''The Face of Fear'' is a 1990 American television film directed by

Farhad Mann Farhad Mann ( fa, فرهاد من) is an American director, screenwriter of film, television and commercials, and owner of the production company FMPI. Mann has directed episodes for television series such as ''Beauty & the Beast'', '' The List ...

and starring

Pam Dawber Pamela Dawber (born October 18, 1951) is an American actress best known for her lead television sitcom roles as Mindy McConnell in ''Mork & Mindy'' (1978–1982) and Samantha Russell in ''My Sister Sam'' (1986–1988). Early life Dawber was bor ...

and

Lee Horsley Lee Arthur Horsley (born May 15, 1955) is an American film, television, and theater actor known for starring roles in the television series ''Nero Wolfe'' (1981), '' Matt Houston'' (1982–1985), and ''Paradise'' (1988–1991). He starred in the ...

. It is based on the 1977 novel of the same name by

Dean Koontz Dean Ray Koontz (born July 9, 1945) is an American author. His novels are billed as suspense thrillers, but frequently incorporate elements of horror, fantasy, science fiction, mystery, and satire. Many of his books have appeared on ''The New Y ...

, who also co-wrote the teleplay with Alan Jay Glueckman.

Plot

During a snowstorm, a killer traps a former mountain climber who has psychic powers and his fiancee in a New York skyscraper office building. In order to escape, they will have to face impossible odds by rappelling down the outside of the building as if it is a mountain. thumbnail, Swedish VHS cover. (The English language version is mostly identical.)

Cast

as Connie Weaver *

as Graham Harris *

Bob Balaban Robert Elmer Balaban (born August 16, 1945) is an American actor, author, comedian, director and producer. He was one of the producers nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture for ''Gosford Park'' (2001), in which he also appeared. Balab ...

as Ira Preduski * William Sadler as Anthony Prine *

Kevin Conroy Kevin Conroy (November 30, 1955 – November 10, 2022) was an American actor. He appeared in a variety of stage performances, television series, and television films, but earned worldwide fame for his voice portrayal of the DC Comics superhero ...

as Frank Dwight Bollinger

Production

To create some of the scenes in the movie Pam Dawber had to be suspended from ropes. She had initially expected that most of the

rappelling Abseiling ( ; ), also known as rappelling ( ; ), is the controlled descent of a steep slope, such as a rock face, by moving down a rope. When abseiling the person descending controls their own movement down the rope, in contrast to low ...

scenes would be filmed by stunt doubles, but found that the cast had to do many of their own stunts. Dawson had chosen to film ''The Face of Fear'' as it was different from the roles she was typically offered at the time, which she described as "the nice girl or the mom". Actor Lee Horsley experienced some difficulty while filming, as his character had a phobia of heights and Horsley himself was not. He had to use one of his own phobias, claustrophobia, to evoke the emotions needed for Graham. Author

was brought on to co-write the script.

Release

''The Face of Fear'' aired on CBS on September 30, 1990.

Reception

The Wisconsin State Journal The ''Wisconsin State Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making i ...

'' rated the movie at two stars, writing that "Tension is maintained for the most part and if you have a fear of heights, you'll be in a perpetual sweat for about two-thirds of this TV movie."

Ken Tucker Kenneth Tucker is an American arts, music and television critic, magazine editor, and non-fiction book writer. Early life and education Tucker was born in Manhattan, New York City, New York, and raised in Stamford, Connecticut. He earned a ...

of ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'' gave the film a C−, calling it "bland" and "mediocre", saying "a psychic mountain-climber" has "Koontz stretch(es) the limits of credibility", that the "murders are more graphic than anything I’ve seen on TV recently" but that the "constraints of prime-time don’t allow this movie to become truly unsettling." On the other hand,

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

, who gave it three stars, called it "a gripping TV time-waster", saying it took "the most hackneyed of TV movie premises — a psychic is pursued by the serial killer whose crimes he has been mentally witnessing — and a few leftover bits of the plot of ''Die Hard''" and that it was "surprisingly, well, good" and that "the clichéd characters are given a touch more depth than usual, and there are neat, non-stereotyped supporting performances from cop Bob Balaban and smarmy journalist William Sadler".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Face of Fear 1990 films 1990 television films Films based on works by Dean Koontz Films scored by John Debney CBS network films Films directed by Farhad Mann Television films based on books Films about psychic powers Serial killer films Films set in offices Films based on American novels Office work in popular culture 1990s English-language films