A Semente do Diabo

"Prophecy" was released at the same general time as the popular "Alien" back in 1979. "Alien" was a fair hit at the box office (with a far better monster) while "Prophecy" didn't do very well, causing director John Frankenheimer to plummet into a depression.

I first saw the film as a kid because I was intrigued by the 15-foot grotesque monster. As it turned out, I thought the film was merely okay. I decided to see the picture again in the mid-90s and, I don't know if it was nostalgia, but I thoroughly enjoyed "Prophecy" as an adult. I've seen it a few times since then and enjoyed it every time. As far as comparing it to "Alien," I fully admit that "Alien" is technically a much better film and way more innovative & influential, but through the years I've seen "Prophecy" about twice as often as "Alien." This proves, if nothing else, that "Prophecy" has re-watchable merit.

THE STORY: There are problems in Maine (although the film was actually filmed in the Great Northwest) between the paper mill and the local Indians. The Natives argue that they are somehow being contaminated by the industry. Robert Foxworth and his pregnant mate Talia Shire fly up to investigate and discover that mercury poisoning from the mill is the problem. They witness a handful of loony, overgrown or hideously mutated animals that verify their findings, most notably a mutated grizzly bear that looks like it's been turned inside out (speaking of which, I didn't realize they had grizzly bears in Maine; although I suppose it could be a mutated overgrown black bear).

The tone of the story is completely serious so don't expect any camp like in the similar "Lake Placid." Robert Foxworth is excellent as the protagonist; I'm surprised he didn't have a more stellar career. Talia Shire ("Rocky"), the sister of Francis Ford Coppola, is meek and likable. Armand Assante ("Odyssey") is robust and determined as the Native protagonist and Victoria Racimo is fabulous as his wife (squaw?).

There are quite a few memorable scenes, like when the Natives block a forest road culminating in an intense stand-off with the paper mill personnel, chain saw and all. Another potent sequence is when Foxworth investigates the paper mill and has an intense discussion/argument with the mill boss. The manager powerfully points out that the mill simply provides what the consumers demand and that Foxworth's actual report is going to use up thousands of sheets of paper; hence, he shares responsibility.

BOTTOM LINE: For the first hour and 15 minutes or so "Prophecy" expertly unveils the mystery while capturing the viewers attention with mounting interest. It's the last 25 minutes where the film partially stumbles. The mutated creature is fully revealed and chases the group through the forests. There's a lot of running & screaming and many die. This should be a powerful pay-off but for some reason it's not. It's merely okay, and almost boring. Still, there are some memorable visuals, like the moonlit chase through the fog-laden lake.

"Prophecy" may not be great like "Jaws" or "Alien," but it's quite a bit better than flicks like "Grizzly."

...... but the creature itself isn't half bad considering that this was made in 79'- pre CGI. The film has some great expansive wilderness scenery and an effective score by Leonard Rosenman. It has a great opening which in a sense promises more than the rest of the film delivers—quite plodding for the most part—but this is really a minor quibble. The acting is decent and there is enough tension generated by the opening sequence to keep ones interest throughout the proceedings.

There is minimal gore, but the tone of the film is relatively intense and serious, with a violent undercurrent that is more implied than expressive and adds to some well mounted terror sequences. The last half hour certainly isn't dull and is filmed with panache and a great deal of swampy atmosphere.

This is a very hard US PG rating (pre - PG13 days). A brief fight scene involving a chainsaw and an axe (although by no means graphic) is like something seen in a more exploitative hardcore action film. Had the film makers pushed a little stronger and bloodied a little more and went for an R' rating, this film may have become a minor horror classic considering the talent involved. As it stands, its still a hoot and well worth a mention in your DVD creature feature collection.

This film had the potential to be a rare echo-horror that actually tackled the subject of men tempering with nature. It was apparently inspired by a real environmental disaster in Japan and since it was directed by John Frankenheimmer, I was genuinely intrigued to check out this film that I had been dismissing for so long mainly because of the infamous exploding sleeping bag scene.

It starts out nicely with a violent sequence that proceeds to set up the main characters and plot; Native Americans are demonstrating against loggers working on a paper mill and taking away their land. The protagonist is a doctor who is called to the affair as an adviser and soon finds out that the plant is poisoning the water, the fish and the people who live of the land. To make matters worse there's something in the woods feeding on loggers and campers.

Now, I know this is a creature feature and the monster deserves a fair amount of screen time. It is kept in wraps throughout the film, making up for some genuinely suspenseful scenes. At first it's a mere side effect of the much bigger tragedy that the land and people are suffering. But by the end it takes over the movie, turning it into a gore fest and depriving it of its original atmosphere. All the subplots are dropped, characters vanished and the movie abruptly ends.

All in all, as far as echo-horror goes this is one of the most decent and fans of b movies will certainly be entertained. More stuff to look out for is the gorgeous Victoria Racimo, a young Armand Assante, those adorable mutated bear cubs and of course, the exploding sleeping bag scene.

PROPHECY is the kind of movie that makes you go, "Aw, man!" Not because it just plain sucks, but because the movie never once lives up to its potential. It repeatedly pulls its punches and draws back just as it's getting good.

The poster is probably the best thing about it, showing a creepy little mutant fetus floating in a womb. A movie about that thing? As an eight year old kid, I was the first on line! And, as an added bonus, it was PG, so I knew I could get in. Not to mention the fact that this was when Hollywood still had some balls, and a PG movie could still contain some hefty doses of gore and T&A.

I remember finding individual scenes to be pretty scary. A family is slaughtered while camping in one scene. A guy in an overturned jeep gets his head ripped off. And the giant mutant bear is, at times, genuinely freaky.

But even I, as a little kid, could tell that the movie was uneven and poorly paced. When the monster isn't attacking, it's yawn city, with Robert Foxworth pontificating endlessly to the point where, even though I agreed with every word he said, I wanted to bash his face in. And Talia Shire's eye-bugging and whining got pretty tiresome after a while as well.

You rarely, if ever, get a good look at the monster. That technique worked in ALIEN, but, whereas ALIEN kept the monster hidden through stylish photography and sly editing, PROPHECY is just poorly shot, badly lit, and sloppily put together.

Ridley Scott wanted to keep the alien partially hidden, so all you saw was teeth and claws and could put the thing together in your mind. I think John Frankenheimer just couldn't figure out how to hide the seams in the dime-store monster costume he had to work with, so just lit everything so dimly you could barely see anything. The monster is pretty grotesque and occasionally looks fearsome, but usually looks like nothing more than a big gray blob.

The baby monster bear that Shire cradles through the second half of the movie is much more freakish looking. PROPHECY is watchble enough if it shows up on cable one rainy day when there's nothing else to do. Just remember to watch it through an eight year old's eyes.

I know of and truly admire the genius of John Frankenheimer, who gave us The Manchurian Candidate, Seven Days in May, Seconds, The Train, and more recently, Ronin. He also gave this ridiculous eco-monster movie enough discipline and artistic snap to raise it above the level of mutant frogs, bunnies, and snakes, all croaking, hopping, and slithering around the late 70s.

I don't dwell on plot in my reviews; I like to talk about what makes the movie worth expending your precious minutes or not, so here is what one geek loves about this silly, fun flick: Even with the overly intense performances, the Marcus Welby music, the clichéd-to-the-point-of-exasperation mean, old corporate polluters, the fact that Talia Shire's face seems to be melting off her head (cheap shot, I know), and the monster--think of Shaq in latex, p.o.'d, with fangs and Mad-Eye Moody peepers--you have a scary, fun, and interesting movie.

Hey, Stephen King liked it, although he was right in pointing out how silly it was to put the Indians in teepees in Maine.

I wonder if Robert Foxworth, Shire, and Armand Assante get fan mail for this 8th grader of a movie. Frankenheimer, God bless him, made this movie work, and passed away a few years ago (no causal relationship, of course). He was so serious and deep, a really, really skilled artist, but I also wonder how he would have responded to fan mail for Prophecy.

I hope all involved had or have senses of humor and when confronted with a request for an autograph on the VHS box, respond with, "Hey, thanks for your support, you geek!"