Fear Itself (TV Series) The Circle (2009) User Reviews

The Conclusion of One of the Weakest TV Series ever Produced and One of the Poorest DVD Box ever Released

[claudio_carvalho · 6/10 · 31 March 2015]

Brian is a writer of one best-seller and nothing else that has a block. He travels with his wife Lisa to an isolated cabin in Halloween expecting to write again and Lisa invites their friends Anita, Kate and Geoge to visit them and help Brian. Out of the blue, two Trick-or-Treat girls deliver a book to them and while they read the story, the same happens with each person of the group that becomes monster. Soon Brian discovers that the occultist Robbie is responsible for the witchcraft and discloses the truth about his past.

"The Circle" is the conclusion of "Fear Itself" that is one of the weakest TV series ever produced and one of the poorest DVD Box ever released (by Universal). "The Circle" is one of the best episodes, with dark story and conclusion. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "The Circle"

save the best for last

[trashgang · 7/10 · 7 June 2010]

I researched the director and let's say, he's a bit unknown. But what an episode he delivers. I can easily say that it is based on Evil Dead. Friends turning into demons after receiving a book called The Circle. I won't spoil the plot but it is great. There is suspense , and blood and we already know that that isn't really available in the series. It even has some creepy shots and the use of shaky camera's didn't bother me at all, it was used in a fight between a demon and a human. Indeed, it's a bit Evil Dead mixed with Rec and The Mist. It's the only episode that i dare to say, it could have been on Masters of Horror. If only all episodes were like this.

Worst of the bunch!

[scrogo · 3/10 · 8 March 2011]

I'll keep this brief.

This entry into an already poor collection is the worst of the bunch. This episode failed on every front: cinematography, writing, acting, dialogue, score and once again, and especially, the writing. The scenario and one of the main "scares" is clearly ripped off from a cult horror film that any fan will immediately recognize. The plot is just a series of gaping holes strung together. I spent nearly the entire thing saying "what?" to myself and trying to figure out if it was made to be intentionally terrible and waiting for the punch line. It never came. I could sit here and list all of the ridiculous holes and sloppy mistakes (like barricading a door from the wrong side, yet somehow the barricade keeps the thing trapped in the room) but there isn't enough room here. Although, the effects look good. That's why it gets a 3 instead of a 1. Even if they spent the whole budget on em, that's no excuse. The biggest problem is the writing. Truly sloppy and amateurish. Don't waste your time.

On the other hand, if you wanna see what a truly awful waste of time looks like...

What Starts Crappy, Ends Crappy

[ricardovs27 · 4/10 · 19 July 2011]

To initiate this review of the season finale, I feel I must explain something to all readers out there.

Every review I made for the series is marked "Spoiler Warning". Since I don't know what the IMDb editors will consider a spoiler, I did it to avoid blacklisting. Hope you guys out there will understand and enjoy my reviews; I certainly enjoyed creating them.

With that behind us, how is the last episode of "Fear Itself"? Well, it closed full circle. The pilot was stupid and this last one, ditto.

The episode title is, look, "The Circle". At least, if has a sense of irony.

A mixed bag of "Evil Dead" with "Night of The Living Dead" with some sprinkles of "Pitch Black" and "The Dark Half", this plot is all over the place.

They say hell is repetition; maybe the producers took it too literally and didn't allow the season finale to have a voice of his own, making it just a bad regurgitation of previous genre entries.

They had, even, the sadistic touch of making Ashley Scott repeating the same lines for almost 3 minutes. Man, come on! No wonder there will never be a second season. At least, props to NBC for trying!

nothing i haven't seen before..

[Fernando-Rodrigues · 4/10 · 22 November 2020]

Weak CGI and makeup FX, stereotyped characters. Weak ending to a weak season.

Neat last episode

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 16 August 2012]

Burnt-out writer Brian (a credible performance by Johnathan Schaech, who also co-wrote the absorbing script with Richard Chizmar) goes to a small town to work on his latest novel. However, horrific events in said novel start happening for real to the writer and several others who are all together in a secluded cabin in the woods on Halloween. Director Eduardo Rodriguez tells the engrossing story at a constant snappy pace, does a bang-up job of creating and sustaining a creepy atmosphere, makes the most out of the isolated and claustrophobic sylvan location, and stokes the tension to a nerve-rattling high degree. Moreover, Rodriguez displays a refreshing lack of pretense and gets right down to harrowing brass tacks in an admirably straightforward manner. The sound acting from the top-top cast keeps it humming: The gorgeous Ashley Scott as Brian's loyal wife Lisa, Victoria Pratt as vengeful witch Robbie Collins, Melanie Nicholls-King as pushy publisher Anita, Sarah Deakins as the panic-stricken Kate, and Eric Keenleyside as hearty agent George Clayton. The expected dark ending hits the satisfyingly grim spot. Alwyn Kumst's sharp cinematography provides an effectively shadowy look. Luis Ascanio's shivery score does the spine-tingling trick. A worthy closer to this rather erratic, but overall enjoyable anthology series.

So bad...

[rwk2 · 24 September 2011]

Someone once posted there are two kinds of really, really bad shows: so bad it hurts, and so bad it's hilarious. This is the second kind.

The plot is just... ludicrous. The acting is so over the top melodramatic I have to applaud the actors. On the plus side there are some nice special effects. What's truly amazing is the characters continually give the viewer more plot pieces (thankfully, since there is no way anyone could pick it up from just watching, it's that stupefying), and just generally it steals from other (better) horror movies and shows. It's really not horror at all, but it is epically, awesomely, hilariously horrifying.