Name: Backmask (Exeter) (2015)
IMDb: link to IMDb
Genres: Horror Country of Origin: USA.
Cast: Stephen Lang as Father Conway, Kevin Chapman as Greer, Kelly Blatz as Patrick, Brittany Curran as Reign, Michael Ormsby as Rory, Nick Nicotera as Knowles, Brett Dier as Brad, Gage Golightly as Amber, Nick Nordella as Drew.
Directed by: Marcus Nispel. Written by: Kirsten McCallion.
The Three Acts:
The initial tableaux: We get a triple bite opening. First a drug user gets killed after shooting up. That was quite short Second, we get horrid archival footage of the Exeter asylum's failed history as a mental institution, where children were killed en masse. It is rumoured to be haunted by the spirits of those slaughtered. Third, in modern times, the Exeter asylum is being renovated by a church. A number of strongly degenerate teens decide to have a drugs/drinks/smokes party at the asylum. Horror cliches dictate a lot of deaths later in the film.
Delineation of conflicts: The youths vandalise the place, urinating and vomiting on the walls, dumping trash everywhere, and breaking fixtures. So it's the youths against whatever spirits they rouse by their attempt at levitation. Can this motley crew of useless teens manage to placate that which possesses Rory?
Resolution: Do all of the teens die horribly, or just most of them?
One line summary: Cliche elimination derby starring a possession.
Statistics:
a. Cinematography: 7/10 Most of the film was clearly lit and nicely shot.
b. Sound: 6/10 Mostly an asset, except for the jump scares.
c. Acting: 2/10 Kevin Chapman's character was killed early on. Stephen Lang's character is absent for most of the movie, so almost all the acting is done by unknowns. They seem good at depicting drug use, lack of planning, ignorance, stupidity, and arrogance. Anything else, not so much.
d. Screenplay: 2/10 All cliches, all the time. The DIY exorcism taken from the Internet was a bit funny, but most of the film looked recycled with a new set of actors.
Final rating: 1/10
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