Soul to Keep

This is an effort to do a demon possession film on a shoestring budget. It kind of fell short of being totally scary, but had some scary moments. The actors did what they could with the material they had, but couldn't overcome a so-so story. I thought Kate Reynolds stood out for her portrayal. It's watchable, but the first 40 minutes were hard to take. After that, it got more interesting. I thought the last few minutes were a let down. Check this movie out if you have 90 minutes to spare.

In horror movies, I feel that sometimes, story is lost in exchange for the scare factor. While seemingly low budget this movie is a solid effort. Horrifying is not a word I would use to describe this movie. Even slightly unnerving is too large a praise, but even so, I found myself enjoying this film. It's cliche, we've seen this before, but it's fun!

There were times when the acting seemed sub par, but a couple of scenes that had me lost in emotion. What I want from any movie is to be able to connect with the characters. I found myself continually impressed with some of the actors and really, while the plot was a bit contrived and cliche, there was a connection with a few of the characters. I really see a future for some of the actors in this film.

My wife, daughter and I watched it on Netflix tonight. It wasn't Oscar worthy or anything, but it wasn't that bad either. Kept us entertained and that is what movies are for. I thought the young cast did ok with the material.

This wasn't as horrible as some reviewers make it out to be - but it's a sign of the times (at least with some) that if you disagreee with them, you must be "fake." Well, I'm not "fake" and I disagree with those who thought this was horrible. Oh, don't get me wrong. It's no masterpiece - but I wasn't expecting it to be. It's about a group of young adults who've been friends since childhood who go off to an out of the way property for a weekend away. While there, they end up conjuring up a demon. So - really - set your expectations according to that plot.

I thought it was reasonably suspenseful and on a handful of occasions even rose to the level of frightening. The cast - similar to the movie as a whole - while not being great weren't as bad as some are making them out to be. Yes, there are several plot inconsistencies. Surely the presence of the triangle in the basement (with something apparently still fresh and rotting within it) should have raised questions in their minds about what was going on? That one really did stick with me and where it came from never was really explained. But again - set your expectations accordingly. Don't expect to be blown away by special effects or astonished by a spectacular and airtight story. Just look at it as a piece of low budget entertainment and you can appreciate this.

Now - confession time. I watched this basically because I became a fan of Sandra Mae Frank from watching her on "New Amsterdam" for the last couple of seasons of its run, and this was the only other piece of work of hers that I could find that was easily accessible. She didn't disappoint as Tara. I find her work as a deaf actress fascinating and quite convincing. That probably made me rate this a little higher than I otherwise would have. Still, I found it an enjoyable enough escape for 90 minutes. (6/10)

This is your average D-grade 'horror movie' with all of the usual tropes and all of the usual terrible actors delivering horrible lines from a terrible script. I would have given it a 4 for being a run of the mill terrible movie except for all of the fake reviews, so 3 it is. Simply not worth watching.