A supposed adaptation of one of H.P. Lovecraft's most underrated works, this has next to nothing to do with the story it's reportedly based on. It borrows the general setup of a town being terrorized by a brood of inbred, formerly human freaks that have burrowed tunnels underground, and surprisingly even dips its toe into a bit of the twisted ancestral horror the author was known to mess around with on occasion by the conclusion. That's about where the similarities end though as the plot gets way too caught up in the hostile dynamic between its original premise's two groups of thieves who inadvertently find themselves stuck in the locals' struggle while fighting over a hidden stash of cash, letting the actual subterranean terror play second fiddle which reduces the overall amount of excitement. The biggest problem though might just be the low budget nature of the project. They certainly did a great job of bringing the monsters to life in suitably grotesque fashion, but the poor acting, lackluster gore, and weak action all make for a rather middling creature feature that doesn't do much to get the adrenaline pumping. So the most notable aspect of the whole thing ends up being how goshdang hot Allison Mackie, Blake Adams, and Ashley Laurence are. Three stars so fine they'll have you wishing there was a sex or nude scene. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think The Lurking Fear would be the toughest tale to translate into a good movie without taking many, if any, liberties. Regardless, even if you wanted to put your own spin on it, a better job could have been done than this borderline crime-thriller angle that led to the characters spending more time bickering and brawling with each other, instead of succumbing to the malformed cannibals living underneath their feet. Resulting in a dull mess that fails to do its source material justice.