I’m currently caught up in found footage rabbit hole, and my latest is Creep (2014) directed by Patrick Bice and written by Bice and Mark Duplass. Word on the streets suggests that this is a solid flick, but the streets are filled with disappointment, so I have to watch it to know for sure. It’s about 70 degrees on the deck, and I have a pint glass with a 4 Hands / Weldwerks Brewing collaboration called Voltron. I am as ready as I’ll ever be.
Creep (2014) – Sometimes the thinnest of plots are the best
This film starts right away with a man named Aaron driving to a remote location in a town called Crestline. As the story goes, Adam met a client named Josef online. Aaron intends to fulfill a video recording contract. It all sounds too good to be true. At $1000 for 8 hours of recording, it sounds like a perfect job.
Upon arriving, Aaron finds a quirky, yet distraught man named Josef that explains that he has been battling cancer. Like it often does, the cancer has returned, and this time its attacking his brain and it will kill within 3 months. Josef hopes to spend the day with Aaron as he films Josef’s life for the benefit of his unborn son. Josef wants to make sure that he leaves something of himself behind for his “Buddy”.
They quickly get to work. Josef’s demeanor is completely disarming even though he continually deflects off of the social guardrails that constrain most. “a $1000 is $1000” is a battle cry that many utter before making a bad decision. Aaron is in for the job; however, things quickly start getting weird.
Immediately and artistically evocative
Strangely enough, the first film that came to mind as I was watching Creep was an early 80’s movie titled My Dinner with Andre (1981). The whole of My Dinner with Andre details a conversation between two men within confines of a single restaurant table. The entirety of the “action” takes place with just two actors talking about life. It’s a character study withing a closed system.
Creep takes a similar approach, but with an added diabolical twist that makes it a different animal. Still the interplay between men in close quarters is still eerily similar. Within its tight confines Creep effortlessly oscillates between comfortably intimate and the precipice of discomfort.
The other movie that jumped to mind, Speak No Evil (2022), was actually released well after Creep. Speak No Evil confronted dangers of man’s predisposition to avoid conflict all costs. Much like Aaron, the protagonists see the cracks long before the danger, but simply can’t force themselves to offend their hosts. Both films take this unique human condition to its most tragic conclusion.
Stellar Performances
Creep has only two on-screen actors and the are both utterly fantastic. The film begins with Aaron, played by Director Patrick Bice, driving to Josef’s cabin in Crestline. Aaron represents the everyman. Aaron is the status quo. The characters is affable and mostly gets through life by playing along. He can be pushed to the edge, but his good nature makes him a sucker. Bice handles the role with perfection. This becomes most evident when we grabs a butcher knife and heads outside confront a someone stalking his home. He couldn’t look more out of place holding that knife, and that was the artistic intent.
Mark Duplass’ performance is even more stunning. Josef is strange – but not overtly threatening. He greets Aaron with over familiarity, hugs, erratic statements, and odd personal disclosures. What starts as mildly awkward quickly becomes suspicious, then unsettling. The genius of his performance lies in its ability to weaponize awkward discomfort. All signs point to something being wrong, but no single situation rises to the occasion of a 3 alarm fire.
Is he dangerous? Probably, but he also demands sympathy. The audience really can’t be sure.
The Anticipation of Doom
Creep is a horror movie. Everyone knows this party train makes its last stop at mayhem station. The beauty of its execution is that the viewer never really know how or when… but they cerainly know what. Patrick Bice in his directorial debut does an absolutely fantastic job of milking this for everything that he can. The decision to use the handheld “found footage” trope shines. In several scenes Aaron must use the camera as a light source as be bumble around in the dark. That shaky cam coupled with the dread of knowing that something out there compounds. This approach also creates a sort of intimacy as the relationship between Josef and Aaron brews.
In a brilliant scene towards the end of the movie the camera is mounted on the dashboard of the car. The camera catches everything before it, but since it is removed from the action it does so in total silence. This leads to one of the most painful suspense building moments of the film.
In another scene, Josef can be seen burying what appears to be plastic bags filled with body parts. For a moment I thought I was witnessing the burial of Aaron. After breathing a sign of relief that I was not witnessing another Megan is Missing (2011) endless ditch digging scene. Bice performs a directorial stutter step that completely reframes the perspective of the scene. Well done.
The realism of the film enhances the horror, not just because it feels like it could happen, but because it feels like it already has happened to someone, somewhere.
Creep is creepy
For those that spend time on the site, it might be misconstrued that I dislike found footage. While its true that I complain loudly about the ones that suck, there are quite a few that I adore. Creep is now on that short yet distinguished list. It makes great use of the medium and keeps one guessing at every turn. Patrick Bice excels in his directorial debut and Mark Duplass stuns in his role as Josef.
In the vast landscape of horror, Creep is a rare gem: a character study disguised as a thriller, a two-man play that turns human interaction into psychological terror. It proves that sometimes all it takes is one weirdo, one camera, and one guy that just can’t read the tea leaves before getting out of Dodge.
Creep (2014) - Charming, Unsettling and Totally Unshakeable - Malevolentdark
Director: Patrick Bice
Date Created: 1970-01-01 00:33
3.5