The Diabolical

-
The Diabolical
Starring Ali Larter, Arjun Gupta, Max Rose, Chloe Perrin
Directed by Alistair Legrand

The Story:
Single mother Madison (Ali Larter) and her children Jacob (Max Rose) and Haley (Chloe Perrin) are haunted in their home by an eerie entity that manifests after a flash of light.  Each time, the figure is different, and more frightening.  Soon a mysterious illness overtakes the children, which makes it impossible for them to leave the house.  Madison and her scientist boyfriend Nikolai (Arjun Gupta) turn to the world of quantum physics to discover what this entity is, and how to stop it.

The Synopsis:
There's a series called "A Haunting" that chronicles real-life hauntings, and which were the inspirations for "The Haunting in Connecticut" and the oddly titled "The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia."  There was an episode called "The Diabolical," and I thought this was the movie version of that story.

Wrong.

Instead, it's part ghost story, part sci-fi tale, and wholly unremarkable.  First-time director Alistair Legrand must have attended the school of Shyamalan, because he tried to incorporate one of his famous "twist" endings, but instead ended with him looking more like a twit.

So what's the story with this film?  Well, for most of the film it seems like it's a classic ghost story.  From the very first scene, the ghost appears and haunts the family, but as the film develops it turns towards the world of science fiction with time travel, quantum physics, and parallel universes.  All within this one house.  Because, science.

Not only does the story not make sense, but the actors perform so hollowly (is that a word?  I guess so, it didn't come up in spell check) that you couldn't care two coins what happens to them.  This is sad, because it headlines "Heroes" and "Final Destination" actress Ali Larter, who is clearly phoning in her performance here.

As I am doing with this review.  Phoning it in.  Because you should never see this film.  I can think of more productive things to do with your time:
Chew a match
Draw faces
Stare at drywall
Count to a million backwards

The Summary:
Waste...of...time.

The Score: D

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Major Theatrical Releases May 2019

-
Image
Major Theatrical Releases May 2019 After the hype that is "Avengers: Endgame," May offers a massive collection of differing types of movies, enough to entertain everyone. Here are the major theatrical releases for May 2019. **THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS** **DATES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE**  The Intruder May 3 Dennis Quaid goes from starring the family-friendly "A Dog's Journey" to playing a total psycho in "The Intruder."  When a young couple purchases a home from Quaid's character Charlie, they didn't realize it came with an addition - Charlie himself, who can't seem to let his old home go.  I don't expect any twists or turns in this tale, and this looks like a film better fit for Lifetime than the big screen.  Long Shot May 3 Charlize Theron stars as Charlotte Field, the current Secretary of State and who's running for President.  Seth Rogen stars as Fred Flarsky, a...
Read more

Witch

-
Image
Witch Starring Russell Shaw, Ryan Spong, Sarah Alexandra Marks, Fabrizio Santino Directed by Craig Hinde & Marc Zammit Movies about witches are about a dime a dozen, and follow the same formula: typically set in a time period long ago (since now, fortunately, the stigma of witches has been lessened and the religious fervor has diminished), in a small Puritanical town, a girl is accused of witchcraft which spirals the town into a frenzy filled with suspicion, doubt, and murder until the witch is put to religious justice. While that's not necessarily a bad formula (Robert Eggers' "The VVitch" and Mario Bava's "Black Sunday" immediately come to mind), most films fall by the wayside. "Witch" is a small film that, at first glance, seems to follow the mold before completely shattering it in a second act twist that's daring, provocative, and works in a lot of levels, but could've been more pronounced if given a bigger budget. In the small ...
Read more

Special Review: "Midwest Sessions"

-
Image
Special Review: "Midwest Sessions" Directed by Mario Ricciardi Independent filmmaking is a fascinating concept, wherein the director and everyone involved sets out to make something unique, different, and go against the traditional status quo of what's defined as a "blockbuster." These films aren't usually seen by the masses and won't be included in the top ten highest grossing movies of all time, but they offer something those films don't: a heart and commitment by the people involved to craft something wholly distinctive that tell a story in their own way. Such is "Midwest Sessions," a local film directed by Mario Ricciardi that centers on the city of Youngstown, Ohio, and the captivating people who live there. Told in different vignettes that seem distinct and different from one another but coming together as a whole in the end, it's an engrossing film that utilizes its shoestring budget and gives great performances, decent effects a...
Read more