Overview: Notorious child murderer Kemper is hellbent on exacting his revenge on the people who put him away, and from his padded room in the local asylum, he commands The Man to slaughter the families of those responsible.

Detective Nielson, who’d had his own unpleasant run-in with Kemper, is faced with an increasingly large pile of mutilated bodies and tries to make some sense of the savagery.

Blu-ray Verdict: Officially, Cradle of Fear is a tribute to the iconic Amicus production Asylum (1972). Technically, it’s an anthology of four tales linked by an angel of death taking revenge on his deranged father’s persecutors. But basically, this is a legendary gift to the Indie-Horror scene down to its very DNA.

No frills, no BS – just pure old-school hardcore. A lo-fi gore fest loaded with many dark treasures: unpolished atmosphere that feels like it came straight from the boiler room; gothy alt-porn sexiness; a crude sound-mix of industrial, breakbeat and black ambient. And guest appearances by British extreme metal band Cradle of Filth, especially Dani Filth as a dark avenger with platform boots and a hideous grin over-spreading his face.

Of course, simplicity screams in this film. Execution and VFX are rather weak and lacking (they weren’t that hot back in 2001, either!) But please don’t shut the coffin on Cradle of Fear. Despite being brutally low-budget, this super-cheap flick is full of ambition and enthusiasm, and in a perverse way, the low-end quality plays perfectly into the devious charm, making the end result more cold and insidious. Amazing that they achieved so much with so little. Long live Alex Chandon! [F.L.]

2-DISC LIMITED COLLECTOR’S EDITION CONTENTS:
DISC ONE – FEATURE & EXTRAS
Some Making of Cradle of Fear
The Special German DVD Making of Thing Something For Cradle of Fear
Important Words
Behind the Scenes Gallery
Trailers

DISC TWO – SHORT FILM COLLECTION & EXTRAS Alex Chandon’s Shorts Collection including:
Chainsaw Scumf***
Bad Manor
Bad Karma
Drillbit
Night Pastor
Bullshit News
Film Extremes 3 Promo
Borderline
Shorts Behind the Scenes Gallery
Trailers

Cradle of Fear (2001) Trailer

Official Purchase Link