Fear[s] of the Dark

An ambitious failure, Fear[s] of the Dark is an anthology movie featuring black-and-white shorts from several respected animators – with the colorless aesthetic and an overall emphasis on creepiness the only elements connecting the individual stories. The promising vibe established by the baffling yet entertaining first tale, which revolves around the horrific consequences of a romance between a shy young man and a bold college student, inevitably gives way to an atmosphere of almost interminable experimentation, as the various filmmakers seem more concerned with offering up striking visuals than in telling interesting stories. This is never more evident than in the consistently underwhelming final segment, with Richard McGuire’s ostentatiously avant-garde animation style exacerbated by his reluctance (or inability) to offer up a wholeheartedly compelling protagonist – thus ensuring that the movie concludes on as anti-climactic a note as one could envision. The final result is an endeavor that’ll probably fare best among hardcore animation buffs, as there’s simply too little here designed to draw in casual movie fans (and this is to say nothing of the entirely ineffective wraparound story that connects the various tales).

** out of ****