Vatican Tapes, The (2015)
Starring Olivia Dudley, Michael Pena, Djimon Hounsou, Dougray Scott, Cas Anvar, Peter Andersson
Directed by Mark Neveldine
Thank god The Vatican Tapes is not a found-footage movie. I was worried, based on the title. Yes, there is surveillance video and camera POV bits, but mostly it’s traditionally shot, not shaky, and well composed in a traditional, cinematic manner.
Things go to hell in a hand-basket pretty quickly after we meet sweet, blonde Angela Holmes (Dudley) on her 27th birthday. Her doting boyfriend, Pete (John Patrick Amedori), has invited Angela’s father – I mean in a dad-like way; he’s not a priest – Roger (Scott) to the surprise party, which seems to throw the young lady into a tailspin. As she cuts the cake with a huge butcher’s knife, declaring rather cryptically “Daddy always gets the first piece…” she slices her finger wide open and is rushed to the nearest E.R. for stitches.
But it’s soon plain that Angela’s sutures can’t quite close the portal to hell that’s been opened. As black ravens flock to her, often killing themselves against windows in their frenzy to be near, Angela in turn begins to have a devastating effect on anyone who’s in her vicinity. Angela slips in and out of coherence, sometimes half-awake and sometimes sinisterly sharp.
Her affliction is baffling, until Father Lozano (Pena) figures out Angela is possessed by a demonic force. Blessed by the Vatican’s Vicar Imani (Hounsou) and conducted by Cardinal Bruun (Andersson), an intense exorcism is performed. But the possessor of Angela’s soul proves to be an ancient satanic force more powerful than ever imagined – and it wants something beyond one measly human.
Dudley is a good actress, managing to carry quite a lot on her shoulders. Pena, who’s usually excellent, seems a little lost in his flowing black robes. The rest of the cast is fine, given the cardboard depth of their characters. The standard issue scenes of demonic ravings, evil stares punctuated by glowing eyes, the painful sizzle of holy water and yadda-yadda-yadda… are fine. Nothing new, but not bad.
When judged against its brethren The Exorcism of Emily Rose, The Devil Inside Me, The Rite and The Possession, The Vatican Tapes can stand tall among them. It’s worth a look if you’re already a fan of devil vs. us movies, but if you’re not, wait for home video.
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
