Eater

Being transferred from one facility to another, a Cajun serial killer who eats his victims (an "eater") is being housed in the Chesterton jail for a night. With two police officers and a "boot" (cop-in-training) watching him, you think that would be adequate. But no. The night is about to become a terrifying last course for those who get in his path.

I had high hopes for this episode, coming from Stuart Gordon. I adore "Re-Animator", I enjoyed "Castle Freak" and his past television episodes of "Masters of Horror" are among the best. But as soon as I heard Michael Gingold say this was going to be a winner, my heart sank. If Gingold says it's good, you can be sure it's a waste of time. And yes, although the episode had its moments, overall it seems lacking.

There were some nice shout-outs for the horror fans. A copy of Fangoria magazine (called "Death Dance") is present and there's discussion of Hannibal Lecter. After this, the story becomes a guessing game of who is the killer and who is the hero. For the most part, this is predictable, but there's a twist or two that will keep you watching. The end, which I won't disclose, came a bit too abruptly and left me wanting more. I needed closure and didn't get it.

Now, the story is still better than "Spooked"... but after the powerful double block of "Family Man" and "Sickness", I thought there could be more. And from here on out, the series doesn't carry the big names. Mary Harron ("American Psycho") might save it, but there's no John Carpenter or Don Coscarelli... at this point I expect the show to be canned after one year's run.

From Beyond and Re-Animator. What excellent movies they are. Stuart Gordon, the man behind those gory flicks is here with an episode of Fear Itself. By now I know that gore or even blood isn't available in most of the episodes but this is an exception. The blood is available and even a bit of gore is added. The story is again, very simple. It's a bit of a story about shapeshifters. The way Stuart used the camera's is in a scary way, the zoom in on faces with a wide angle lens gives a creepy look. And he isn't afraid to show the result of the 'eater'. The only problem that I have is again, the ending of the episode. Suddenly all problems are solved but with a result that makes you go huh? I agree in some terms that people are saying, you can feel that writing was done in a very fast way, sadly it gives that look. But this one is surely one for the geeks and the best part so far in the series.

Fear Itself: Eater (2008)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Elisabeth Moss plays a policewoman who is obsessed with horror movies and gets a big thrill when a serial killer is captured and thrown into her jail. This killer not only slaughters men and women but he's infamous for eating them and soon the policewoman starts to notice that something isn't quite right in the jail as her co-workers seem not to be their real selves. This is an extremely well made film from Gordon who is best known for Re-Animator and he doesn't shy away from the gore here. For being shown on Network television I was rather shocked at how much blood and violence they allowed in the film especially scenes where the killer is shown eating his victims. Gordon does a superb job with his direction and really creates some nice suspense mixed in with all the blood. The ending is extremely well done and Gordon also manages to make a film that doesn't also rely on laughs. This was the first time I had seen moss in anything but she really caught my eye and delivered a very good performance. She fits the role of the horror fan very well and she comes off quite natural as an actress so I wouldn't mind seeing more of her. The supporting cast are pretty good as well. I've never been a die-hard fan of Gordon's work as I find some of his films to be overrated but I was highly impressed here.

I had high hopes for Fear Itself but it seems the show has been crippled by unimaginative and repetitive story lines. I don't mind if you're going to beat the Hannibal/Cajun Bad guy genre to death but at least do it with style and in a way that's worth watching all 40 minutes.

It seems the writers have a recipe, get a psycho and manage to kill EVERYONE (or at least suggest it) by the final minute in every episode. Suspense and fear only works if the outcome is unpredictable, it is the struggle to survive that's meaningful.

These guys should take a look at a little gem of a series called "Are You Afraid of the Dark", I think they would be blown away at its creativeness and eventually work a little harder.

Stuart Gordon's 'The Black Cat' is considered by many one of the best (if not the best) episode of of the earlier 'Masters of Horror' series, created by Mick Garris. Now Gordon did it again here, giving us 'hands down' the best episode of Fear Itself. (also created by Garris). 'Eater' is extremely thrilling - it could also be called suspenseful- and shot masterfully. The police station building with the dark corners, locked doors, stairs and corridors makes an ideal 'scenery' while adding a certain 90's feel to the segment (I count that as a plus). Elizabeth Moss's performance as the 'boot' (newly recruited officer) who is being sexually teased by her male co-officers is phenomenal. And those teeeth... (I'm not spoiling anything, just see it for yourself if you haven't) are a pure nightmare!

My only criticism: The ending was a bit too abrupt- 2 more minutes wouldn't have hurt. Still, the episode is definitely worth a watch or two (unlike most of the episodes in the series, unfortunately..)