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Creep (2014 film)

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Creep
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPatrick Brice
Story by
  • Patrick Brice
  • Mark Duplass
Produced by
Starring
  • Mark Duplass
  • Patrick Brice
Edited byChristopher Donlon
Music by
  • Kyle Field
  • Eric Andrew Kuhn
Production
companies
Distributed byThe Orchard
Release dates
  • March 8, 2014 (2014-03-08) (SXSW)
  • June 23, 2015 (2015-06-23) (United States)
Running time
77 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Creep is a 2014 American found footage psychological horror film directed by Patrick Brice, his directorial debut, from a story by Brice and Mark Duplass, who star in the film. Brice portrays a videographer assigned to record an eccentric client, played by Duplass.[1] Creep was inspired by Brice's experiences with Craigslist and the movies My Dinner with Andre, Misery, and Fatal Attraction. Brice and Duplass refined the film's story during filming, which resulted in multiple versions of each scene and several alternate end scenarios.

The film premiered on March 8, 2014, at South by Southwest, and was released on video on demand on June 23, 2015, by The Orchard prior to an international release via Netflix on July 14, 2015.[2] It received positive reviews from critics and has a Rotten Tomatoes approval rating of 89%.[3] A sequel was released in 2017, also directed by Brice and starring Duplass, with a third film planned for a future release.

Plot

Struggling videographer Aaron accepts an assignment to travel to a remote cabin, where he meets his client Josef. Josef explains that he has an inoperable brain tumor and is expected to die before his pregnant wife Angela gives birth, so he wishes to have Aaron record a video diary for his unborn child. Throughout the day, Josef demonstrates eccentric behavior that makes Aaron uneasy, which culminates in Josef confessing that he raped his wife. As an increasingly-disturbed Aaron finds his attempt at departing hindered by being unable to locate his car keys, he intercepts a phone call from Angela, who reveals that she is actually Josef's sister and urges Aaron to escape. Josef, however, attempts to stop Aaron from leaving and a scuffle ensues before Aaron gets away.

Back at his home, Aaron starts receiving items in the mail from Josef, including a recording of Josef digging a grave. The police are unable to take action due to Aaron knowing little about Josef, whom Aaron realizes is stalking him. Aaron has trouble sleeping and begins to leave his camera on at night. One night, he hears a noise outside his house and goes to investigate. Unknown to Aaron, the camera captures Josef standing outside the window. A final DVD is sent to Aaron, where Josef offers to meet him in a public park to make amends. Aaron accepts Josef's offer, but places a camera on himself and sets his phone to speed dial the police as a precaution. As he waits on a park bench for Josef to arrive, Josef emerges from behind and kills him with an axe. Reviewing the footage, Josef questions why Aaron did not turn around in the moments leading up to his death. He concludes that Aaron believed he was a good person who would not harm him and because of this, he declares Aaron to be his favorite victim.

Josef later receives a phone call from his newest target, now calling himself Bill, as he places a DVD of Aaron's murder alongside recordings of his past victims.

Cast

Duplass' real-life spouse Katie Aselton makes an uncredited appearance as the voice of Angela.

Production

Duplass said that the film's story "was inspired by character-driven dramas that are, at their heart, two-handers: My Dinner with Andre, Misery, and Fatal Attraction" as well as "[his] myriad of strange Craigslist experiences over the years."[4] Brice and Duplass originally began working on Creep under the working title Peachfuzz after the wolf mask owned by Duplass' character, but chose to rename the film as the title's relevance came later in the movie's plot and they did not want viewers to "spend the first half hour trying to figure out why the movie is called Peachfuzz and [not] pay attention to the very intricate details".[5] The two built the movie from a series of conversations they had with one another and decided to refine Creep while they were filming, which enabled them to film and screen portions of the film to see what would or would not work on camera.[5] As a result, the film had multiple alternate end scenarios and Duplass stated that there were "10 to 12 permutations of each scene".[5]

Of the creative process for his character, Josef, Duplass explained: "We were interested in the psychological profile of this very, very strange person. We were very interested in how you meet people and don’t quite understand what’s up, but you start to get signs. For us that was intense eye contact, lack of personal space, oversharing, maybe a little bit too much love here and there. But, for me, there’s something wrong with both of these guys. Deeply. This concept of, 'who is the creep in this scenario?'"[6]

Release

Creep received a world premiere at the South by Southwest film festival on March 8, 2014, and film rights were purchased by RADiUS-TWC shortly thereafter.[7][8] Plans for an October 2014, video on demand release fell through, when RADiUS didn't release the film.[9] In June 2015, The Orchard and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (Orchard's parent company) acquired distribution rights to the film.[10] The film was released on June 23, 2015, on video on demand, prior to a global release on Netflix on July 14, 2015.[11]

Home media

Creep was released on DVD on April 5, 2016, from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.[12]

Reception

Creep received positive reviews from critics.[13][14] On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 89% based on 27 reviews, with an average rating of 7.06/10. The critical consensus states, "a smart, oddball take on found-footage horror, Creep is clever and well-acted enough to keep viewers on the edges of their seats".[3] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 74 out of 100, based on 6 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[15]

The Hollywood Reporter and Indiewire both gave the film positive reviews,[16] and Indiewire noted that although the film had its flaws, they mostly worked in Creep's favor.[17] Variety remarked that Creep "could have been more effective if Duplass’ performance were a shade more ambiguous, and the audience had a chance to at least fleetingly believe Josef might be telling the truth" but that "despite the blatancy of his character’s ulterior motives, Duplass scores a considerable impact by making the most of the aforementioned plot twists."[18]

Shock Till You Drop panned the movie overall, stating that "Creep might work for those don't regularly digest horror films, but for the hardened fan, this is a film that spins its wheels all too often and feels like an exercise in self-indulgence."[19]

Sequel

Main article: Creep 2

Shortly after Creep's premiere at South by Southwest, Duplass announced that he intended to film a sequel and after the film distribution rights were purchased by RADiUS-TWC,[20] he further announced that he was planning on creating a trilogy.[21][22] In August 2014, Duplass further stated that he and Brice planned on filming the second Creep film at the end of the year, that the film's cast would be announced during that time, and that the trilogy would be completed in 2015.[23] However, in February 2015, Duplass commented that neither he nor Brice had been able to start filming on Creep 2 due to scheduling issues, as the careers of both men had greatly expanded since Creep's release, but that the both of them were still actively developing the project.[24] In May 2016, Duplass and Brice announced discussions had begun on the sequel.[25][26] In August 2016, Duplass revealed that he had begun trying on costumes for the film.[27]

In September 2016, it was announced production had begun on the film, with Duplass returning, and Desiree Akhavan joining the cast, with Brice returning as the director.[28] Creep 2 premiered at the Sitges Film Festival on October 6, 2017, and was released through video on demand on October 24, 2017.[29][30] On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 100% based on 23 reviews, with an average rating of 7.55/10.[31]

Brice and Duplass announced plans to create a third film and in March 2020, stated that they were struggling to come up with a concept as they wanted the third film to be "super inspired".[32]

See also

References

  1. ^ Gayne, Zach. "SXSW 2014 Interview: Talking to CREEP's Mark Duplass And Patrick Brice". Twitch Film. Archived from the original on July 9, 2015. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  2. ^ "Netflix Finds 'Creep' Footage For July Premiere". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  3. ^ a b "Creep (2015)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  4. ^ Whittaker, Richard (July 14, 2015). "Mark Duplass Is a Creep". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved October 23, 2016.
  5. ^ a b c Turek, Ryan. "SXSW Interview: Mark Duplass, Patrick Brice on Bringing Creep to Life". STYD. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  6. ^ "Mark Duplass And Patrick Brice On Mixing Comedy And Terror In 'Creep'!". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  7. ^ "Creep". SXSW. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  8. ^ Smith, Nigel. "RADiUS Acquires Mark Duplass Thriller 'Creep' and Its Planned Two Sequels". Indiewire. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  9. ^ Miska, Brad (May 13, 2015). "Netflix Finds 'Creep' Footage For July Premiere". BloodyDisgusting.com. Retrieved February 28, 2016.
  10. ^ Hipes, Patrick (June 22, 2015). "Duplass Brothers Ink Seven-Film Slate Deal With The Orchard". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 28, 2016.
  11. ^ Zakarin, Jordan. "Inside the Duplass Brothers' Growing Digital Indie Empire". Yahoo. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  12. ^ DiVencizo, Alex (February 22, 2016). "Creep". brokehorrorfan.com. Retrieved February 28, 2016.
  13. ^ Moreno, Ashley. "SXSW Film Review: 'Creep'". Austin Chronicle. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  14. ^ "'Creep' Will Scare the Sh*t Out of You!". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  15. ^ "Creep Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  16. ^ Defore, John. "Creep: SXSW Review". THR. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  17. ^ Taylor, Drew. "SXSW Review: Scary Good Mark Duplass Midnight Movie 'Creep'". Indiewire. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  18. ^ Leydon, Joe. "SXSW Film Review: 'Creep'". Variety. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  19. ^ Turek, Ryan. "SXSW Capsule Reviews: That Guy Dick Miller, Creep & Open Windows". STYD. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  20. ^ Sneider, Jeff. "Radius-TWC Partners With Blumhouse, Duplass Brothers on 'Creep' Trilogy". The Wrap. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  21. ^ "Mark Duplass and Patrick Brice Discuss Their Craigslist Nightmare 'Creep'". ScreenRant. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  22. ^ Yamato, Jen. "Radius-TWC Springs For Blumhouse-Duplass SXSW Thriller 'Creep'; Trilogy In The Works". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  23. ^ "Mark Duplass Says CREEP 2 Will Shoot at the End of the Year; Aiming to Release the Entire CREEP Trilogy Next Year". Collider. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  24. ^ Taylor, Drew. "Mark Duplass on 'Lazarus Effect' and Turning Down 'Huge Movies' (EXCLUSIVE)". Moviefone. Archived from the original on February 28, 2015. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  25. ^ Duplass, Mark (May 23, 2016). "CREEP 2 discussions have officially begun". Twitter. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  26. ^ Brice, Patrick (May 23, 2016). "CREEP 2". Twitter.com. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  27. ^ Barkan, Jonathan (August 16, 2016). "Mark Duplass Confirms 'Creep 2' in the Works". Bloody-Disgusting. Retrieved August 16, 2016.
  28. ^ Lincoln, Ross A. (September 10, 2016). "Desiree Akhavan Joins 'Creep 2' As Production Begins On Blumhouse & Duplass Brothers Horror Sequel". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  29. ^ "Creep 2". Sitges Film Festival. Retrieved October 8, 2017.
  30. ^ Squires, John (August 30, 2017). "'Creep 2' Gets a Release Date, Plot and First Image". Bloody-Disgusting. Retrieved August 30, 2017.
  31. ^ "Creep 2 (2017)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  32. ^ Squires, John (March 30, 2020). ""We're Struggling": What's Going On With 'Creep 3'? Mark Duplass Updates". Bloody Disgusting!. Retrieved April 9, 2020.

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