Unholy (2007)

by Rizzy

This was one of the movies that I read the description on and it just kept getting better and better until it wasn't a matter of should I watch it, or even when I should watch it, but how much and how quickly. Unholy stars Adrienne Barbeau and Nicholas Brendon both of who I love, but it's awesomeness only starts there. This movie also includes:

• mysterious suicides
• conspiracy theories
• government cover-ups
• Nazis experiments
• time travel
• mind control
• creepy small town locals
• and a man called the necromancer!!!

Talk about a full check list of awesome! After a little research online, I've found out that they've hyped up the fact it was released straight to DVD by saying that making this film "based on real events" created so much government heat that they were lucky to get it released at all!! They also warn at watching it/reading about it/researching it cause they'll come for you next!!  God, not since the Blair Witch Project has the self created hype of a film made me so happy. Quick basic plot so I can go on with the review: After a woman's daughter commits suicide she and her son go searching for the reason why only to find it shrouded with more and more mystery now on with the review!!!

One of the first scenes of the film was of Hope here locked in the cellar with a gun to her chin and her mom peaking through the cracks in the door trying to talk her out of the cellar. That's right, it starts out with a mother watching her daughter contemplate suicide while being unable to do anything about it. Already, I'm positive I'm going to love this film.  Especially since Siri Baruc does such a fantastic job playing Hope... though I think her performance is much more appreciated the second time through (you'll hear that a lot in this review)

As with many films about conspiracy theory, they are almost more enjoyable on the second viewing. A perfect example of this is the acting of Richard Ziman who I found to be a bit overdone in the "I'm trying too hard to be creepy" kind of way, but rewatching it I found the performance much more enjoyable and believable with my added knowledge. I think a lot of this movie can be looked at the same way, if you rent this film, make sure you give yourself enough time to watch it twice through, because trust me you're going to want to.

Ok, biggest pet peeve with this film?  Plot holes. This movie has a few big ones... though some of them are more just questions that could have answers to them, but still I can safely say that I wouldn't have minded more being explained. In all honesty though, this would normally be a HUGE annoyance for me, but I found it more laughable in this film and was enjoying the plot so much I just accepted them to stay with the fun.  An example? Girl commits suicide, apparently nobody did ANY searching around the scene to see why it happened, because when they go back to the cellar within minutes they find a tape recorder filled with tapes of Hope talking about how she got to the point of wanting to kill herself and a bunch of creepy paintings covering up ANOTHER DOOR that apparently the mother had NO IDEA was in her house which lead to this room here... It wasn't even a hidden door or anything, just a door with new paintings in front of it that nobody new existed. Trust me, the film is enjoyable enough and explains enough things to let the stuff that they don't explain slide by.  It's a B film, remember?  Straight to DVD, so take that into account.

This film almost becomes a mystery in the way that they hunt down new clues to how to find the person responsible for the research performed on Hope that caused her so much distress that she killed herself. This film really excels at giving you more and more information while only confusing you further for the most part. You learn new things, yes, but you still really don't know what to think or who to trust. Films that build like this all rest on the ending. You either feel cheated or you think "whoa! That ties everything up with a nice little bow." And I got to admit, the ending to this film really did the later for me. It presented me with pretty much the last thing I was expecting and then still went on past that to tie up a lot of the other loose ends nicely.

Ok, so normally I'd talk about setting/mood earlier in the review, but I saved it for last so you'd have a chance to see all the stills I took of the film to show you just how amazingly creepy this film is visually. The setting can really make or break a film and this is a great example. The setting of Unholy creates such a strong mood that you're willing to overlook some of the weaker points of the film in favor of it's many strong points. The mood of this film really keeps you involved in the plot without overshadowing it, and so I gave it my A+ rating.

All in all, I really enjoyed this film a lot.  The first time of the film was exciting and new and I felt filled with questions and when I got to the end all I could think was "OMG I need to rewatch this now!" I love films that make me think that at the end.  Films like the Usual Suspects and Fight Club. I'd check this one out if you're a fan of conspiracy films or films dealing with the occult. It's definitely a great little straight to DVD movie and a fun odd find for your collection.