Fears of the Dark

• Kaleem Aftab
• 19 June 2008

This article is from 2008.

(Various, France) 85min

This episodic animation is destined for cult status. Five respected graphic novelists have each penned a story detailing what made them scared at night. Dogs, mad girls and silence all feature strongly. Each story has then been given its own unique visual signature, whether 2-D, 3-D or line drawn, but all are in black and white.

The stories interweave rather than being told one at a time, and at first this is disconcerting as the narratives and styles (from manga to Felix Vallotton) are so different. As often happens with these portmanteau projects, some segments (Charles Burns’ especially) are better than others.

Cineworld, Fri 20 Jun, 8.45pm; Fri 27 Jun, 5.15pm, £8 (£6.40).