Midnight Mass

Being from New Jersey, I rented this film after reading about it in Fangoria magazine and about how it was filmed locally. I am also a fan of horror movies, and I generally like to check out anything new I can find. This one was pretty entertaining to watch, and the special effects were well done (and very gruesome, just how I like them). The intro was powerful, and some of the shots throughout the film were visually stunning. However, this film would have benefitted from using more vampires (...and more bloody f/x). Standout performances were the two priests, Father Cahill (played by Doug Gibson), and the convincingly demented Father Palmieri (Marvin Schwartz). For a first time director, I would say this was a valiant effort. Worth checking out if you like horror and can appreciate independant films.

I have so many positive comments for the current wave of horror movies that are coming out, straight-to-video and theatrically. The Experiment, May, House of 1000 Corpses, and even Wrong Turn were all solid horror excursions. Too bad this one isn't. I picked up Midnight Mass because it was a Lion's Gate release and Fangoria had a write-up about it in a recent issue that made it seem interesting. If that's why you're thinking about picking it up, put it down NOW! It sucks, no vampire humor intended. The film opens with a brilliant documentary style account of the world being overrun by vampires. It pulls you right in and builds up your expectations. It soon falls flat because the actors are terribly amateurish and the dialogue is annoying. Every time the lead actress opened her mouth I wanted someone to slap her down. And the lead priest looks like some guy they found at a Pantera concert while the evil priest could be Joe Pesci's bad acting twin. The flick is painfully dull as well. The whole experience was disappointing to say the least. If you want a better F. Paul Wilson adaptation, rent The Keep.

After an apparently outbreak of a mysterious virus, the world is dominated by vampires helped by the traitors Vichys. The atheist Gwen Waters (Pamela Karp) leaves the small town of St. Anthony in her bicycle trying to find the alcoholic Priest Joe Cahill (Douglas Gibson) and bring him back to her town to give hope to the human dwellers. Father Joe rebuilds the church with the support of some locals but is attacked by vampires and Vichys leaded by the evil Father Alberto Palmeri (Marvin W. Schwartz), in a battle between good and evil.

"Midnight Mass" has a promising beginning that explains what has happened to the world through footages of broadcasting news. Unfortunately, after the first three or four minutes, the story becomes a complete mess. However, the acting is the worst, with amateurish performances of Pamela Karp and Douglas Gibson in the lead roles, and with the ham actor Marvin W. Schwartz performing Father Alberto Palmeri. It is ridiculous the way he speaks the sentences, and I do not recall any other actor or actress with such bad speech. I ruined my Saturday night watching this crap on DVD, deceived by its great initial five minutes. My vote is three.

Title (Brazil): "A Missa da Meia Noite" ("The Midnight Mass")

I rent this movie in DVD fullscreen format, I don't remember a vampire movie so bad it looks like a super-8 movie it has it all bad acting,bad lines bad filming Please save your money and dont rent it.

Have your life long dream always been to become a film maker? Have you ever gotten depressed thinking that you are just not good enough and that your dream will never come true? I have found the cure for that depression! Watch Midnight Mass! When you do you will discover that no matter how bad a movie is, it can still get released! I really wanted to get some enjoyment from Midnight Mass. It is based on a short novel by F. Paul Wilson, author of The Tomb (one of the greatest horror novels of all time, which launched an incredible character named Repairman Jack). But after a few minutes, it became obvious that this is one of the worst acted, directed, photographed, and edited films in the history of cinema. I have sat through some bad horror movies in my life, Darkwolf, House of 1000 Corpses, and Queen of the Damned are some recent examples, but this one puts them all to shame. Mr. Wilson himself has a cameo in the opening sequence of the film, and he can proudly say he delivers the best performance. If watching movies full of pointless nudity, bad splashing blood effects, and really silly goth characters act sinister is your cup of tea, then you may think Midnight Mass is right up your alley....but you are still in for a disappointment as most the time the camera work and sound are so bad that it is impossible to figure out what is going on even if you have managed to stay awake. Avoid this at all costs!