Monday, 25 August 2014

Deliver Us From Evil (2013, Dir. Scott Derrickson, USA) (Cert: 15/R) ***

A film that mixes neo-noir with horror, Deliver Us From Evil is, surprisingly, not the first of its breed (check out video nasty Dead & Buried, which mixed the two in 1981) and it isn't the best. Reportedly based on true events, Eric Bana plays a specialist NYPD cop investigating a series of violent incidents which seems to have some supernatural connection. Eric Bana is always a great actor to watch and here is no exception and the film also has a great supporting character in Édgar Ramírez as a Jesuit priest but the film falls victim to some of the bad trappings of modern horror. Possessed people chanting a single phrase over and over, shuddering lightbulbs and the ever present jump scare. The film also gets too bogged down in its dreary nature and becomes dull at times.

Those expecting a revolutionary new step in horror will probably be disappointed (although this film is slightly better written than most of its contemporaries) but there's no major flaw in the film and the state of modern mainstream horror has definitely provided worse films as of late.

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