''Relative Fear'' (also known as ''The Child'' and ''Le silence d'Adam'') is a 1994 Canadian

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...

psychological horror Psychological horror is a subgenre of horror and psychological fiction with a particular focus on mental, emotional, and psychological states to frighten, disturb, or unsettle its audience. The subgenre frequently overlaps with the related subgenr ...

film that references the 1956 film ''

The Bad Seed ''The Bad Seed'' is a 1954 novel by American writer William March, the last of his major works published before his death. Nominated for the 1955 National Book Award for Fiction, ''The Bad Seed'' tells the story of a mother's realization that h ...

''. An

autistic The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

child is seemingly born to kill and does so.

Cast

*Matthew Dupuis as Adam Pratman (Adam Madison) * Darlanne Fluegel as Linda Pratman *

James Brolin James Brolin (, born Craig Kenneth Bruderlin; July 18, 1940) is an American actor. Brolin has won two Golden Globes and an Emmy. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on August 27, 1998. He is the father of actor Josh Brolin. He ...

as Det. Atwater *Martin Neufeld as Peter Pratman *

Bruce Dinsmore Bruce Dinsmore (born November 22, 1965) is a Canadian actor. He voices Tubby Tompkins from '' The Little Lulu Show'', Binky Barnes and David Read (Arthur, DW and Baby Kate's Dad) from ''Arthur'', Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer from '' The Secret ...

as Clive (Gary Madison) *

M. Emmet Walsh Michael Emmet Walsh (born March 22, 1935) is an American actor who has appeared in over 200 films and television series, including small but important supporting roles in dozens of major studio features of the 1970s and 1980s. He starred in ''Bl ...

as Earl Ladelle *

Michael Caloz Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

as Manny Dorff *

Denise Crosby Denise Michelle Crosby is an American actress and model known for portraying Security Chief Tasha Yar mainly in season one of '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', and Yar's daughter, the half-Romulan Commander Sela, in subsequent seasons. She ...

as Connie Madison *

Linda Sorenson Linda Sorenson (born January 19, 1940) is a Canadian film, television and voice actress, best known for playing Mrs. Stegman in ''Class of 1984'', Warden Howe in ''Murphy Brown'', Virginia Reeves in '' Material World'' and Isabelle Carrington in ...

as Margaret Ladelle *

Jason Blicker Jason Blicker is a Canadian film and television actor.Rita Zekas, "Expats: Ice work if you can get it". ''Toronto Star'', July 19, 2003. He has had several small roles in television series including recurring roles on ''Robocop'', '' F/X: The S ...

as Dennison * Vlasta Vrána as Mr. Schulman *Liz MacRae as Ms. Roark *Gisèle Rousseau as Dr. Hoyer *Jenny Campbell as Paige *Frank Schorpion as Dr. Shane *Alan West as Henry Pratman *Victoria Barkoff as Ms. Smith *

Tyrone Benskin Tyrone Benskin (born 29 December 1958) is an English-Canadian actor, theatre director and politician. He was elected Member of Parliament in the Jeanne-Le Ber riding, in Montreal, Quebec, in the 2011 Canadian federal election and served as an ...

as Cop *Roger E. Reid as Police Officer

Reception

In the book ''Representing Autism: Culture, Narrative, Fascination'', Stuart Murray describes the film as "the worst kind of example of the prosthetic narrative, where the idea of disability simply becomes part of a genetic method". He states that there is "little recognizably autistic in anything Adam does"

References

External links

* * 1994 films 1994 independent films 1990s psychological thriller films 1990s psychological horror films Canadian independent films Canadian psychological thriller films Canadian psychological horror films English-language Canadian films Films about autism 1990s English-language films Films directed by George Mihalka 1990s Canadian films {{psychological-thriller-film-stub