Psalm 21

Saw this one yesterday at a filmfestival in Lund.

The script itself wasn't anything out of the ordinary (I won't spoil it, but you know the drill), you follow a person going to the middle of nowhere because something happened to someone close to him and during the story remembers frightening stuff.

The acting was the good part of the film, especially Jonas Malmsjö who was close to being over the top but never reached it, it was a good balance he held almost all the way through. The supporting actors where mostly good, though they didn't all the time have the best material to work with, but during the better parts they shined. Especially well did Per Ragnar (Låt den rätte komma in) who even though only had a minor roll got good material and also made the best out of it.

I need to see this movie a second time to reflect on my first thoughts but I think I will stand by my review without any alterations after a second viewing.

I had to give this a higher rating than it deserves because so many have not managed to figure out what this film is and what its purpose seems to be.

This ain't a supernatural horror movie!

This is commentary on abuse, hypocrisy, elitism, and the blind respect of privileged authority figures by the masses, which is made possible by the creation and the manipulation of superstitious beliefs.

The imagery which is used to make these statements belong to the horror genre, but supernatural horror is not the point of the film.

The performances of the actors are very strong, although the director has coaxed out more histrionics from some of them than was probably wise, and the final denouncement in the church is definitely too on-the-nose to be subtle.

But the lessons here are important ones to take on board, for those who - incredibly - still haven't managed to learn them.

Judging by the low score and less than impressive discussions on IMDb, i went into Psalm 21 expecting a disaster, but in the end what i got was the complete opposite! Comparing this to the Scandinavian standard, this Swedish horror film doesn't really keep it company, but on its own ,its a generic horror film idea, mixed in with a soul searching look into the destruction that religion can bring. Brilliant cinematography, along with solid performances in the acting department, make Psalm 21 appear to be a well executed movie. Unfortunately, my biggest problem with the movie was the repetitive horror set pieces, which allows the audience time to desensitize themselves to what is happening, due to the frequency of scares. Having said that, thankfully Psalm 21 saves itself by the thought provoking material, underneath the generic surface!

A fairly good attempt of venturing into the genre of modern Asian horror, although, with a Scandinavian touch to it. In the story line, we follow when a young priest battles his personal stand point alongside with the modern theology, involving the issue that hell does not exist! However, he will soon experience the contrary when he visits the village where his father recently died.

The move contains some chilling scenes when normal people transforms into demon like characters. These special effects are regurgitated throughout the movie, which, in the end loses its supposed scariness.

Due to this, my drowsy eyes gains control and the only thing that is occupying my mind is the need of a good night rest. That night, I slept like a baby!

According to the IMDb this film has a run time of one hour fifty four minutes; on Netflix the run time is a little over seventy minutes so presumably the version I saw had quite a lot removed. I watched it in Swedish with English subtitles.

Henrik Horneus is a popular priest, preaching at a church in Stockholm. He has a fairly modern outlook; telling his parishioners that there is no such thing as Hell. One day he learns that his father, who was a priest in a remote rural area, has died in suspicious circumstances. He heads there to try to discover what happened. Strange things start to happen; he hits a woman with is car but upon stopping there is no sign of her. On his arrival he meets a girl who transforms into a terrifying apparition. When he talks to the locals he learns that his father was a very different sort of priest; hellfire and brimstone always featured in his sermons. During his stay Henrik has a number of frightening ordeals that lead him to question what he has believed for so long.

I thought this was a solid little horror movie. It may not have been full of death and gore but does feature some genuinely chilling moments... the 'girl in the barn' scene was the most effective chill I've felt watching a horror film for some time. Religious belief has often been used for horror movies, including some of the best examples in the genre; here it is effectively used as our protagonist undergoes a spiritual change. The remote setting looks good and is suitable atmospheric; it is easy to believe that the small community might believe a priests dire warnings of eternal suffering for those who stray from the path of righteousness. I have no idea what was removed in the version I watched but didn't feel I was missing anything; in fact I didn't know I wasn't watching a shorter version till I came to post my review. The acting is solid; particularly Jonas Malmsjö who plays Henrik. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to fans of religious horror.