FILM REVIEW: New Fears Eve (2025)

New Fears Eve - New Release Review

Director: P.J. Starks, Eric Huskisson

Starring: Lily-Claire Harvey, Matthew Tichenor, Turner Vaughan, Dave Sheridan, Felissa Rose

Written by: P.J. Starks

Produced by: Eric Huskisson, P.J. Starks, Jeffrey Reddick, Felissa Rose, Dave Sheridan

Cinematography by: Alexander Clark

Original Score by: Frank Dormani

Synopsis:

Follows three best friends who involuntarily prepare for Hooper Industries' annual New Year's Eve party, which turns deadly when a murderer sets his sights on them.

Thoughts:

If you want to release an indie horror film into the wild, especially a slasher, then the best thing to do is set it during a holiday and give it an obvious and clever title. Throw in a few horror legends and a bunch of gory kills and you'll usually come out smiling on the other side. 'New Fears Eve' is entertaining and has its moments for sure but it's not one I'll be revisiting every New Year.

Leslie, Moses and Brian are three friends and work colleagues who are getting ready for their New Year work party, which apparently is mandatory. They work at Hooper Industries, a company that sells something and is run by complete douchebag Mr. Dugan, played impeccably by Dave Sheridan. Excitement is in the air as the party approaches but the mood changes severely when dead bodies begin to show up and a killer wearing a plague doctor mask is stalking them all.

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The film knows exactly what it is. It's not full on parody but it works as both an homage and a fun satire of classic slashers of the past. It ticks a lot of boxes and never misses an opportunity to deliver some clichés. The killer, decked out in all black, wearing a black top hat and a modified plague doctor mask with red glasses, is a cool new villain, at first glance anyway. The mask does resemble a child's craft project at times, looking more like an angry bird, which sadly takes away the fear factor.

P.J. Starks is clearly a huge fan of the genre and his writing is pretty good for the most part. I think sometimes the humourous banter between the friends seems a bit forced but there are some cracker lines in there. Some of the dialogue is farcical and unnecessary. Dave Sheridan is the stand out and Felissa Rose does a stellar job in her relatively small role. Both work really well together onscreen. Lily-Claire Harvey is pretty good as Leslie but some of the other cast have issues delivering lines in believable ways.

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The big positive from this is the practical effects. It's always so satisfying to see a production spend some time, effort and money on effects that are tangible rather than opting for, what some may perceive as the easier option, CGI blood. The film opens with a fun montage of gory kills, spliced with news footage of the killer's onslaught. We then get some story and character work and when the killer returns, so does the gore. The kills aren't overly elaborate here. Although there's one that I've definitely NEVER seen before and made me cackle with delight. The killer clearly has limits to this arsenal but it's still always fun to see blood squirting from a victims throat, chest, eyes, you name it.

Does 'New Fears Eve' do enough to stand out from the indie slasher crowd? Probably not. The characters aren't memorable and I didn't feel any connection to them. It leans heavily into humour and doesn't focus enough on creating tension. The title is the one thing that will likely live on in years to come. The killer, known as The Doctor, has potential for sure if they tweak his look for a sequel. A franchise perhaps?

Verdict: ⭐️⭐️½

-Gavin Logan

'New Fears Eve' is available to stream exclusively on ScreamBox