Fear and Desire

Fear and Desire (1953)

  • 89% of critics liked it
    (9 reviews)

  • 36% of users liked it
    (931 ratings)

Legendary director Stanley Kubrick made his feature debut with this allegorical drama about war. Four soldiers whose plane has crashed discover they're behind enemy lines in an unnamed country. Desperate to escape, they decide to build a raft and travel up the nearby river into allied country.… More

Unrated, 1 hr. 8 min.
Directed By
Stanley Kubrick
Genres
Drama
In Theaters
Apr 1, 1953 Wide

Critic Reviews

  • Tim Grierson, Village Voice

    Treat it like a wobbly, precocious demo from a 24-year-old with mighty aspirations, filled with hints of what he would become, and you'll be properly enthralled.

  • Janet Maslin, New York Times

    If Fear and Desire is uneven and sometimes reveals an experimental rather than a polished exterior, its over-all effect is entirely worthy of the sincere effort put into it.

  • Donald J. Levit, ReelTalk Movie Reviews

    Although some visuals are striking chiaroscuro, the film still comes across as tyro self-conscious, a belaboring of theme by one not yet sure of his art.

  • Nick Schager, Slant Magazine

    For all its heavy-handed gloom and stylistic unevenness, Fear and Desire has a certain fierceness that's hard to shake.

  • Fernando F. Croce, CinePassion

    Kubrick's lugubrious, arresting, disavowed feature debut

Read all 9 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • Jonathan H


    Kubrick's first (and little seen) feature is clunky and mishandled. It's fair to see that he loathed this film and did his best to keep it out of circulation forever; however, much like Killer's Kiss, one can really see the seeds of a budding phenom at work -- how he… More

  • First L


    Stanley Kubrick's first feature film is also his least seen, mainly because until Kubrick's death, the film had been locked away in the vaults at his request. This should give you some idea as to the film's quality. It's not that Fear and Desire is a bad movie,… More

  • Michael G


    I saw this ten years ago and I remember not being impressed. You could easily tell it was Kubrick's first film, but his technique was poking out. I was glad I saw it but I wouldn't recommend killing yourself to get a copy.

  • Ben P


    "It's better to roll up your life into one night and one man and one gun." - Sgt. Mac (Frank Silvera) in Fear and Desire Stanley Kubrick ended his feature filmmaking career with the underappreciated Eyes Wide Shut and started it with the now nearly extinct Fear and… More

  • Walter M


    In Fear and Desire," four soldiers are shot down behind enemy lines and crash land in an unnamed war. Lieutenant Corby(Kenneth Harp) proposes building a raft but fears they may have been spotted by enemy aircraft on the way to a cottage across the river where they spot an enemy… More

Read all 8 featured audience ratings

Cast

facebook_logo

Now you can share movies with your friends on Facebook!

  • Discover movies your friends are watching
  • Keep track of what you want to see
  • Add your reviews to your Timeline