, as Know Fear did a great job with limiting exposure and focusing on smart practical effects, rather than finally seeing this culmination.  

Know Fear is just a well done indie horror film, with smart practical effects, enjoyable characters, and an old school feel.  

Rent it.

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Know Fear is available digitally and on demand on March 12, 2021. 

To stream the film on Amazon Prime for free, click here.