A Fantastic Fear of Everything

source: A Fantastic Fear of Everything

It's really great seeing Simon Pegg playing it as straight as possible, because it enhances the horror part of the movie. There still is comedy bits in there (the whole idea is kind of crazy to begin with), but it gets mixed well with those really great shocking moments throughout the movie. An important character gets introduced very late in the movie, which can be viewed as a mistake or something bad, but even that sort of works for the movie. And it works because it is mainly a one man show. Heavy lifting that Mr. Pegg is able to do. The audio commentary on the disc of course showcases his sense of humor again. Not only for his fans, but for everyone who likes quirky and weird movies.

By now we're all aware of Simon Peggs films and his penchant for the bizarre, off beat and ridiculous, although still bizarre and ridiculous this is quite a change to his more commercial films. The film focuses on the main character (in his grubby and stained chewing gum gray Y fronts and his grubby and stained bedroom) for most of the time. If this is ringing alarm bells for you I would understand if your clicky fingers hovered over the X and went roaming around for something that didn't require any thought or effort on your part, but stick with it! Peggs characters have always been amiable but lovable losers but this guy is deeply and unashamedly paranoid,unattractive and delusional..I really don't want to give any spoilers away as the film unfolds so beautifully and I went from being slightly repulsed by him initially to cheering him on by the end. I would, however, recommend that you suspend all thoughts of seriousness, its daft, tongue in cheek and very very brave of Pegg to do something so, well; weird but very black and funny.

I like Simon Pegg. Hot Fuzz and Paul were brilliant and although over rated Shaun Of The Dead was a good comedy. This isn't. Who thought a bloke sitting in the flat from Bottom in his stained underpants for most of the movie would be amusing. Somehow he had gone mental after reading about Victorian crime and thought any draught was a serial killer. How utterly stupid even for comedy. The bits when he is outside are pretty lame as well. Trapped in a launderette by the local serial killing community copper. Yeah hilarious. The opening scene in the restaurant was an embarrassment. Someone described this as a new genre of comedy. I think they are right but not for reasons they thought. Abysmal from start to excruciating finish.

Oh dear.....it is plain to see that SimonPegg is at his best when he has written the screenplay himself. This film left me wondering why on earth Mr Pegg would do such a film. I enjoyed the way it was shot plus the narrative alongside the film but all the while seemed flat in regards to story. I wonder if it was trying to come across in comic book style but fell short of the mark. Perhaps if Edgar Wright had directed then it may have given it a little more momentum as 104 minutes can be a long time if there is nothing gripping you and keeping your focus. It is worth watching if you're a fan of the Pegg otherwise I'd choose something else. Give peas a chance

my daughter and I were spending an evening in and selected this because it was billed as a comedy and because we have liked several of Simon pegs other films. After wasting and hour and half of my life we both agreed that it was one of the worst films we've ever seen. Firstly its not a comedy, because comedies contain humour, it has no funny lines at all. Secondly much of the first 3/4 of the film is just Simon pegg getting increasingly paranoid. As we also have the benefit of a voice over explaining what is happening this soon wears thin and the constant repetition of this theme is as though the film is treating the viewer as a witless prat. The only witless prat I could see was whoever wrote this rubbish. The last 1/4 of the film finally moves outside Simon pegs flat and the "twist"/finale is so ludicrous that it doesn't bear repeating. Suffice to say that the film descends into something more akin to a horror film. I was left with the impression that the writer got bored and decided to just put down any old rubbish to finish the film off. I have mentioned this theme before that in sports if a player commits a serious offence they can be banned from their sport as a punishment, I know its just a crazy thought but I would genuinely like to see the people who made this, either get a ban from film making as a punishment or get "points on their licence" so that if they make another film as bad in the future they then get banned. Awful , awful film.

Simon Pegg stars as a paranoid crime writer haunted by a fear of being murdered as well as launderettes. This is a wonderfully surreal film and a welcome change from the usual bland 'comedies' churned out ten to the dozen these days. The script is sharp and veers wildly through a number of weird and very funny scenarios which are milked brilliantly by Pegg. This is a very British film and quirky film and therefore unlikely to find mass or foreign appeal. However for fans of Simon Pegg and his movies this will be a real treat. Reading some of the previous reviews and looking at the rating I wasn't expecting to like this film quite as much as I did. Hopefully this film will become a cult classic as it really does stand out.

If you want a film with no plot, but contains many shots of Simon Pegg in his underpants, this film is for you. If you do not subscribe to the above, Avoid this film at all costs. Assume that Mr Pegg did this film either for large sums of cash or as a favour to a friend. Not funny, not clever, no real plot, and random hedgehog animations during the middle of the film. Made no sense whatsoever. Not even funny as a black comedy, i think there were about 3 real jokes in the entire film, one involving somersaults around characters flat, another with superglue and a knife, the third regarding a PCSO /lollipop man.

I was feeling very down one evening and wanted to watch something that would distract me from my thoughts. I went through a couple of lists of so-called "feel-good movies" but after realising that I can't take advice from anyone that finds the Hangover funny (no offence, just different tastes), I decided to see what Simon Pegg has been up to, as Shaun of the Dead is one of my biggest favourites. This isn't Shaun of the Dead, and if you watch it expecting it to be, you will be bitterly disappointed, as others have said. However, the movie still has a certain dark humour, which I greatly enjoyed, and it carries a story, which for me was very meaningful. The first half of the movie might seem a bit dragged-out (I enjoyed it though, perhaps because I know all too well how easy it is to think yourself crazy, so I was able to relate to some of what was going on on the screen), but the second half is truly excellent The negative reviews were a bit too harsh in my opinion and that was what prompted me to write one of my own. I'm not going to say you are guaranteed to like it, all I want to do is suggest you give this movie a chance, you might be pleasantly surprised.

Here's a bit of advice: Cult films are usually made accidentally. Something like Withnail And I or Eraserhead were not designed to be quoted or referenced decades later, but thanks to a combination of public affection and quirkiness, that's exactly how its turned out. If on the other hand, you TRY to make your movie as a crazy and as random as possible to give it distinction, you usually all goes tits-up and the ends up with a bit of a mess. Exhibit A: This. Now I don't doubt that Simon Pegg made it with the best of intentions, and there is SOME truly inspired stuff here that made me giggle no end. But there are also plenty of feeble jokes that not even a playschooler would laugh at, and a narrative which is all rather tragic. And Pegg's character is such a shrill worrywart who does such stupid things, he becomes a figure of hate rather than a 'hero' to sympathise with... which isn't good considering he's the sole person on screen most of the time... A curate's egg then. (Gosh, I've been waiting to use that term for AGES, man... Don't I sound bright?) 5/10