The torture horror craze began in earnest in the early 2000s with Leigh Whannell and James Wan’sSaw. That surprise hit spawned nine sequels and countless competitors. The draw of torture horror is multifaceted. Many will argue that it’s all meaningless gore, but there are many other subgenres for that. PerhapsDread, an unfairly forgotten late entry in the dying trend, understands something about its appeal that other entries don’t.
Clive Barker’s enormous body of workhas been hugely influential on the horror genre. He arguably deserves partial credit for the torture horror craze, as hisHellraiserseries invented and perfected many of its unique aspects. His short story “Dread” originated in his secondBooks of Bloodanthology. Volumes of the same collection gave the world “The Midnight Meat Train” and his occult detective character Harry D’Amour.
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At a small college, a cinema student named Stephen seeks a compelling final project. Stephen is something of an outcast. He’s sensitive, kind, and artistic. One night, he meets a fellow student named Quaid. He’s polite, but there’ssomething almost preternaturally off about him. Stephen swiftly becomes fascinated with Quaid’s cerebral, demanding persona. Quaid proposes a final project that he and Stephen can do together. He suggests a fear study, in which they interview fellow students about what terrifies them most. Stephen and Quaid share crippling phobias brought on by childhood trauma, making them subjects as well.
Quaid is obsessed with fear. When he was six, he saw his parents butchered by an ax murderer. He’s lived in fear ever since, compelling him to seek out primal terror in others to better understand his plight. Stephen’s brother died in a drunk driving accident. Hehasn’t driven a car since. Stephen’s friend Cheryl is made nauseous by meat after having been molested by her father, who worked at a meat packing plant. They meet Joshua, who was briefly rendered deaf by a childhood accident and fears losing his hearing again. They interview Abby, who has a dark birthmark over half of her body that she’s terrified of others seeing. Quaid is unsatisfied hearing others talk about their fears. One by one, he plans to expose his subjects to their worst nightmare. As the study’s true purpose is revealed, Stephen must find the strength to face his fear and destroy the monster he’s helped to unleash.
Who directedDread?
Though Clive Barker providedthe source material forDread, the film was directed by Anthony DiBlasi. DiBlasi is one of the most interesting up-and-coming horror filmmakers in the industry today.Dreadwas his directorial debut. He worked as an intern for Clive Barker before becoming a producer on adaptations of his work. He was an executive producer on thevastly underratedMidnight Meat TrainandBook of Bloodbefore he directedDread. DiBlasi’s breakthrough project was his 2014 filmLast Shift. He was celebrated again for his 2018 filmExtremity. Most recently, he reimagined his ownLast ShiftasMalum, taking the premise in a new direction with a revamped budget.
As an adaptation, Dreadis simultaneously faithful and distinct. The film changes the ending, adds new characters, and creates an even darker tone. Most of the stories inBooks of Bloodhave anelement of grim comedyor absurdism, butDreadkeeps things grounded. It’s a harsh reading of the story, removing humor in favor of cynicism. UnlikeThe Midnight Meat Train, which simply expands the story into a feature-length narrative,Dreadhas a new angle on its material.
Quaid kidnaps Cheryl andchains her to a radiator. Her only food is a well-cooked steak, forcing her to choose between overcoming her aversion to meat or starving to death. Quaid kidnaps Joshua and fires a gun next to his ears, destroying his eardrums and deafening him again. He seduces Abby, films her as she undresses, and exposes her birthmark to the entire college. Abby is so ashamed that she enters a bathtub full of bleach and scrubs off her skin with steel wool. Stephen finds Abby and discovers what Quaid has done. After taking her to a hospital, he picks up a fire ax and hunts Quaid down. Cheryl eats the meat, though it’s become rotten in the days she’s been chained up. Joshua sees Stephen and assumes he’s still working with Quaid, so he follows him.
Stephen attacks Quaid, triggering memories of his parents' murder. Quaid manages to overcome his terror and knock Stephen unconscious. Stephen awakens, tied to a chair. He escapes, but Joshua stabs him with the ax. Quaid shoots and kills Joshua. Quaid opens the door to Cheryl’s room and leaves Stephen’s body with her. He gives her a pocket knife, curious how long it’ll take her to eat him.
Dreadcarries the grim tone of most torture horror films, but there’s intelligence to it that often isn’t present elsewhere.Fans ofSaworHostelwon’t find the same complexity in its traps or its narrative, but its simplicity makes it all the more effective.Dreadinspires fear while intriguing the mind, and its director captures the spirit of its source material.
