Waste of time

Better Late Then Never

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

It took me 14 years since the movie's theatrical release in November 2000 to sit through and watch this film written and directed by Alex Winter (best know for starring as Bill in the two film set Bill& Ted's Excellent Adventure and the movie sequel Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey). For the greater percentage of films that make it out to a general release if the director is also the primary writer, the film will not do well at the box office, and for good reason. Writer's who want to direct, and/or director's who want to write a screenplay have a unique perspective that they want full control to present to their audience. Quite frankly, the audience does not want to see a unique "artistic perspective", we want to be entertained.I read the majority of complimentary reviews of this film that were written a dozen years or so ago, and they all said how talented Alex Winter was as both a writer and director, some comparing his style to Alfred Hitchcock. Oh please, were these reviews written by Alex Winters' close friends and family? If not then roll forward to 14 years later in 2014 and look at Alex winters body of work as either a writer or director and you will see that Hollywood has not been banging down his door with financial backing for any subsequent films.I rated the film as high as a 4 out of 10 only because of the strong performance of the lead actor Henry Thomas. Unfortunately although Thomas's performance was very real, his face appeared in 95% of the film and his psychotic and delusional behavior was irritating. I also found the lack of any notable musical score presented the film more as a documentary style (which it was not trying to be) than as a thriller. Alex Winter kept throwing in scenes that attempted to provide a film noir, "Hitchcock" approach, but in my opinion the film suffered even more so as a result.After 14 years since its release and over 500 viewers scoring this films average rating of 6.1, I believe this is a very generous IMDb score. I will not be recommending this film to anyone to waste their time watching, even with the attractive Teri Hatcher playing Henry Thomas's sane sister.Some viewers may enjoy this type of film premise of a disturbed young man who experiences dream sequences (or are they real?) and coming in and out of reality but it certainly is not my cup of tea. I say pass on this attempt at film noir. I give it a 4 out of 10 and this is generous only due to the good performance of Henry Thomas.

Alex Winter's "Fever" is one of the creepiest independent thrillers I have ever seen.Nick Parker,a struggling young painter,is suffering a mental and physical breakdown.When a violent murder occurs in his apartment building,Nick begins to suspect that he may have committed the crime himself.From this event begins the downward spiral of paranoia and illness that ends in the horrifying climax.The film is extremely atmospheric as it looks almost like painting.The hallucinations of Nick are undeniably creepy.The photography by Joe DeSalvo is excellent and the production design adds a lot to the atmosphere.The film is pretty tough to find,but if you get a chance watch it.Highly recommended.

Winter doesn't seem to have his head around the screenplay for "Fever", a dark and morose drama about a young, disturbed NYC slum dwelling artist (Thomas) who is caught up in a trio of murders . The film paints a portrait so nebulous as to leave many questions unanswered as it plods toward an unsatisfying conclusion with a sort of Hitchcockesque style. Unfortunately we're not given reason to care about the principle and are left to wait for the other shoe to drop all the way to rolling credits. "Fever" is an okay watch technically and artistically which offers solid performances. However, the screenplay misses opportunities to put more meat on the bones of a story with unrealized potential. Okay fodder for couch potatoes into quirky film noir psychodramas.

This film is far from average- and quite shocking, when you realize it comes from the mind of Alex Winter. Nobody expects this kind of spooky story from such a light hearted comedic actor (of Bill & Ted fame.) Yet we are pleasantly surprised at the depth of the surface story and the sub plots of this poor, tortured artist. I was engrossed in the story line from the word "go" and enthralled (although it was disconcerting) to be in a constant sense of discovery right along with the main character. Especially gripping are his "sleepwalking sessions" in which you wake up right along with him- a bit in shock as to the new surroundings & sensations.Our little boy has grown up, Henry Thomas' performance as a grown man, dealing with deep seeded emotional issues, far surpasses any role he has played thus far. He is capable of such emotion and range of feeling. I wanted to cry at times, hurting with him as he realizes his lack of control & understanding his dark life. I am anxiously awaiting the world's discovery of his range and capabilities as an actor. He is obviously aware of himself & not afraid of a challenging role.What is next for Alex Winter? Will he stay on the Writer / Director path -- or will he return to the front of the camera bringing all of his newfound skills to life as an actor? His ability to use imagery to convey emotion is frightening, the dark dingy images he shows of New York are a far cry from the glitzy N.Y. that Hollywood tends to portray. He surrounds our main character in darkness as if he is incapable of creating even a glimmer of light in his world. So much symbolism - especially in the portrait on canvas which is never completed, he shows us the painter who cannot paint. Who is the man in the picture? His Father? Himself? The stranger upstairs? We will never know.I was intrigued by the murder plot of course, but at times I found myself wondering if the ending would prove it all to be a "dream" in the mind of our lost confused teacher. How on Earth can all of the overlapping stories come together & make sense? I hate spoilers- so I will not reveal just how... but- he manages to achieve perfect closure- and with such expediency that the audience is left w/ a collective sigh of relief as the credits roll.Certainly worth a theatrical run... will someone pick this film up for a theatrical release after it has already hit the HOLLYWOOD Video shelves? My hope would be yes! Boo Hoo that it isn't the glossy marketable "trash" we see in theatres now- Did I really need another episode of "Dinosaurs on an Island"? Or "SCARY MOVIE 6?" PLEASE PEOPLE!? Big Budget does not mean instant story - Alex proves that with a minimal budget involving very few computerized special effects & we don't even miss them! We are too involved with the story- wanting this poor man to find the answers & find some peace in his soul. Wake up & smell that audiences are screaming for some creativity in movie making and new stories to enjoy! FEVER is certainly a new albeit "surreal" movie experience. I would say rent it- but invite a few friends over too- because you just might have trouble sleeping! (I did)A+ rating: 9 of 10