Brian’s life kind of sucks. His boss is an asshole, his job is grating and his girlfriend is too busy with her nursing job to give him the time of day. Unfortunately, things are about to get much worse. A notorious serial killer known only as The Doctor pays a visit to the corporate New Year’s Eve party, leaving Brian and his friends in a fight for survival. Or maybe they can at least get laid.
New Fear’s Eve is indie B-horror at its finest, but the comedy is where it really shines. While it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea, the mix of Naked Gun style quips and Scary Movie irreverence will cover most people. To me, this movie was at its funniest in the absurdist moments. Not much comedy makes me laugh out loud anymore, and this one had me howling.
The horror is still worth mentioning though, and the slasher villain The Doctor really grew on me throughout the movie’s runtime. Despite first calling images of the titular Doctor Who to my brain, The Doctor is quickly established as a unique and fun horror villain. He reminded me a lot of Mr. X from Resident Evil 2, just sauntering after our heroes to deliver a well-timed kill. It’s goofy, but the grindhouse level of his kills had me squirming. The use of practical effects really delivers here, and every death is a grotesque goopy mess.
The cast is having a great time, and it shows. While New Fear’s Eve features some horror heavy weights (Felissa Rose, Jeffrey Reddick), everyone understood the assignment. Most of the time, they lean into the comedy and absurdity of the premise, but when it’s time to pull back, there are still some very sweet and endearing moments. In particular, Lily Claire Harvey was dazzling to watch and I really enjoyed her in every scene.
My main issue was with the film’s ending, and while I won’t be spoiling it here, it just kind of ends. Maybe I’m selfish, but in the film’s final moments, I was invested and wanted more. An additional 10 minutes or so just to wrap up the main arc would have tied up any loose ends, though they may be leaving the door open for a sequel.
I mentioned before that this won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s true about the film as a whole. If you didn’t like movies like Blood Rage, Deathgasm, or Thankskilling, you may not like this either. Like the aforementioned, New Fear’s Eve is an irreverent horror slasher that doesn’t take itself seriously at all. If you love those movies though (particularly Deathgasm), you should see this movie. It’s an enjoyable film that has all the makings of a cult classic, and I’ll be recommending it.
