Ritual

Can't remember where I got this movie from, but it suddenly appeared off my DVD shelf, as it had been there for months and I always skipped over playing it. Anyway, moved by the hand of huge laziness, I decided to give it a chance and feed my tray with what I thought was a slice of pure digitalized boredom. The result was a nice surprise. Obviously, this is not the flick of the century, but the plot line is consistent enough to keep you in for the whole runtime long. Atmosphere is particularly dense and thrilling (3 phone calls during the viewing didn't manage to kick me off it !), highlighted by a really efficient soundtrack. The cast is just right as it should be, and the breathtaking beauty of Caro (Kristen Wilson) will do anything but spoil it. The machete/drums/ceremonial scheme, usually utterly heavy in this kind of film, is always kept on a due balance, which, I figure out, must be quite a challenge for the editors. I gave it a 6/10 which means, in my opinion, frames this movie as (at least) advisable/worth watching.

If you've read any of my other reviews you will know that I am somewhat partial to the Tales From the Crypt movies.... who am I kidding?..... I LOVE THEM!

Way back when Demon Knight came out it was apparent that there would be a series of three movies. Bordello of Blood followed on shortly after and then there was a massive lull.... nothing. Finally after a couple of years it was made official that the third movie was ready! And it was going to be a 'Voo-Doo' movie...... Hmm, I dont really like Black Magic movies but the excitement remains!!

So then I saw it...... WTF? Hmmm, yes sure it was a good movie. I really did enjoy it. It had all of the key eliments of a "Tales from the Crypt" movie.... all except for the one VITAL factor.... The Crypt Keeper??....... No sight of Him.

I can only wonder why the hell these guys (Gilbert, Zemekis, Silver, Donner etc etc) would have the audacity to release this movie without The Crypt Keeper? Surely they know that they are cheating the audience. What is the point of calling it a 'Tales' movie when there is no obvious connection?

With that massive qualm aside, this is a good movie. It seems to me that they may not have had much of a budget, and if that is the case... then they pulled it off excellently. It is not entirely gory or gruesome but it is still packed with the typical comic relief that makes a 'Crypt' movie so fun to watch.

So come on guys.... make us some MORE Tales From the Crypt movies!! We can't get enough of them. And bring back the 'Keeper'... pleeeeease??

I give this one 6.5 out of 10.

Dr. Alice Dodgson (Jennifer Grey) gets her medical license revoked after the death of one patient. She's facing the possibility of not get any job when she accepts to be the nurse for one young man who suffers of encephalitis called Wesley Claybourne (Daniel Lapaine).

The story is that those involved removed references to "Tales From the Crypt" after their second movie bombed. This was probably a wise idea, although the same sensibility and tone is obvious in this picture.

I loved seeing Jennifer Grey in a leading role, and appreciated that they tried to update "I Walked With a Zombie". Not sure they actually succeeded, though. Despite a good cast and some decent scares and kills, I just did not find myself all that interested in this one.

i rarely give a 9 but at a B film, this film ROCKS! by straight to DVD standards this is a must see. i did not see some things that happened coming at all. Jennifer Grey is a vision in this film. TIm curry was underutilized but with the exception of his last scene his acting was GREAT. i was very surprised by this film. it is not a typical tales of the crypt film, but don't hold that against it. i thought the locale was great. the cinematography was top notch. not everyone gave a stellar performance but overall most of the actors were believable in their roles. no one seemed to be sleepwalking through their act. i recommend this for fans of horror and thrillers.

Jennifer Grey stars as a troubled doctor who's just had her license revoked for accidentally killing a child patient she was trying to save with an experimental procedure. Desperate for work, she takes a job in Jamaica looking after a rich man who believes he's a zombie. From the minute she arrives, it's obvious that someone doesn't want her there and will do anything to stop her from saving her newest patient.

Ritual comes in stops and starts. Some scenes are exciting and some will bore you senseless. It's way too long at 106 minutes, when a 90 minute runtime would have easily done the job better, but there are some decent performances and even a few wild sequences of gore (the opening death scene is memorably gruesome). There's a bit too much reliance on spooky dream sequences as well.

I was most surprised that Jamaica seems so cold. At least that's what Jennifer Grey's nipples seemed to be telling us throughout most of the movie. Someone, get that poor woman a bra and turn on some heat. She looks like she's freezing.