Search - The Reaping on DVD

Way Better Than People Are Saying - Solid Horror With Spirit

Stephen B. O'Blenis | Nova Scotia, Canada | 04/15/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"A supernatural/otherworldy 'good vs. evil' horror movie in the general vein of The Exorcism of Emily Rose - Unrated (Special Edition)The Exorcist - The Complete Anthology (The Exorcist/ The Exorcist- Unrated/ The Exorcist II: The Heretic/ The Exorcist III/ The Exorcist: The Beginning/ The Exorcist: Dominion), "The Reaping" is an underated film, not as scary as 'Exorcist' or 'Emily Rose' but very good nonetheless, nowhere near as campy as its critics say. Its style moves closer at times to suspense thrillers than other movies of its type, and may open it up to be enjoyed by fans of that kind of movie as well as by horror fans.

Hillary Swank plays a former Christian aid worker turned ardent atheist; teaching at a university she now specializes in 'debunking' miracles and other paranormal phenomena. Having achieved some not in certain academic circles, she's contacted by a man on behalf of a small Southern bayou town where a host of ominous and apparantly supernatural events are taking place. Tensions are running high in the community, and the mayor and his colleagues really want for somebody to come in, find a scientific explanation for everything, and hopefully calm the townspeople down, some of whom are starting to think about taking matters into their own hands. What's happening in this little rural corner appears to be nothing less than the ten Biblical plagues re-occuring, and bearing the blame for this is a little girl who lives off in the swamp with her mother, and is believed by some to be evil incarnate. Some are starting to fear that townspeople's anxieties are running so high that the little girl's life may be in danger.

Once Swank's character and her assistant are in town, the phenomena quickly prove to be more difficult to discredit than other events the two have investigated. And eventually it starts to come out that there may be even more to the story than what they've been told. There are some good twists towards the end; some of them are actually surprising, and beyond that, they're quite affecting on other levels too. There's a good mix of characters you like right off the bat, ones you dislike right off the bat, and ones you have mixed feelings about right from the start. The cast does a good job with their roles and the story is well told with a good interplay of different angles and elements; one area that could have admittedly used some improvement was the special effects, but these only play a major role during a couple of the movie's scenes. Definately better than its reputation, and fans of Exorcist, Omen and Exorism Of Emily Rose should really make it a point to see this one. 8.5 out of 10"

Absolutely Worth It!!!!

Matthew Kunka | Canton, MI USA | 04/15/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There have been a lot of swamp movies lately (Skeleton Key, Venom, Hatchet) and all of them are amazing, this one, however, stands out. This one takes the religious overture of the movie and heats it up. Though cheesy in some scenes (flies on the BBQ), the movie stays strong to the plot and doesn't leave us with questions. The effects are the only thing that wasn't top notch with this movie, but I guess they spent all their money getting Hilary Swank to do a horror movie after winning her Academy Award. Great movie overall."