Search - Voodoo Moon on DVD

Actually not half bad

N. Durham | Philadelphia, PA | 12/24/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Lately, there's been a lot of direct to DVD horror movies released by Anchor Bay (It Waits, Room 6, Demon Hunter); just about all of which have been nothing worth seeing. I expected the same from Voodoo Moon, but surprisingly it's not a total crud-fest like I had expected it to be. Eric Mabius (Resident Evil) and Buffy and Angel's Charisma Carpenter star as siblings with tragic pasts, that soon find themselves holed up with a few other people as demonic forces threathen them. Predictable to the extreme, Voodoo Moon is surprisingly enjoyable for what it is, with Mabius being a surprisingly decent hero, and Carpenter looking as beautiful as ever, though her comedic talents which Buffy and Angel fans know by heart, don't get to be put on display. The action scenes are mostly decent, and the rest of the cast, including Re-Animator icon Jeffrey Combs and the Howling's Dee Wallace, are good as well. All in all, if you're looking for an enjoyable B-movie romp that doesn't take itself super seriously, check out Voodoo Moon."

A little voodoo to satisfy your appetite.

Henry Erlenwein | New York | 12/03/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After viewing this little gem I can honestly say I don't care what other reviewers have to say. It's that good. High protein horror trip that provides some terrific fun in the old battle of Good vs. Evil.
One has to be a bit skeptical with a production that is written, directed, and edited by the same person. That person, in this case, is Kevin VanHook, who has done a commendable job of storytelling without getting his audience wrapped up in annoying theatrics. No bobbling cameras, filtered color, or gore for gore's sake. Straight forward action with some excellent special effects; so well done and very effective.
A truly professional cast with John Amos almost stealing the show.
Now for the best part. The ending. NO SPOILERS HERE. But what a great piece of cinematic genius. You'll sit back and say...wait a minute...oh my God...that's cool...real cool.
Viewing "VOODOO MOON" will cast a spell on you.
You'll want to see it again.
"

Some Voodoo...Mostly Demon Fighting

William R. Hancock | Travelers Rest, S.C. United States | 10/09/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is a pretty slick offering from IDT/Anchor Bay Entertainment. Well
acted, well edited, and well directed, it features some good, effective CGI effects work and fine cinematography. Kevin Van Hook ("The Fallen Ones") gives us a suspenseful, action-packed thriller about a demon fighter named Cole (Eric Mabius) out to finally put and end to a particularly loathesome and murderous creature of darkness that calls itself "Daniel" (and which typically presents itself in human form as a seductively handsome young man...all the better to set one up for destruction). Cole has waged battles with "Daniel" over many years and certain psychic indicators tell him the climactic "last battle" is imminent. Gathering assistance from people he has saved from Daniel in the past (characters excellently portrayed by fine actors like Dee Wallace Stone, John Amos, Jeffrey Coombs and others), as well as help from his own sister, Heather (Charisma Carpenter), Cole prepares for the final confrontation...and, at a sunken townsite ("Merrifield, Tennessee") under a lake...that last battle is joined.

This is an entertaining genre flick...sort of like an earthbound, contemporary version of a Jedi Knight vs. a Sith Lord....the Good side of The Force vs. The Dark Side...and well done all around.

The movie is somewhat mis-titled and I suspect that was just a marketing ploy. There is little to do with any moon anywhere in this (except that there IS one in the night sky whenever supernatural battle is joined), and the involvement of Voodoo is minimal. The only substantive depiction of Voodoo is only at the beginning of the film...a sequence depicting a confrontation betweeen Cole and Daniel in "Haiti"...that, and another brief early-on sequence where a Voodoo Hougan warns Cole that he has had a "goofer dust" premonition that Daniel is incarnating again. When Cole is explaining to his sister about his personal demon-fighting prowess, he explains to her that he has studied the Evil-defeating techniques of the Church, as well as those of the Hindus, the Muslims, the Buddhists, the Native Americans, and, most recently, the practitioners of Voudon ("voodoo"). He indicates that he has combined all of these into a kind of unified system to use against demonic forces (he is saying, in effect, that he has created for himself a kind of non-contact, spiritualistic version of Bruce Lee's "Jeet Kune Do"). And this he will use against Daniel.

Apart from these references...and an early-on stop in New Orleans (another locality associated with Voodoo) to pick up his sister...Voodoo plays no significant part in this movie (despite what the title and the graphic art on the packaging might lead one to believe). After Cole picks up his sister they head for Tennessee and all subsequent action takes place there. Apart from a gris-gris amulet Cole has that he uses to now and then shoot power bolts at Daniel , voodoo references and influences have long since been left behind. Anyone expecting hexes, ouangas, walking dead zombies, etc., might as well "fuggettaboutit" . This is more like Luke Skywalker turns exorcist. Still and all, its good entertainment.

Recommended.




"

Too many unanswered questions...

Madelyn Pryor | Mesa, AZ United States | 01/07/2007

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Having just spent the last 90 something minutes of my life watching Voodoo Moon, I have too many unanswered questions. The first and most important is "Did the movie creators loose interest or run out of budget?" This is very much an unfinished work, a diamond in the rough that was never honed.

After the first hour, I was ready to give Voodoo Moon a 4 or 5 star rating. The characters have potential, the plot was intricately woven, everyone had a role to play in this great fight against good and evil, and there were a hundred small subplot just waiting to be resolved. The villain even alluded to `making' the hero twenty years ago. Cool! How did that happen I wondered eagerly. I was almost bouncing up and down in my seat when I heard about a really cool underwater ghost town. YAY! This was going to be fun!

Then....

Nothing. No subplots were tied up. The main plot isn't resolved. It isn't like they tie up a few loose ends then prepare you for a sequel- that's not the feeling that you get here. No ones powers were explained, the big, build up fight took ten seconds, and the main `boss' villain was defeated in a silly, too easy way.

If the movie had been developed more, polished more, it would have been great. As it is now, watch it only if you want to have some cool character ideas to play around with in your mind, because nothing will be fixed on screen.

Bottom line, I can't recommend it in good conscience.
"