All horror fans are familiar with the bumbling of Morgan Creek and their insistence on kicking out experienced director and screenwriter Paul Schrader in exchange for the hack Renny Harlin to direct the prequel to “The Exorcist”. We didn’t need a prequel, but if the studios felt that they could have drained one more film from this franchise, then they could have and should have done it right in the first place. After all the problems, “Dominion” was finally released, and while it will never win any awards, I enjoyed it more, not to mention I found it to be more consistent in quality. “Dominion” is basically the same deal. Father Merrin, disenchanted with the church, goes out on archaeological expeditions, finds an underground church, and faces against the demon. Except, Schrader’s film is much more coherent and cohesive.
Tag Archives: Satanic
Venom (2005)
Know this film? You probably don’t. As a matter of fact, not a lot of people really know what exactly “Venom” is and that it had a very short run in theaters. And bombed in spite of its good cast and Kevin Williamson helping to fuel the film. Once called “Backwater”, then called “The Reaper”, and now “Venom”, I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t as bad as I’d heard. It’s no masterpiece, but hey, it beats “House of Wax” by a couple of inches.
Ring of Darkness (2004)
If anything, “Ring of Darkness” finally confirms my seven year long suspicions, that boy bands are really satanic flesh-eating zombies. I’ve known it since N’Sync burst on to the scene, I mean how else can you explain the popularity- however fleeting–of Justin Timberlake? I figured they were either demons or gay. The film begins with an Abercrombie and Fitch looking young man attempting to escape under the cover of the late evening. He escapes through a window–but not before putting on his platinum medallion–and is cornered by four shadowy figures and killed. “Ring of Darkness”–whatever the hell that title means–is a possible sign that the “reality” craze has actually seeped on to movies.
Dark Chamber (2005)
I tend to underestimate independents sometimes, and with “Under Surveillance” I expected one thing and received the complete opposite. I knew I had this movie pegged about thirty minutes in, and then the surprise climax completely slapped me in the face, and right humbled my suspicions. Writer-director David Campfield manages to create a film that really ends up being a worthy hybrid of Hitchcock and Agatha Christie, with a story that constantly comes up with layers upon layers of plot twists and surprises that really involve the audience with what’s occurring on-screen. He feeds us this notion about what the film is alluding to, and then sneaks on us a completely different concept that fits.
Constantine (2005)
While I was interested in watching “Constantine”, I didn’t really get what I was expecting. I never once read a comic of “Hellblazer”, but I know the general gist of it, and despite my disappointment with the miscasting of Reeves and the loose adaptation, I did get more than I bargained for. Constantine was essentially a story that takes place in the UK, but despite the Americanization, it ends up becoming a really solid adult thriller in the end. Constantine is a demon fighter who has been diagnosed with cancer and is now seeking to buy his way in to heaven, and through that journey, director Francis Lawrence who is shockingly a music video director, surprisingly gives some grade A direction for what is rightly a stylish yet very murky supernatural thriller.
The Passion of the Christ (2004)
I believe that the intention of Mel Gibson and this entire production was noble. The idea, that of bringing the relevance of Christ’s sacrifice to the forefront, is something that a lot of people love and identify with. I am an atheist myself, but I believe in many of the philosophies Christ espoused, and I pattern a lot of my life on his tactics and thought. I believe in honesty, truth, martyrdom for good causes, beauty, and most of all, I search for a God with all of my heart and want to find some kind of supernatural existence for us all through writing. That’s the intent of these creators, I am assured. Unfortunately, the best laid plans.
The Order (2003)
What “The Order” suffers from is what many supernatural films suffer from: it has decent direction and interesting visuals but it’s end result is bland, boring, and devastatingly bleak. As well as being contrived and derivative. Crooked churches, secret organizations within the church, mysterious priests who have other connections, creepy looking children who are in the film just to be creepy, and characters that barely have any personality at all. Ledger plays Alex Bernier, a conflicted young priest whose mentor has just died and now the church is investigating his suicide. Alex is called upon by another priest (Peter Weller) who suspects that his mentor has been murdered now begins investigating his murder and hopes to bury his mentor in the church graveyard while discovering a mysterious cult that is tied to his mentor’s death.