Creep (2005)

Three people are trapped in the London subway at night, pursued by something dangerous and mysterious.

Genre – Genre Classics

Director(s) – Christopher Smith

Writer(s) – Christopher Smith

Cast – Franka Potente, Vas Blackwood, Ken Campbell and Jeremy Sheffield

Blue Rider’s Role – Arranged bridge financing

Release Date – 2005

Synopsis – In this horror thriller, heading home late one night after a party, Kate falls asleep while waiting for her subway train. She awakens to find herself trapped in the London underground, with all the doors locked for the evening. She is attacked by a co-worker who has followed her, until a mysterious unseen creature drags him away and kills him.

This begins a terrifying ordeal, as Kate and a young homeless couple are stalked through the dark tunnels by something dangerous.

Boxoffice and Business:
In the U.K., Creep played on 195 screens and grossed $2.3 million over four weeks. It played on 20 screens in the Netherlands, grossing $74,514 on 20 screens in the week of Aug. 7, 2005. Opening in Germany on January 1, 2006, it had 117,225 admissions. It also had theatrical runs in Austria, Spain, Singapore, France, Belgium, The Philippines, Japan, Italy, Poland, Argentina, Hong Kong, Egypt, Thailand, Mexico, Panama and Venezuela. It had its DVD premieres in Brazil and USA in 2005, and its Hungarian TV premiere was in 2006.

Festival Screenings:
Creep screened at: the 2004 Berlin, Hamburg and Frankfurt Fantasy Filmfests; the 2004 London FrightFest; the 2004 Toronto Film Festival; the 2005 Boston Fantastic Film Festival; the 2005 Brussels International Festival of Fantasy Films; the 2005 Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival and the 2005 Leeds International Film Festival.

Viewer Ratings: 
As of Feb. 26, 2009, 55% of the 8.323 viewers that evaluated Creep at the Internet Movie Database gave it positive ratings. All demographic groups rated it highly, with the most supportive being girls 17 and younger (giving it a 6.1 out of 10), boys 17 and younger (6.0) and women 30-44 (5.7).

Critics’ Kudos:
Matthew Turner, View London: “Effective horror movie with equal doses of suspense and gore. It’s worth seeing, thanks to the combination of the setting, a witty script and Potentes unusual heroine. The performances are good, particularly Potente, who avoids scream-queen cliches by making her character surprisingly unlikable. The first half of Creep is suspenseful and extremely effective, largely thanks to the familiarity of its location and set-up, since drunkenly falling asleep and missing the last tube home is, of course, a fear that anyone can relate to. It also works because of Smith’s inventive direction and his smart script – initially, for example, Kate’s reactions and behaviour are realistic and believable, as opposed to the stupid decisions we expect heroines in horror movies to make.”

David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews: “As a sort of Halloween clone set underground, the film works. Actor Sean Harris does a nice job as the Creep, while Potente has perfected the scream-and-run technique that movies like this require. Though Creep doesn’t re-invent the slasher flick, it’s a fairly well-made variation on the genre that should please gorehounds.”

Scott Weinberg, EFilmCritic.com: “The movie manages to deliver a heaping handful of grisly good. Those coming to the movie looking to fill a quota of violent death will get their money’s worth. Creep is a worthy addition to the pantheon of slashers.”

Major Cast and Crew Credits and Awards:
Directed by Christopher Smith (Severance, The 1000th Day).

Written by Christopher Smith (The Day Grandad Went Blind, Severence).

Stars Franka Potente (Run Lola Run, The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Identity, Blow); Vas Blackwood (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, 9 Dead Guys, The Mean Machine, Heartbreak Hotel); Ken Campbell (A Fish Called Wanda, Saving Grace, The Big Red One, Scandal, A Zed & Two Noughts, Dreamchild, Letter to Brezhnev) and Jeremy Sheffield (The Wedding Date, Merlin, Anna Karenina).

Cast includes Paul Rattray (Enigma, Max, Nice); Kelly Scott (Shane, Murder City, Doctors); Sean Harris (24 Hour Party People) Kathryn Gilfeather (debut); Grant Ibbs (The Last of the Blonde Bombshells, Uncle Adolph, Cinderella) and Joe Anderson (Copying Beethoven, Silence Becomes You, Little Box of Sweets).

Executive Producer is Robert Jones (The Usual Suspects, The Constant Gardener, Gosford Park, Vera Drake, The Merchant of Venice, The Proposition, Ladies in Lavender, Sirens, Sex Lives of the Potato Men; nominated for BAFTA and European Film Awards for Dirty Pretty Things; nominated for Indpendent Spirit Awards Best First Feature for Sydney).

Producers are Julie Baines (The Cat’s Meow, Butterfly Kiss, Madagascar Skin) and Jason Newmark (Severance, Embrassez qui Vous Voudrez, Les Fils du Vent).

Original Music by The Insects (Owning Mahowny, Love and Death on Long Island, Wire in the Blood, Bone).

Cinematography by Danny Cohen (Dead Man’s Shoes, The Last Hangman, Scummy Men).

Film Editing by Kate Evans (Girl With a Pearl Earring, Persuasion, Antonia and Jane).

Production Design by John Frankish (Johnny English, My Life So Far, Highlander 2: The Quickening; won Art Directors Guild Award for Chocolat).

Art Direction by Matthew Gray (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Amazing Grace, Flyboys); Ellen Latz (production designer on the miniseries Der Schattenmann, stand-by art director on The Musketeer) and Ashley Winter (art director on Spaced; stand-by art director on Amazing Grace, Thunderbirds and Love, Actually).

Costume Design by Phoebe De Gaye (Killing Me Softly, The Forsythe Saga, Tom & Viv, A Man of No Importance, Carry on Columbus).

Special Makeup Effects Supervisor: Mike H.G.
Bates (The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Minotaur, Asylum, Dead Ringers, Dead Man Weds).

Visual Effects Supervisors Phil Attfield (Lost in Space, Elizabeth, De-Lovely; Emmy and BAFTA nominations for Hornblower) and Simon Frame (Derailed, Proof, An American Haunting, The Importance of Being Earnest; Emmy nominated for Hornblower: Mutiny).

DVD Extras: 
Audio commentary from director Christopher Smith, “Making Of” featurette, “Production Design” featurette, “Make Up Design” featurette, Director’s video diary, “Operation Gore” scene, Q&A at Frightfest, Original ending with storyboard, Alternative titles and Trailer and TV spots.

Links:
Internet Movie Database entry for Creep

Creep trailers at virginmedia.com