I recently viewed a film called "Seance: The Summoning" which prompted a curious reaction in me. I wanted to like it much more than I did. I applaud it for the ambition it was straining under but it was hard to call it a success.
In this horror story of four friends breaking into a hospital to prove the supernatural abilities of their Santeria practicing witch they conduct a seance that leaves one of them dead, the other possessed by a demon that wants the witch for itself. During the long night of bloody mayhem the witch and her friend, newly converted to Christ must call on Christ to keep them alive to fight the demon.
That setup is ripe for some fun and perhaps a few questions to make you think and it was heartbreaking to watch this film throw most of it away. I think all of its problems point to a misunderstanding of its audience. A film like this can do two things: entertain those of this faith and hopefully not embarrass their friends who don't believe. The problem is it's gory enough for the typical horror film crowd but kind of cheesy otherwise even for the low budget roots. I don't know if the audience that made Mel Gibson's Passion of the Christ the monster hit that it was would embrace this kind of film
It plays fast and loose with both Santeria and Catholicism but does a good job not breaking it's own rules. I admired it for sticking with the idea that only by relying on Christ could they survive. And who's left standing is actually a surprise I won't spoil here. Some didn't like the unsubtle nature of the story and that's fine.
This film reminded me of a much better executed film called "The Prophecy" from 1995 or so. It was written and directed by Gregory Widen, the man responsible for the original "Highlander" film and Ron Howard's "Backdraft." It spawned a few odd sequels. In this story a former priest turned detective investigates a murder only to find himself caught up in a war raging in Heaven and on Earth. The angel Gabriel wants a soul that's apparently the most evil on the planet and it's taken up residence inside a little girl that becomes the detective's charge. How they get there is a mess but it's a lot of fun watching it. Even Satan himself makes an appearance.
What we eventually learn is that Gabriel wants this soul to lead his armies against God the way Lucifer did back at the start. Gabriel and other angels like him are angry over God elevating humans over the angels. Later on there's a confrontation between the ex priest and the angel and the priest genuinely asks him, "If you wanted to prove your side was right why didn't you just ask Him? Why didn't you just ask God?" Gabriel replies, "He doesn't talk to me anymore."
See, it's a moment like that when a film, whatever it's intentions, can hit both believers and non believers between the eyes. Mileage will vary of course but I remember being stunned that a moment like that even existed in a mainstream movie.
It's easy to mock a film for what it does wrong. I think it's more useful to find the moments that work and see if they can tip the scales to greater enjoyment.
