The Unholy

“In New Orleans, a city with a dark underside of black magic and satanic worship, two priests have been brutally murdered at St. Agnes Church. Now THE UNHOLY reigns, only to be challenged by the purest of mortal souls. Father Michael (Ben Cross), believed to be spiritually blessed, is appointed to the ungodly parish. Is he really the “chosen one,” strong enough to fight such ravishing temptation, such raw evil? Or is he simply the third to die? Some say Father Michael hasn’t got a prayer.”

We first meet Father Michael as he is called to the scene of a potential suicide jumper who insists he will only speak to him. When he arrives on the scene, he does the best he can to calm the man’s nerves, trying to coax him inside, curious as to why he called him by name. Before he can safely diffuse the situation, a horrid demonic force pulls Father Michael from the window, sending him plummeting off the top of the building to his certain death. Miraculously, however, Father Michael survives the impossible fall without a scratch. Gaining the attention from the Church, Father Michael is offered his own parish after the two previous priests met with gruesome deaths. Father Michael is told little of this, and left to discover the clues of his predecessor’s untimely ends.

The investigation leads Father Michael to Millie (Jill Carrol), a young girl working at a satanic nightclub who was seeking the help of the previous priest to try and escape the grip of the owner, Luke (William Russ). Luke pleads to Father Michael for help himself, claiming he is simply a show-man doing tricks on stage, but he has inadvertently unleashed something dark from a satanic ritual. Unsure whether he is telling the truth, or trying to gain publicity for his club, Father Michael remains skeptical and continues his investigation, which plague him with dark visions and nightmares, and a very real possibility that something otherworldly may be at work. Father Michael must accept his calling to defeat the evil that inhabits the church. He must battle for his very soul, and the slightest temptation could condemn him to an eternal hell.

The Unholy brings with it some great themes in a genre that I always thought was particularly terrifying. Religious Horror films such as The Exorcist, The Omen, Rosemary’s Baby, have a certain mysticism to them that helps ensure that all the right notes are hit to make you afraid of the unknown. The Unholy delivers all these same notes as well, with an interesting story about a demon that preys upon the temptations of the purest of souls. Although the writing may not be the greatest at times, a lot of other elements of the film step up to make it a very unique journey. Upon my initial viewing, I felt as though there was a hint of a noir type story buried deep down, which was acknowledged by one of the original writers in one of the featurettes, but was re-written and re-edited to try and accomplish a more ‘horror’ feel. Despite the changes, that element is still there, which lends a more interesting approach to the genre. Having the protagonist investigating a mystery while navigating the streets of New Orleans, offering his services as a priest to police creates a very unique atmosphere that I found to be refreshing in terms of the genre.

The casting, quite simply, is astonishing. Although they are relatively smaller parts, veteran actors Ned Beatty, Hal Holbrook, and Trevor Howard give great performances in their subsequent roles, going as far as asking the writer to write scenes with one another just to get the chance to work with one another on screen. One of the highlights for me, however, was Ben Cross. Usually known for smaller roles himself, his performance proves beyond a doubt he has the ability to carry the weight of an entire film on his shoulders. Although there may be elements to the film that aren’t quite up to par, his performance as Father Michael will always make me enjoy the film.

As entertaining as most of the film is, there are some unfortunate results due to studio changes, re-writes and re-cuts. These issues are talked about in depth in the special features, and I highly encourage everyone to check them out, because they may put you in a more forgiving nature after you view the ending. Having to reshoot the entire ending sequence because of bad special effects and design, they replace them with something so silly looking that I would probably rather have them cut the film off and let me keep my enjoyment intact. Despite the rush-job and really bad special effects at the end, the way I look at it was they gave me 90 minutes of something I really liked, and 10 minutes of severe disappointment. Either way, the good points of the film far outweigh the bad, resulting in an enjoyable viewing.

Video

The Unholy is presented in 1080p High Definition Widescreen 1.85:1. The transfer has been cleaned up quite nice, although it can be erratic at times. For the most part, the video is clear, with a manageable grain level consistent throughout. There are some darker scenes that accentuate the already soft image, but overall color levels are well balanced and defects look to be at a minimum.

Audio

The audio is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, the original stereo track of the film. There isn’t anything really exceptional about this track, but levels are good, with no defects noticed. The score for the film is worth taking note of as well, and you can learn more about it in the special features section with an audio interview with the composer Robert Bellon.

Special Features

One thing that Vestron has been consistent on is putting together some great special features for their Collector’s Series. Using Red Shirt Pictures, the same company that does the featurettes for Shout Factory, has been a great asset to these releases, and make them well worth the cost.

Given some of the conflict with the studio and crew, the special features on this disc are almost a necessity to view. The featurettes are interesting and give some great information and insights on-set. The commentary is insightful as well, especially with Camilo Vila, who explains some of the differences in the film as we watch. What you’re going to see on this set includes:

• Audio Commentary with Director Camilo Vila
• Isolated Score Selections and Audio Interview with Composer Roger Bellon
• Audio Interview with Production Designer and Co-Writer Fernando Fonesca, Featuring Isolated Selections from His Unused Score
• Featurettes:
  • “Sins of the Father” with Ben Cross
  • Demons in the Flesh: The Monsters of The Unholy
  • “Prayer Offerings” with Fernando Fonesca
• Original Ending Featuring Optional Audio Commentary with Producer Mathew Hayden
• Theatrical Trailer
• TV Spots
• Radio Spots
• Original Storyboard Gallery
• Still Gallery

Despite some of its shortcomings, The Unholy manages to entertain. Vestron’s newest edition to their Collector’s Series maintains the level we’ve been accustomed to, in giving us a great selection of films from the genre with a wealth of extras.