Most female characters in film succumb to the Devil. They are used as vessels or conduits for the Anti-Christ, lesser demons or the grandiose ideas of an occult. More often than not- they are chased, seduced or beaten into submission by satanic happenings. But some of these women do display degrees of ingenuity, agency, and …
Cloaked in hooded robes, hell-bent on destruction and ready to sacrifice innocents to please their master- worshipers of the Devil are an easy bunch to stereotype in popular portrayals. Ranked from worst to best, the extent to which they work with or against cliché and manage to be entertaining on film is profiled in the following list. This …
In the spirit of Sound on Sight’s 31 Days of Horror, I decided to select some horror-related forgotten television. This series fits into the genre of supernatural horror series, being described upon its premiere as The Omen meets Carrie meets The OC.
In Ti West’s The House of the Devil, an earnest college student tries to get rent together by taking on a last minute babysitting job. Samantha (Jocelin Donahue of The Burrowers and The End of Love) willfully ignores the inherent danger in going out to a remote house to provide care for complete strangers. Her clients are incredibly desperate for help but the promise of fast cash is far too enticing for the young woman. Samantha’s job provides a quiet, creeping evil that makes the audience hold its collective breath for a protracted time before the action kicks in. It’s effective in sustaining a lasting dread of harm of the unknown and accomplishes what most movies associated with the Devil fail to do- convince us that followers of Satan and their ultimate goal are a genuine threat without edging into cheesy or overwrought territory that is well-worn.
It’s hard to nail down the personification of the ultimate evil. The Prince of Darkness deserves to be more than just a cackling, dark figure in the background or an over-the-top sleaze. This is an angel who has been cast out of Heaven and carries a major grudge. Neglecting the depth of his pain or not seizing …
Over the coming weeks, as a lead up the Hot Docs Film Festival in Toronto, Sound On Sight will be publishing a series of exclusive interviews with an eclectic group of documentary film makers. Mike Waldman sits down (over the phone) with the directors behind some of the most unusual, outrageous and personal narrative documentaries …
The popularity of a documentary film is often based on word-of-mouth. Very few docs get a wide release (or a theatrical release at all, for that matter) or receive much press. Unless it’s the latest Michael Moore film, a massive advocacy film aiming for Oscar recognition or a mass-market oddity like Supersize Me, a documentary …
A great little video has been lead to my attention exploring the mystery of THE CALIFORNIA MOUNTAIN DEVIL. Friends Rob, Matt and a nameless guy behind a camera, decide to take this creatures mystery to their advantage and try and scare their friend, Chad. This video has a great twist that you don’t even see …
Body Count: Volume 4 . If two things go together like chocolate and peanut butter, it’s Satan and horror movies. Satan, by himself, is the ultimate adversary and boogeyman so it just makes sense that the genre falls back on the devil from time to time. Seemed like in the 70’s you couldn’t throw a …