In Fear (2013)

An appropriate title as the film deals more in creepy atmosphere suspended by beautiful cinematography than actual substance. Recently acquainted Tom and Lucy make a romantic detour on their trip to meet friends at a festival. Through a series of wrong turns and strange occurrences they find themselves lost. In this minimalist affair only three characters are ever introduced. The third, Max (Allen Leech) adds the final dose of suspense as he treads the line of disturbed victim/psychotic thrill-seeker. Much of the film saunters about adrift but even in the third act it lost my attention at points. While lacking originality, it does stand above many in its genre with its effectively dreadful ambiance.

2½ spilled pints out of 5

BEAUTIFUL CREATURES [2013]

The comparisons to the more popular supernatural teen romance franchise are inevitable with The Fisher King writer Richard LeGravenese's Beautiful Creatures.
Only what we have here is something much more enjoyable than sparkly vampires with a story that can easily be predicted by the first 5 minutes but it doesn't really matter.  The characters are more interesting, the dialogue is punchier & funnier and the actors are far more appealing, including Jeremy Irons, Emma Thompson and Emmy Rossum turning in some delightful hammy and diabolical performances.  All in all, if there were a franchise, I'd have no problem watching more.

3 three dimensional movies out of 5