Scare Me Review

4 star funny and refreshing horror story.

Scare Me is a Shudder Original film, now being released in the UK for the first time outside the streaming service on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital from Acorn Media. It is written and directed by Josh Ruben, who also stars and is his stunning directorial debut, followed soon after by the hilarious Werewolves Within. Self assured and highly competent, it bodes well for the future of this upcoming name on the horror circuit.

“I’m sorry, that was kind of aggressive wasn’t it? It’s just, I don’t really talk about my projects. People steal especially, you know, desperate white dudes like you.”

Fred (Josh Ruben) is an aspiring yet struggling horror author. Following a messy break up, he has decided to leave his home in Los Angeles and head for the Catskills. He gets off to a rocky start, his taxi driver Bettina (Rebecca Drysdale – All Nighter) never stops talking and tries to follow him into his cabin.

The cabin is fine, he has TV dinners and bottled beer to keep him company and while out jogging he even meets one of his neighbours, the very obnoxious Fanny (Aya Cash – The Boys, You’re the Worst), who as it happens is a best selling horror author.

Later that night, the power goes out and Fanny appears at the window, scaring Fred who is a bit on edge. He lets her in and almost immediately begins to regret that decision as she sets about criticising everything, him, his cabin, his writing. They crack open a beer and Fanny has an idea, they should tell each other scary stories.

In front of the fire, they each bring their stories to life, helped out even more by the arrival of the pizza delivery guy (Chris Redd – Saturday Night Live) who turns out to be a super fan of Fanny’s work. But not everyone is as they seem. How will this night end?

Scare Me is a very entertaining film, a completely new take on horror story telling, and one which works extremely well, mostly thanks to the superb acting performances. We are thoroughly drawn in to the stories and with some very clever use of special effects, we see the events that are  being described. While not actually providing any scares, it does nevertheless ramp up the tension brilliantly.

It feels almost reminiscent of a stage show, quite a rollercoaster of an experience and with a shocking twist at the end, satisfying too. A great watch and well worth adding to your collection.

“Come on. Get up and scare me motherf*****r, we’re burning moonlight.”

Scare Me is available to buy now on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital Platforms.