"Fear Itself" Family Man (2008)

Director:

Ronny Yu

Writers:

Mick Garris (creator)
Daniel Knauf (written by)

TV Series:

"Fear Itself" (2008)

Original Air Date:

19 June 2008 (Season 1, Episode 3)

Genre:

Horror

Plot:

Dennis Mahoney is an All-American dad: successful, loving, and all-around good guy. All that changes...

Plot Keywords:

Car Accident | Serial Killer | Split Screen | Child Murder | School Play

Cast

Clifton Collins Jr.	...	Richard 'Family Man' Brautigan
Colin Ferguson	...	Dennis Mahoney / Richard 'Family Man' Brautigan
Josie Davis	...	Kathy Mahoney (as Josie Rebecca Davis)
Stephen Lobo	...	John Amir
Brent Stait	...	Deputy / Guard Toomey
Nicole Leduc	...	Courtney Mahoney
Gig Morton	...	Sean Mahoney
Michael St. John Smith	...	Sheriff Weller
Terence Kelly	...	Reverend
Tyler Playford
Roberta Mauer-Phillips
Mieko Ouchi
Chris Aanderson
Jodi Stecyk
Patricia Darbasie	...	EMS Tech

Runtime:

USA:42 min (TV version)

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

USA:TV-14

Filming Locations:

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Company:

Fear Itself Productions

Goofs:

Continuity: When Dennis Mahoney is leaving the house and his daughter says "I'm going to color a picture for you daddy" she is coloring with pink marker. The next second the pink disappears from the coloring book, the marker is nowhere to be seen and she is coloring with green.

Finally, the Series Has a Winning Episode

The perfect husband and father dies in a tragic car crash, but is brought back to life in the hospital. Unfortunately, it turns out a vicious serial killer died at the same time and through God's Will, they have switched bodies upon their return. Now the killer walks freely through the perfect man's home while the innocent parent rots in jail.

This episode was amazing. Up to this point, I figured the series would be largely forgettable and be canceled in the first year. Maybe John Landis or Stuart Gordon would make a good story, but overall the series would try viewers' patience. Ronny Yu, whom I underestimated, proves me wrong: this story is well-written, well-presented. Perfect editing, pacing, suspense... characters I actually care about. And a sense of terror that was absent in the other episodes (and many other horror tales).

I have to give credit to the two main characters and the actors who portrayed them. Essentially, both of them are playing two different people -- sometimes mild-manned and loving and other times violent and destructive. I was more than just a little impressed with the versatility of the acting. Some people have difficulty switching mindsets from one film to another, but here we have two actors switching psyches in one movie.

There isn't much use in seeing "Fear Itself" episodes more than once... at least not without a sizable break in between. But this is an exception. I'd gladly rewatch this with a friend, even now that I know the ending (which may reduce the suspense). Be sure to check it out... up to this point, this is the episode that is going to sell the series if any of them are.