Product Details

• Actors: John Carpenter, Guillermo Del Toro, Neil Gaiman, Stuart Gordon, Caitlin Kiernan
• Directors: Frank H. Woodward
• Format: Color, NTSC, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: CINEVOLVE
• DVD Release Date: October 27, 2009
• Run Time: 90 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B002IZEWVS
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #96,653 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

LOVECRAFT: FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN (BLU-RAY)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars LOVECRAFT LIVES!!!, November 6, 2009

By 

Robin Simmons (Palm Springs area, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: LOVECRAFT: FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN (DVD)

"LOVECRAFT: FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN" (2009)

Writer Howard Phillips Lovecraft (1890-1937) said: "The oldest and strongest emotion of mankindf is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown."

Just released for home theater, this terrific documentary won the 2008 San Diego Comic Con "Best Documentary" award. H. P. Lovecraft is generally recognized as the father of modern horror fiction. His unique blend of horror, fantasy and science fiction remains popular today and is a great influence on modern horror writers and movie-makers.

This film that is an overdue tribute and of Lovecraft's old world mindset and strange, xenophobic, mostly reclusive life. Film directors John Carpenter ("Halloween") and Guillermo Del Toro ("Hellboy") contribute thoughtful insights into Lovecraft's moody style and original subject matter. And the influence on pop culture and movies in particular.

Popular horror writers Neil Gaimen, Ramsey Campbell and Peter Straub offer informed and enthusiastic comments about Lovecraft's world and influience on them. The documentary is made with great care and is a pleasure to experience.

It sets the bar very high for similar works on other deserving writers. Great graphics and music set the eerie tone that no doubt would please Lovecraft himself. There's extensive bonus material for the interviews as well as a gallery of Lovecraft inspired art and sculpture. (Not rated, widescreen, 90 minutes)

36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An engaging and affecting look at one of genre fiction's most influential writers, November 12, 2009

By 

Inanna Arthen (Pepperell, MA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: LOVECRAFT: FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN (DVD)

Howard Phillips Lovecraft (August 20, 1890 - March 15, 1937) is now recognized as one of the most innovative and influential writers in the horror/fantasy/science-fiction genre. He also is well known for his highly eccentric personality and somewhat sad life. Both his parents died in a mental institution, and Lovecraft himself was a deeply troubled individual who was unable to enjoy intimate relationships, could not hold a job and suffered from constant raging emotions of fear and anger toward racial and ethnic groups different than his own. Despite these liabilities, Lovecraft was undeniably brilliant, not only because of his intelligence (largely home-schooled, he was reading at the age of 3), but because of his ability for original creative thought, the real mark of genius. Lovecraft's literary inventions include "the Cthulhu Mythos," a fictional history of the cosmos in which pre-human gods and creatures survive and threaten to overrun the modern human world, and *The Necronomicon,* an imaginary magical grimoire so compelling that substantial numbers of people believe it actually exists.

Awarded Best Documentary at the 2008 Comic-Con International Independent Film Festival, *Lovecraft: Fear of the Unknown* chronologically relates Lovecraft's life from early childhood to his own death from intestinal cancer in 1937, when he was only 46 years old. The 90-minute film also discusses the evolving aspects of Lovecraft's writing, his core themes, the appeal and impact of his stories, and finally, Lovecraft's lasting influence and popularity.

The production boasts a high degree of craft and attention to detail. The filmmakers were faced with an amplified dilemma: it's hard enough to present non-fiction about a writer in a visual medium. It's even more difficult when the writer belongs to the modern era, but there is a severe dearth of available photographs, film, and other graphic material to use. Woodward interviews ten professionals whose knowledge of Lovecraft and his work is impressive. A large proportion of the total film consists of interview clips edited by topic. But a visual documentary will lose audience interest rapidly if it relies too much on "talking heads" or static images. *Lovecraft: Fear of the Unknown* solves this dilemma neatly, combining interview sequences, still photographs and B-roll footage with a large assortment of artwork by nine amazingly gifted artists inspired by Lovecraft's writing.

The audio layer takes an additional interesting slant. An uncredited actor reads quotes from Lovecraft's letters, but his voice work is filtered and mixed with noise to simulate an old gramophone recording, as though we were actually hearing a record made in Lovecraft's time. It's the audio equivalent of sepia-toning and distressing a photograph to make it look old, and creates a very effective mood. Lovecraft, who saw himself as a refugee from the eighteenth century, would surely have been amused by this time-tricking technique.

Anyone with an interest in Lovecraft's work, or the history of the horror/fantasy/science-fiction genre in general will be fascinated by *Lovecraft: Fear of the Unknown.* I watched it over and over, just because it's too content-rich to absorb on one viewing. It's worth twice the price.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a great way to spend an evening!, November 11, 2009

By 

Matthew T. Carpenter (Peoria, IL, USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: LOVECRAFT: FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN (DVD)

I have been eagerly anticipating this DVD release for some time now. I approached it as a fan already familiar with the details of Lovecraft's life and having read all of his stories, and many of those in the Cthulhu mythos.

I was not disappointed. This documentary fulfilled all my expectations. It was like spending a few hours with authors whose work I love, and film makers whose mvoies I admire, and all of them love HPL as much as me! I could only wish it was an actual meeting in some cozy pub.

I think this film would serve admirably to acquaint someone unfamiliar with Lovecraft's somewhat peculiar life, and also unfamiliar with his works, with why HPL occupies such a special place in American horror fiction. If you already an assiduous Lovecraftian there will be nothing new here, but you will see some wonderful period photographs and some lovely images of Providence. I think the Frank Woodward did a great job of covering all the important aspects of HPL's life and world view, including his childhood, his teen breakdown/depression, his marriage and why it failed, his racism, his identification with the concept of an English gentleman, his poverty and publication history, and his relationships with other authors. Some might quibble over a detail or two, or might want the emphasis changed a bit, but I think it was a both fair and complete presentation of the man. Clearly this was a labor of love.

What were the highlights for me? Well, everything. Particularly I loved seeing my favorite authors and directors speaking, showing how familiar they are with HPL, how they are so insightful about his influence on them, his limitations and his place in 20th and 21st century horror fiction. I loved every minute Robert Price was on screen. ST Joshi came across as both well educated and jovial, if you can believe it! Neil Gaiman hit the nail on the head when he said the HPL's Cthulhu mythos story was something you read, added to and passed on to the next person. Caitlyn Kiernan has an imposing screen presence. Ramsay Campbell's bits were another highlight. John Carpenter and Guillermo del Toro both came across as erudite and quite a lot of fun, and both pointed out how so much horror today echoes of HPL even if the viewer/reader isn't aware of it. I liked how when they were describing HPL's best known tales they used Lovecraftian art from many sources, including original covers, and interviewed multiple commentators about each piece.

Production qualities are high, the running time is too brief for me and I was left wanting more. I can't recommend this film highly enough.