Fear (film)

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Fear
Directed by James Foley
Produced by Brian Grazer
Written by Christopher Crowe
Starring Mark Wahlberg
Reese Witherspoon
Alyssa Milano
William Petersen
Amy Brenneman
Editing by David Brenner
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release date(s) April 12, 1996 (USA)
Running time 97 min
Country Flag of the United States United States
Language English
IMDb profile

Fear is a 1996 thriller film directed by James Foley, starring Mark Wahlberg and Reese Witherspoon. The film also features Amy Brenneman, William Petersen, and Alyssa Milano. Financed by Universal Pictures, the film was a commercial success at the US box office, and received mixed critical reviews.

Contents

[edit] Plot

Nicole (Reese Witherspoon) is basically a good girl, but with a rebellious side, particularly directed at her father (William Peterson). At a rave, she meets David (Mark Wahlberg) and is swept off her feet by his sweet, polite nature, and she is clearly sexually aroused by him. Her father, seeming overprotective, does not like or trust David. The more he objects, the closer Nicole gets to David. When David first meets the family everyone likes him except Nicole's father, but she doesn't care. They go to a carnival together, and ride the ferris wheel, where David gives Nicole her first sexual experience. Eventually, David sneaks into her room and Nicole has sex with him, losing her virginity in the process.

As they get closer, David's dark, possessive nature begins to emerge. When he sees Nicole innocently hugging a male friend (Gary) at school, David attacks the boy and savagely beats him and accidentally hits Nicole and gives her a black eye. The violence escalates, while Nicole tries to rationalize it and her father can't make her see what's happening. He kills the boy she hugged by snapping his neck and leaving the body in the woods. He later rapes Nicole's best friend, Margo (Alyssa Milano), which Nicole misperceives as her best friend having consensual sex with her boyfriend. When Nicole's father confronts David and tells him to stay away, David beats himself up and then shows Nicole the bruises and tells her that her father beat him up. The whole time, he continues to taunt Nicole's father by telling him that Nicole believes David and not her own father.

Nicole finally realizes that David is a violent psychopath and breaks up with him, but he doesn't take the news well. He and four of his hooligan friends arrive at Nicole's remote waterside home and terrorize her family and Margo. They kill a police officer who arrives to help, cut the dog's head off, and they tie up Nicole's parents. As David is once again sexually threatening Nicole, her father is able to get free from his bonds and after a brief struggle throws David through a second-story window, to his death on the ground below.

[edit] Cast

  • Mark Wahlberg as David McCall, A psychopathic teenager who is obsessed with Nicole Walker.
  • Reese Witherspoon as Nicole Walker, A 16 year old girl who falls in love with David McCall. Her best friends are Margo and Gary.
  • William Petersen as Steve Walker, Father of Nicole and Step-Father of Toby Walker. Is protective of Nicole, and does not like her dating David.
  • Amy Brenneman as Laura Walker, Wife of Steve Walker and Mother of Toby and Step-Mother of Nicole Walker.
  • Alyssa Milano as Margo Masse, Best friend of Nicole Walker and Gary. Dated David's friend Logan.
  • Christopher Gray as Toby Walker, Step-Brother of Nicole Walker and Step-Son of Steve Walker and Son of Laura Walker.
  • Tracy Fraim as Logan, David McCall's friend, who also dated Margo Masse.
  • Todd Caldecott as Gary, one of Nicole's best friends
  • Banner Is Kaiser, the Walker's German Shepherd.

[edit] Soundtrack

[edit] Trivia

 Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.
  • The roller coaster in the theme park scene is called "The Coaster", and is one of the biggest attractions at Playland, in Vancouver, British Columbia.
  • The film was placed as #19 on Bravo TV's "30 Even Scarier Movie Moments"
  • When David returns to the abandoned party house to find that Nicole's father went through his things, a small doll of Chucky from Child's Play can briefly be seen.

[edit] External links

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