Director – Dante Yore (Mystery Incorporated, Fear Pharm 2)
Starring – Tiana Tuttle (American Psychos, Shades of Black), Mario Rocha (Path to Darkness, Face to Face), and Emily Sweet (The Dragon Unleashed, Cry Havoc)
Release Date – 2020
Rating – 1.5/5
Last month I found myself rushing out to all the local stores that carried movies to find some horror flicks for my collection. October is a horror fan’s Christmas and the one time out of the year that most retail locations embrace the genre. During one of my many trips to Walmart I came across the DVD of the new slasher flick Fear Pharm. The image was an obvious rip off of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre but the price wasn’t bad so I grabbed it. I tossed it in late on Halloween night hoping for a cheap treat but it was clearly a trick played on me.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows four youths as they travel to a haunted corn maze for a little Halloween chills. The attraction is family owned and are very hands on with the event. However, they have a sinister reason for hosting this annual event and it involves abducting and killing teens due to a modern mutation they are born with. **Spoiler Alert**
I went into this one not knowing anything about it aside from the TCM inspired artwork. However, it was clearly not for me once I tossed it in. The movie struggles with pacing, the story is fucking ridiculous, and the characters are stupid. I wish I had the time back that I invested in this.
The acting in this one is not that great. The characters are unentertaining clichés and the cast delivers some of the most unenthused performances I have ever seen. There is no excitement or intensity in any of the performances. The cast goes through their lines and half-hazardly goes into character.
The story for this one starts out decent enough. It tries to capture that Halloween spirit with the haunted corn maze attraction before moving into a light slasher. However, everything the film sets up goes out the window once the reason as to why they are killing is revealed. This is the weakest reason to murder teens I have ever heard. It’s so stupid and, honestly, makes absolutely no sense.
Finally, the film has blood and some solid practical effects but the lack of likable characters and solid storyline makes them feel like a complete waste. Overall, Fear Pharm is one of the biggest disappointments of my October horror binge. The movie could have been some mindless fun but was unable to cross any of the obstacles that stood before it. Skip it.
