Le premier pouvoir

Entertaining movie, which has a sort of dream-like quality, a good share of scary moments and is quite well thought out. A serial "Pentagram" killer is sentenced to death. It doesn't end here, though, as he's resurrected by the Devil himself and comes back for vengeance. Lou Diamond Phillips is convincing and red-headed Tracy Griffith is a babe. The arch-villain will give you the creeps. Personally, I quite enjoyed this and have it in my personal video collection. Good choice for all occult fans! Rating: 7 out of 10

A Los Angeles detective (Lou Diamond Phillips) teams-up with a winsome psychic (Tracy Griffith) to nab a nutso serial killer who was executed, but uncannily continues to manifest for more slayings.

"The First Power" (1990) is a fast-paced crime thriller with occult-oriented horror. It takes "The Night Stalker" (1972) template minus the vampire angle and mixes it with the real-life Richard Ramirez case, "Spellbinder" (1988) and "The Hidden" (1987).

It's as entertaining as any of those three movies, as well as more amusing, but it's hampered by predictableness. For instance, when the protagonist goes into the confessional you know exactly what's going to happen. Then there are some unlikely bits, like a vat of acid strategically placed in a sewer that explodes. Why Sure! Meanwhile the final scene leaves a sour taste.

Nevertheless, likable Lou works well as the driven detective while Redhead Tracy Griffith is a highlight. You might remember her from "Sleepaway Camp III: Teenage Wasteland" (1989).

The film runs 1 hour, 38 minutes, and was shot in Los Angeles.

GRADE: B-

Jeff Kober ... doing his thing as is Lou Diamond Phillps. Funnily enough I had never seen this and it looks and feels like a movie I would have cherished in the late 90s - video store glory days and all that.

It seem to be infamous enough (to get a release by 88 Films and being talked about a lot too), but hey: better late than never, right? So this is as out there as it gets and the movie really needs you to suspend your disbelief. You may need as much time as Lou Diamonds character needs in this movie ... it may still not be enough to wrap your head around it though.

This is flawed and has not aged gracefully. Still it can be campy 80s/90s throwback fun, if you let it. Not much in the story department, apart from that idea of ... supernatural madness.

You can only see a movie for the first time once and so I have to admit that THE FIRST POWER worked on me the first time I saw it in theaters. It moved with such lightning speed that I didn't have time to ponder its snowballing silliness. The director, Robert Resnikoff, knows how to construct an action film--the cinematography is first rate and the editing superb-- he just doesn't know when to stop. There are car chases, horse and buggy chases, foot chases and innumerable shoot-outs, and at one point the killer even brandishes a ceiling fan as a rather laughable weapon and all the action movie huggery-muggery sits rather uneasily on top of the supernatural elements.Lou Diamond Philips, though a tad young-looking to be such a seasoned detective, gives a competent performance. Jeff Kober is obviously having fun playing the killer and it shows; he has a toothy menace that's suitably creepy. Probably the best thing going for THE FIRST POWER is a truly unnerving and effective soundtrack from Stewart Copeland. The director pulls off some nasty mind-trips on the character played by Philips, one where he wakes to find his apartment seemingly covered in blood and another in a confessional booth when he goes to get some answers from a local priest.

'The First Power' is an underrated and entertaining supernatural thriller flick that blends elements of action and horror together into one hell of an entertaining thrill ride with impressive stunts, exciting action sequences, a cool concept and a great cast. The movie is also well-paced and despite some questionable moments here and there, it does manage to keep you on the edge of your seat until the final act.

The plot - An L. A. detective Russell Logan (Lou Diamond Phillips) teams up with a psychic Tess (Tracy Griffith) to stop a demonic serial killer Patrick Channing also known as the Pentagram Killer (Jeff Kober) who after being executed on death row has been given the power of resurrection and possession to continue his killing spree.

Despite the outlandish premise the movie does manage to handle it in a more gritty and realistic way and delivers a good mix of action and horror, even if it does become very predictable as the movie progress and the third act does lose momentum, but there's enough tension and satisfying moments to keep you hooked all the way through.

Lou Diamond Phillips turns in a solid performance with the material he's given and makes for a believable hero. Jeff Kober is also a standout here as the Pentagram killer with the right amounts of menacing, creepy and flamboyance , he adds some real personality to the character and a blast to watch. Tracy Griffith as the psychic is also great and provides a great foil to the male lead and both have great chemistry together.

Overall this may seem a bit cliched by today's standards, but don't care as I found it highly enjoyable and quite scary at the same time, I would highly recommend it.