The Fear Street Trilogy is Bloody Fun

Fear Street was a series of books that I devoured as a young teen, it was what I moved to directly off of Goosebumps. I remember the cheerleaders story the best, I think one girl gets cooked alive in hot steam from the showers? That stuck with me. From there, I quickly moved on to the likes of Stephen King and long forgot about the Fear Street books but when I heard that Netflix was making a trilogy of movies related to the books, I was intrigued. Skeptical but still, I love horror and thought it would be fun to check out.

Fear Street Part 1: 1994

From the moment the first movie started, I was whisked back into a world of nostalgia. I may not have remembered any of the stories but I didn't need to, this movie hooked me from the opening stinger. It's campy, fun, and a hell of a lot bloodier than I expected. I was hooked and couldn't wait for the other installments to drop. Not only were the scares good but the story was engaging, you wanted to figure out the mystery surrounding Sarah Fier and the curse of the town of Shadyside. The monsters were terrifying and for once in a really long time, I actually wanted all of the characters to survive. I don't know when the trend of writing hateful characters that you couldn't wait for them to be gone started but it's not my kind of horror. I want suspense, I don't want to root for the bad guy. Deena and Sam were a great driving force and their chemistry together was wonderful and felt very honest and realistic considering they are two girls in love in the early 90s.

The premise is simple, a kid suddenly slaughters a bunch of his friends in a mall while closing up. No one knows why he started his killing rampage as he himself is killed in the attack. The town flips between saying its their curse and just assuming he's a lone wolf that snapped. Our main character is Deena, a girl who is angry at her girlfriend for ditching them to move to Sunnyvale. She thinks that Sam is trying to escape from her but Sam never wanted to break up. Their arguing leads to a car crash that sees Sam end up in the hospital, after having stumbled out of her car and touching a piece of grass that makes her see Sarah Fier. After that, Deena, her two friends and her younger brother are being stalked by the killer they thought had already been killed and that more old school killers are coming after them and they have to figure out a way to stop them from hunting them down.

The way these kids fight for survival feels refreshingly real. They are very clever in how they try to outsmart the baddies so you're really invested in hoping they can make their way out. Once the dust clears, Deena gets a call from a mysterious C. Berman who tells them that their fight is far from over. Of course, I was hooked and could not wait for the second installment.

Fear Street Part 2: 1978

I wasn't sure how the trilogy as a whole would work out but once the first one ended, I needed to see the next. Surprisingly, it was just as strong as the first and didn't suffer too much with being the middle part of a three part series. It delivered on the scares just as much and kept you guessing what was going on and why throughout its entire run. While I guessed the twist ending with the sisters, the story still surprised me at every turn. It gave us a bit more of a glimpse into Sarah Fier's past and her reasons for cursing the town and delivered equally good scares and strong and likable characters.

This story starts with our remaining characters tracking C. Berman down and confronting her about the mysterious phone message. She tells them of her encounter with murder and mayhem at the hands of the curse of Sarah Fier. We are brought back to the summer of 1978 at a summer camp, honestly the perfect setting for a good horror. We follow sister's Cindy and Ziggy Berman each with a different experience. Ziggy is almost aged out of the camp and is dealing with intense bullying while Cindy is working as a camp counsellor. They dynamic of sisters finding their way back to each other after drifting apart is the most engaging part of this story. You are told at the beginning that one dies but you seriously still hope they both make it.

Once again, we are plunged into a mystery along with the horror as the camp nurse attacks Cindy's boyfriend, Tommy. Insisting that he'll die that night anyway. They survive but the cost of that soon catches up with them as the nighttime Shadyside versus Sunnyvale games turn deadly. No one is spared, not even the younger children in this bloody thrill ride as Cindy and her friend try their best to discover what is happening and how to get out of Sarah Fier's altar before its too late. With a new piece of the puzzle added, in regards to Sarah and her severed hand, the kids back in 1994 try to join her body back together in the hopes that the curse will be lifted but instead, Deena is transported back to 1666. And I was hyped to continue on to part 3.

Fear Street Part 3: 1666

In the final installment, we get a day in the life of Sarah Fier and the unravelling of the Union township that would become Shadyside. Is she really a witch? Did she really curse the town? All our questions are answered in a tense and unrelenting way that lead us back to 1994.

The third blew me away and cemented my love for this series. I'm not even joking, I love this series. It is my favourite thing that Netflix has put out, hands down. Why did it blow me away? The story first and foremost, we get to see exactly what happened that started the chain of deaths that plagued Shadyside. And the relationship between Deena and Sam is interestingly paralleled to Sarah and her lover, Hanna in the past. It's what leads to her being at the heart of the curse. It's a gripping love story, a great mystery, and tense as all hell. Once we get our backstory and a crazy reveal that honestly, I did not see coming, we come back to 1994 where our main heroes must put the pieces together to save themselves and the future of their town. And let me tell you, there are things you didn't even realize were set ups in part 1 that were paid off perfectly in part 3 and it added a sense of realism to the suspense.

You will notice that I have given very little away of the plot because honestly, I don't want to spoil this for anyone. You need to watch this series. I can not sing its praises highly enough. It's thrilling, endearing, chilling, a nostalgic blast. I will warn you, that if you are not good with gore, there are a few scenes that will be tough for you to get through but it's honestly worth it. I have never had so much fun with a horror series before while still being scared. I love that each installment featured strong female leads that used their heads to get out of tough jams but fought when they absolutely had to. It doesn't hurt that the movies have great soundtracks either.

The ending twist is great and something I genuinely didn't see coming and you honestly need to binge this now because it's all out and ready to be consumed.