Here Comes the Devil

On the way home to Tiajuana, Mom and Dad stop at a rest stop and their two children want to do some exploring in the nearby caves. (No one seems to consider that there are rattlesnakes and mountain lions in this part of Mexico). The children don't come back, and the parents call the police. The police find the children the next morning and return them to the parents. When the children come home, it slowly becomes obvious that something happened to them in the cave.

This movie is about dread, sex and possession, and it takes the audience down a few blind alleys before it gets to the payoff. However, when it does pay off, it is the stuff of nightmares. Creeping sense of "ick" gives way to horror in the last ten minutes.

Finally, most kids love horror movies, especially if there are kids in them. This is NOT a movie for kids.

This is a very weird movie. Almost feels like exploitation. And while this is a hard sell, the way it is portrayed and played is really great. There are some holes in the plot and you might wonder about motives and actions of the main characters (especially the mother), but it all fits into the rhythm of the movie and the way it tells the story, no matter how out there it seems.

The acting is really good and for a small budget movie this really knows how to set the mood. This is something that some other movies miss out on. If you can dig that, you will also dig the abyss this movie opens from time to time. Ending something like this, is always a fine line. And I think they did a really good job here with that too ...

This is a fairly straightforward story that lacks surprises but is reasonably entertaining. See it for the shock value. Even by horror standards, this is not for the easily offended; themes include: satanism and the occult, menstruation, gratuitous nudity, gory violence, graphic sex, implied pedophilia, and described incest. Probably not a good movie for a first date!

The story isn't complicated; it meets the expectations set by the title and synopsis. The characters are equally simplistic, their actions implausible, often leading nowhere. The most sympathetic character is the babysitter, who got more than she was bargaining for and doesn't know what the hell happened! (And has the boobs to prove it!)

And what's up with the frequent, jarring camera zooms? The cinematographer should be shot. It's like a technique Robert Rodriguez would use when spoofing '70's grindhouse flicks.

This is the kind of movie you find late night on cable TV. Lots of visual punch to grab the viewer's attention, nothing complicated to force you to think too much, impulsive action that shows the writers weren't having to think too much either. Enjoy it for the gonzo exploitation flick it is and don't expect anything more.

This movie has pretty good pacing. The parents are very realistic and the kids are effective as well. A pretty good small production foreign film. The subtitles in English and Spanish audio was a problem. English audio is necessary in 2022 in the states.

Do you remember that horror film made in the 1970's that crossed Picnic at Hanging Rock with The Omen? You know, the one that someone like Jose Larraz or Jorge Grau made back in the day and that used to line VHS stores in a lurid big box?

Here Comes the Devil is a 1970's horror film made in 2012. Although not set in the 1970's, it has the feel of a 1970's horror film. For some reason, I was particularly reminded of Satan's Blood, another Spanish language exploitation movie. This is not a retro homage that winks at the viewer the way Grindhouse or Black Dynamite do. No, Here Comes the Devil is first and foremost an unnerving horror film, one without humor or irony.

The plot has two children exploring a hillside shunned by the locals as their parents take advantage of the time alone to engage in sexual play. Time passes. The children do not come back. Worried, their parents search for them and find nothing. The next day the police find the children safe and sound. All is fine . . . or maybe not. The children are different, withdrawn and having an unhealthy attachment to each other. The parents suspect their children have been sexually abused and go about searching for a suspect. In fact, the truth is much stranger.

Here Comes the Devil is a slow burn. This was more common in 1970's horror cinema than it is now (the original Texas Chain Saw Massacre for instance). Some have found the film slow. However, the film pays off with a genuinely unnerving conclusion and along the way there is an escalating sense of dread. This dread often takes the form of sexual tension, some of it involving the children. This makes the film an unlikely choice for a US remake. It also makes it feel older, from another time period. I had read about Here Comes the Devil in horror magazines like Rue Morgue and Fangoria. I was pleasantly surprised that it lived up to the hype.