El siervo de Satanás

A fair movie that adapts the novel by Dean R. Koontz, "Servants of Twilight" stars Bruce Greenwood ("Star Trek" '09) as Charlie, a private detective. He's hired by desperate hottie mother Christine (Belinda Bauer, "RoboCop 2"). Her young son Joey (Jarrett Lennon, 'Freaks and Geeks') has been targeted by religious fundamentalist Mother Grace (Grace Zabriskie, 'Twin Peaks') and her flock, who genuinely believe Joey to be the Antichrist. They will stop at NOTHING to wipe Joey off the face of the Earth, and turn up every single place that Charlie tries to take him and his mother.

Generally, Koontz hasn't been served all that well on film, although there are exceptions (like "Demon Seed" from 1977). This is an okay horror flick, but never rises above the quality level of an average TV treatment of such material. Overall, it's not that satisfying, despite its best efforts to make the viewer doubt: how could such an adorable little kid (Lennon goes all out trying to be "cutesy") possibly be an embodiment of Evil? (Shades of "The Omen".) Eventually, all is revealed, although some viewers may be glad that the film is finally over rather than happy that their curiosity has been sated. The narrative hook of jumping back and forth in time (with a slightly crazed Charlie relating his story to his good friend, played by top character actor Jack Kehoe ("Melvin and Howard")) is really no big deal.

It's an effective supporting cast of familiar faces that keeps this as watchable as it is. Bauer is simply terrible, with some of the worst line delivery that this viewer has ever heard. Greenwood is fine as the hero. Zabriskie, who seems at least partly inspired by Piper Laurie in "Carrie", is amusing as the zealot who sets the story in motion. Richard Bradford ("The Untouchables"), Dale Dye (the veteran military advisor for the movies), Kelli Maroney ("Night of the Comet"), Al White ("Airplane!"), Carel Struycken (the "Addams Family" movies of the 1990s), Bruce Locke ("RoboCop 3"), and Jillian McWhirter ("Progeny") co-star.

Familiar names behind the scenes include executive producers Andrew Lane & Wayne Crawford (writers of "Valley Girl"), producer Venetia Stevenson (a former actress whose credits include "The City of the Dead"), co-producer William Sachs (who directed "Galaxina" and "The Incredible Melting Man"), and director / co-writer Jeffrey Obrow, who, with his writing partner Stephen Carpenter, made 80s genre favourites such as "The Kindred" and "The Dorm That Dripped Blood".

Genre and Koontz completists may want to give it a look, but it's nothing special overall. It's the cast that raises this viewers' rating by a star.

Six out of 10.

My review was written in May 1991 after a Cannes Film Festival Market screening.

Breathless suspense denotes this horror thriller, an unbelievable yet engrossing exercise in paranoia. Except for its B-picture lack of adequate production values, "The Servants of Twilight" would stand a theatrical shot.

Invading "The Omen" territory minus special efects, this pic demonstrates that novelist dean R. Koontz could be the next bigscreen brand name in a genre dominated by Stephen King and Clive Barker. His plotting here is functional and elevated by director Jeffrey Obron to a fever pitch.

Told in flashback by bearded private eye Bruce Greenwood to his shrink Jack Kehoe, story has the same feel as the classic "Invasion of the Body Snatchers".

Months earlier, clean-shaven Greenwood decided to go back after a year's layoff to help beautiful mom in distress Belinda Bauer. She and he young son (Jarrett Lennon) are being terrorized by religious fanatic Grace Zabriskie and her Church of the Twilight zealots.

They've tabbed Lennon as the young anti-Chrit, and, before you can say Damien, they're making life for him and Bauer hell. When Greenwood's operatives are killed, he and the client duo take to the road, with Zabriskie's henchmen always on their tale.

The rapid succession of shootouts and narrow escapes is hard to believe but well staged for cliffhanger excitement.

Broad hints establish early on who's the fink among the good guys, and only a neophyte viewer won't suspect cute little Lennon of being too good to be true. Except for some pulsating bladders on the neck at the film's climax and some unimpressive bat effects, the film is not fantastic enough along the way to impress genre fans.

If the goal was to root the action in a routine policier fromat, success is without reward.

Zabriskie of "Twin Peaks" is perfectly cast as the fanatical villainess. Greenwood and Bauer are empathetic leads, and grotesque-looking Carell Struyckenis the most frightening henchman since his role model, Michael Berryman of "The Hills Have Eyes". Visuals are mundane and mainly lack atmosphere.

Absent elsewhere is the poetry of an eerie overhead vista of Greenwood literally going crazy in a pet cemetery.

That summary alone isn't really saying much at all, especially for those unlucky bastards who forced themselves to sit through the particularly dreadful "Phantoms", "Hideaway", or ANY of the "Watchers" movies. That being said, this film about a devoutly religious cult headed by a pre-Twin Peaks Grace Zabriskie, who are hellbent (pun intended) on killing a six year old boy (young Andrew dice clay himself, Jerrot Lennon) whom they believe to be the current incarnation of the anti-Christ and willing to kill anyone who get in their way is passable entertainment if you can get past the overtly melodramatic beginning. Belinda Bauer as the mother of Joey is a big letdown, primarily because she's one-dimensional, well more so than the other cardboard cutout characters populating the movie, but also because she didn't follow up her terrific nudity in "Winter Kills" (only bring that up because one scene promises nudity, but then the director choose to pussy out). The ending is groan-inducing and silly. But there are still some unintentional laughs to be had here. Oh and I felt the need to call it the best THEATRICAL film only because I actually found the made for TV flick "Intensity" to be quite good and the best Koontz adaption put out thus far.

My grade: C-

Given horror author Dean R. Koontz's incredible success, I'm baffled at just how few of his many novels have been adapted for the screen (especially considering the popularity of the horror/thriller genre as a whole). Servants of Twilight proves that, in the right hands, Koontz's work can be almost as compelling to watch as it is to read.

Bruce Greenwood stars as Charlie Harrison, a tough private eye hired by single mother Christine Scavello (Belinda Bauer) to protect her son Joey (Jarrett Lennon) from a fanatical religious cult who believe the boy to be the AntiChrist. A game of cat and mouse ensues, with Charlie, Christine and Joey unable to trust anyone, danger lurking around every corner.

Even though his budgetary limitations are obvious in the picture and sound quality, and the lack of any real stars, director Jeffery Obrow manages to wring quite a lot of tension out of Koontz's economical tale. The film might be a simple series of fight or flight encounters with the cultists, saddled with a predictable ending, but there is no shortage of excitement to be had along the way. A more appealing child actor (Lennon bears a striking resemblance to Dobby the house elf) and some gore (decapitated dog?) would have been welcome, but even as it stands Servants of Twilight is a more than serviceable chiller.

Based on the novel by Dean Koontz, this action packed thriller features Bruce Greenwood as a MacGyver-loving private detective hired to protect a little boy from a fanatical religious cult that believe he is the Antichrist foretold in the book of Revelation.

This film has a relatively low rating and I am not sure why. I rather enjoyed it. Sure, there are a few twists that might be predictable, but the overall story is pretty good and the acting is just fine (though I found the boy to be rather weak at times).

Lost classic? No. But really, I thought it was pretty good and the kind of early 1990s cheese that we just can never get enough of.