Force to Fear

Director - Chad Bruns (Two Lines of Vagary) and Zane Hershberger (10/31, 10/31 Part 2)

Starring - Sable Griedel (The Barn, Tales from the Grave), Chad Bruns,  and April Yanko (Murder Made Me Famous, The Campaign for Camelot)

Release Date - 2020

Genre - Action/Crime/Horror

Tagline - "It's kill...or be killed!"
Format - Bluray (Personal Collection)

Rating (out of 5):

     Sometime ago I received word that Zane Hershberger, 10/31 collaborator, was working on a genre bending action film titled Force to Fear.  It looked like a great modern day tribute to  80s action flicks similar to Paul Ragsdale's Streets of Vengeance.  I was really looking forward to checking this one out but soon forgot about it as time moved on.  However, when I received the email that Scream Team Releasing was putting this one out on blu I had to snag it as quickly as I could.  It was worth the wait and I had fun with it.

     The film follows a group of partyers looking to dance it up in an abandoned building.  What they don't expect to run into is two men who have kidnapped a local drug dealer and are torturing him because he got one of the men's wife hooked on drugs leading to her overdose.  However, the group is anything but your average party goers and are there looking for someone that is extremely deadly.

     Force to Fear was not what I was expecting but I really enjoyed it.  Like most indie production, there was plenty of room for improvements but the film itself was fantastic with a story that is a lot of fun.  The acting in this one is extremely cheesy and cliched but it was done that way on purpose.  The cast really gets into their roles and channels their inner 80s action characters.  Some do stand out more than others but I don't think that is because the actor/actress is better than anyone else but because that character was written better.  The story for this one makes you think it's going to go one way before tossing you in the middle of a cluster fuck... a cluster fuck that was fun to watch unfold.  The party goers as they get harassed by the man seeking revenge for his wife was a start to a much bigger story.  We then learn that they are an elite force who is tracking down a serial killer and using the party as cover to lure him out.  This was absolutely brilliant.  I was not expecting this at all.  However, it could have been done differently and have a much bigger impact on the story.  The way the movie was shot we get these long drawn out scenes of dialogue that could have been cut with more focus on the actual story itself.  Finally, the film has several deaths with some blood and solid practical effects but if you were expecting something that would stand out you will be very disappointed.  The effects are solid enough but nothing we haven't seen before.  Overall, Force to Fear was a great late night action horror hybrid with some fun characters and a story that you will not expect.  With that being said, it could have focused a little more on the "twist" instead of the dialogue heavy scenes.  It's a lot of fun but it could be unforgettable.