Welcome to the latest big screen edition of the nightmare world of an Abrahamic religion, where malicious and powerful spirit beings called demons roam the vast spaces of all loving God’s creation, and do terrible things to people as and when they see fit, possessing even children. Except when a specially trained Catholic priest with expertise takes matters, including the compilation of Hebrew scriptures and a cross, in his hands. That’s when demons have to stop and retreat. I’m sure we are all familiar with this legend in one form or the other.
Me myself, I am possessed by something that says its name is Alfred. Now, me and Alfred, we both have an understanding – if Alfred does something that I don’t like, I’m gonna call the local priest and then me and the guy in robes would get rid of Alfred. Alfred therefore is very careful and considerate because he doesn’t want to be exorcised. That means that he prefers not to take over my body, sticking to being an advisor. That works for me just fine. To tell you the truth, I wouldn’t want Alfred to leave; life is more exciting with a possession like that. But I don’t tell that to Alfred so that he doesn’t get a head a bit too big, which would likely cause for things to go out of balance, and that is not what each of us wants. I am a responsible person like that; I know when to just keep quiet.
Prey for the Devil movie still with Jacqueline Byers as Sister Ann and Lisa Palfrey as Sister Euphemia. Source
Jacqueline Byers is a Canadian actress who’s got a Bachelor of Arts degree in acting. She plays the lead role of Sister Ann in Prey for the Devil – the latest offspring in the line of The Exorcist subgenre of horror films. When I first saw the character I thought this is going to be a difficult watch for Alfred because Ann is a nun after all. But Alfred was in awe. See, the thing with Alfred is, when a blonde woman appears on his radar, he forgets that he has to dislike the cross, or the church, or priests, or rush hour traffic, or the smell of red chili sauce. All of a sudden he starts rambling about ice goddesses and camera angles. Sister Ann was a bit different deal though. “She is not what she appears to be,” he told me in a tone that was both, discreet and excited, when I watched Ms. Byers’ character joining the otherwise boys only club of priests in exorcism training in the film, who are all given lectures by Father Quinn (played by Colin Salmon whom I remember from his roles in Resident Evil and Alien Vs. Predator). “Shut it, no spoilers!” I exclaimed loudly, only to realize at the very next moment that I had actually said it, and everyone in the auditorium heard it. S*it. I kept still and continued watching as if nothing had happened. I heard some quiet chuckling and tittering somewhere behind me, which was rather momentary. At that moment, when Sister Ann entered a restricted area with possessed patients I began having my own suspicions about Ann’s real motives of being where she was. Whether I was proven right at some point, I cannot tell you, dear reader, because... No spoilers!
Prey for the Devil movie still with Jacqueline Byers as Sister Ann and Virginia Madsen as Dr. Peters. Source
Virginia Madsen, the Helen Lyle from the original Candyman plays Dr. Peters in Prey for the Devil. She comes across as the only person in the film who has managed not to sink into the world dominated by nightmares, so much so that at one point Ann wants to clarify if Dr. Peters believes in possession. It is indeed good to have at least one character, which reminds everyone that there could be a different point of view, and skepticism shouldn’t be avoided. Alfred however wasn’t impressed. “Look, a perfect blonde ice goddess right there,” I said to Alfred. He mumbled in forced agreement, “Yeah, but the script sucks.” If ice goddesses aren’t involved with any of the male characters in a way Alfred likes it then the scripts suck. This time he somehow forgot to add that it’s a wasted opportunity. I think Alfred was too absorbed by Sister Ann.
Prey for the Devil movie still with Colin Salmon as Father Quinn. Source
After the film had ended, I wasn’t impressed. “A complete lack of imagination,” I thought as I remembered the scenes with possessed people. Alfred, as always, heard me thinking. “I would have told you all that beforehand, but, you know, no spoilers rule,” he said with some melancholy and care in his voice. “Besides, I wanted to see Sister Ann.” I didn’t respond. I knew that the whole spirit deal, at least visually, is quite narrow, when compressed to fit religious requirements of an Abrahamic religion, and the only way it can get interesting is if there are characters with interesting life stories and interpersonal relationships with something that can feed demons. The Exorcist series was better at it than Prey for the Devil.
Read my review of Neill Blomkamp's 2021 horror film Demonic here.
Read my brainstorming attempt after watching The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent – another movie released by Lionsgate, here. Read about pranks by my inner Alfred during the time I was writing a script for a short film here. Read my review of The Feast – a 2021 supernatural eco horror film, featuring Lisa Palfrey in a supporting role here.
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Do not mention people out of the blue in your posts. This is a very bad practice and it is frowned upon on the blockchain.
And welcome to hive and the community.
Hi. Duly noted.
I somehow thought people on Steemit looked stylish when tagging people like that so I figured I'd try this here. My apologies. And thank you.
I see!
You will find in your journey on hive that—hive is quite different from steemit. ;)
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