Spell - Maleficio

It's not horrible, but definitely not the greatest. Too many of the scenes reminded me of Skeleton Key and Misery. However, how much could you really change up with this type of movie. It is what it is. I wouldn't pay to watch it, but free... why not? It's worth watching if you have nothing to do. Cast members get A+.

The story or motivation of the main actor is the old cookie-cutter family-is-in-danger thing. So you know how it will end even before you see it.

The worst moments of this movie were about the skin color. I live in a reality where the skin color does not represent education, environment and character of a person. So every time skin color was brought up, I sighed REALLY hard. The problem with it was not the fact that it was there, but the on-the nose way it was brought up.

I did not liked the third act. The way he suddenly knows everything and can move despite a incredibly heavy injury ruined the "suspension of disbelief". (hardly a spoiler for those kind of moves)

Camera work and cinematography were bad.

What saves it, is the acting. Omari Hardwick had a great performance. He was believable in his desperation for the most part. Without him, this movie would have been much worse. His relationship with Lorraine Burroughs felt genuine and it seemed they had some chemistry. Not much unfortunately, because character development is barely there, but the few scenes they shared were good.

Loretta Devine... oh boy. She is an amazing villain. She was scary and very intimidating.

It is not a great movie, but one that had some interesting aspects. I definitely enjoyed the watch.

Trying to tell a story in 90min. with voodoo narratives, Dialogue and Action is very difficult when you have to please Hollywood with added buffoonery! Great storyline but writers also included too many unanswered scenarios.

Some people compare Spell with Misery and I get it for the fact that a guy is being held in a bed, with a foot injury, but other than that the comparison just ends. Misery is some much better, with so much more suspense and better actors. That said Spell isn't bad, there is a fair amount of suspense, but the story is just not that believable because of some scenes. A man with his injuries couldn't do what he did, that's just a fact, and those kind of little details bring the quality of a story down. The acting was decent, so no complaints about that. If you're not too picky about details and just want to enjoy a bit of suspenseful entertainment Spell is worth a watch. It will just never be a classic like Misery though.

Was this one amazing? I wouldn't use that word. Was it serviceable? That I can concur with. In the wake of awful Tyler Perry Movies and the negligence of black cinema as a serious locomotive in cinema, this one took me by surprise. Not with it's story so much, but with its courage to be horror the way it can be: without prejudice. Like I stated previously, the story isn't exactly extraordinary; however it surprised me a few times with the quality of acting, atmosphere, and just the overall awareness of what the production was trying g to accomplish. I look forward to more like this one. Not a black movie or white movie. Just a damn well-rounded horror flick to the like that we don't much get any more.