Amazon Prime Video has dropped a ‘claustrophobic’ new thriller starring everybody’d favourite Line of Duty DI Martin Compston – but while some can’t get past the finale’s unexpected twist.
The ‘extraordinarily creepy’ three-part series follows Greenock-born Compston and his wife Rebecca (played by Anjli Mohindra) as they relocate from London to Glasgow with their two children, hoping for a fresh start.
However, their unsettling new neighbour Jan (Solly McLeod) quickly turns their dream home into a nightmare, making chilling accusations that strike at the heart of every parent’s worst fears. With the police unwilling to intervene, the couple finds themselves increasingly isolated in a spiral of paranoia and fear.
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Adapted from Dirk Kurbjuweit’s 2018 novel, Fear was written by Mick Ford and directed by Justin Chadwick (The Other Boleyn Girl, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom).
Early reviews have praised its unsettling atmosphere, with The Guardian calling it a “creepingly claustrophobic story of a stalker downstairs” and an “intelligent, stylish take on familiar themes.”
‘The psychological torment starts to claw unbearably at you before long,’ it wrote. ‘It plays horribly effectively with our innate fears of our homes, our security, our sanity becoming undone, at the mercy of a force seemingly beyond our control.
‘Fear is a stylish, intelligent take on a story that has been told before but not often so well.’
However, not everyone is convinced, especially when it comes to the show’s twist ending.
Without giving anything away, Radio Times described the finale as “the most unintentionally funny TV moment of the year so far.”
“Given the weighty themes tackled in Fear the thriller’s final moments should not be laugh-out-loud funny,” it wrote. “But here we are.”
The Telegraph was less than complimentary too. ‘What you get is a rather half-baked family drama,” their reviewer wrote. “Three episodes are simply not enough to cover the ground Fear is tackling.” The i’s Emily Baker called the show ‘ridiculous’ and begged viewers ‘not to bother.’
Despite the mixed reactions, anticipation remains high among viewers. “So looking forward to Fear, amazing cast!” one fan wrote on Instagram, while another added, “This looks absolutely amazing!”
Speaking about the emotional toll of filming, Compston revealed how deeply he immersed himself in the role. “My last scenes were so emotional—I had nothing left. I went back to my trailer thinking I’d messed it up, but I realized I’d just given everything I had. I’m really proud of that scene now.”
Fear is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
