Rating: R
Genre:
Horror
Release Date: 05/27/2003
Sound: DD5.1
Run Time: 77 min
Distributor/Studio: Elite
A merry band of young psychiatric patients, lead by Luck (
Danny Lopes), escapes their mental hospital after shooting a guard and stealing a van. They rush to rendezvous with the seriously demented Rev. Salo (
Vincent Lamberti) and his depraved wife (
Christie Sanford), who, when not preaching nutty wisdom, have raised their daughter Grace (
Lizzy Mahon) as a drug-addicted slave. When the mental patients show up, the reverend and his wife get more than they bargained for, and Grace develops a close relationship with her grandfather (
The Amazing Kreskin) who fills her in about her family, but leaves out a pretty important detail about himself. Meanwhile, a devil-horned goat watches it all with a gimlet eye. Yes, a goat.
~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide
Director
Dante Tomaselli has intentionally written a confusing script in an attempt to create an eerie charm for his
horror movie. It works, but the circular story is also its own worst enemy as it takes too much brain power to stay involved. The characters are quickly sketched out and are hardly worth rooting for as they pass through an increasingly bizarre -- and absurd -- situation in a rural farmhouse. Even Grace (
Lizzy Mahon), the troubled young woman who just wants to be normal, is too flawed to be a suitable protagonist. The visuals are superb, particularly for the reported 200,000-dollar budget, and the creepy atmosphere is intact in each frame, but
The Amazing Kreskin's mentalist routines, shot live using the film's actors as his subjects, seem out of place. And they're not scary, although they are undeniably fascinating.
Horror isn't horrible, but it's too smart for its own good. See the DVD link for a clue as to how to enjoy
Horror to the fullest.
~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide
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