[Film Review] Fear of Rain (2021)

Long before coming-of-age films romanticized the trials of teenage life, high school did not consist of makeover montages and kissing the star football player. In fact, high school can be a nightmare, especially for students battling mental illnesses. And for Rain (Madison Iseman), the titular teenage protagonist in Fear of Rain, her early-onset schizophrenia may not be the reason that she runs into demons in the hallways. 

Castille Landon makes her horror debut with Fear of Rain, a psychological thriller following a schizophrenic teenager suffering from violent, intrusive hallucinations that cause her to question her reality. When she begins to suspect her neighbour has kidnapped a child, it’s up to her to figure out what’s going on since no one else will believe her. 

While many popular films across the genre have explored mental health (The Babadook, Psycho), few have tackled the complicated nature of schizophrenia. The film does not render the same lasting impressions through memorable scare tactics but, rather, it works as a character study. Dealing with plotlines that tackle often-misconstrued diseases is a difficult task for screenwriters, but Landon’s first-person perspective gives a visceral look into the worst aspects of the disease. 

The film opens on a classically cliché action shot of Rain running from a faceless assailant in the woods. Landon employs almost every slasher trope, from the handheld camera tracking shots to the heavy bass score during jumpscare moments. Genre fans would immediately recognize these tropes as an introduction to a slasher film, which makes the immediate shift into a mental health institution much more significant to the framing. 

That is our first introduction to Rain’s delusions, which range between light intrusive voices and full-body immersions into a dreamlike state. As an audience, the initial framing implies a complete lack of threat regarding the stereotypical genre tropes, which only leaves room for sympathy. The dark, hooded figures Rain sees in the cemetery aren’t actual threats, but since Iseman portrays such a likable, sympathetic character, her battle with the disease only acts as an additional, interpersonal conflict, rather than something the audience should fear.

As the film is almost entirely shot from Rain’s perspective, the delusions are the driving force behind the fear within it. Except, rather than the outright fear which might occur in response to a haunted house or axe-wielding murderer, Fear of Rain capitalizes on fear born out of confusion. If Rain isn’t certain about the realities of something happening on camera, the audience isn’t either. As the film progresses, the audience starts to question if they can trust any aspect of Rain’s reality. 

These empathetic tendencies extend beyond fear, too. The pain and embarrassment Rain feels after being mocked by her peers transcends beyond the screen. The audience wants to see Rain live a normal life, so when she starts to wonder if Caleb (Isreal Broussard) is real, the audience experiences the disappointing pain with her.

Functioning as a character study would not be possible if the cast didn’t provide such strong performances. The casting choices and chemistry between the characters are all incredibly strong, especially from Madison Iseman. Landon also utilizes a variety of visceral camera techniques during Rain’s delusional episodes. From incorporating blatant CGI to playing with the focus of the camera, the film cinematically explores the different visual elements to provoke fear and confusion. 

Still, there are issues with the writing and framing that hold the film back. The ending is clunky with bad dialogue and unclear character motivations. Rather than showcase the biggest jumpscare or monster reveal, the film’s conclusion is supposed to be the pinnacle moment of delusional uncertainty, and the reality just ends up being disappointing. While the film starts a conversation about schizophrenia, some of the depictions of schizophrenic delusions come off as cinematic and juvenile rather than sensitive to the subject matter. 

Fear of Rain isn’t scary like a traditional horror film. It’s scary because it showcases the nature of schizophrenia to a degree that many filmmakers are unwilling to explore. While the actual details of the plot are muddled together, it’s Rain that keeps the film from falling apart. It’s just a shame she wasn’t given a better story to tell. 

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