Lost  Souls

Winona Ryder versus the Devil. Hmmm, and there I was thinking that things in Hollywood could not get any more surreal. In spite of the interesting plot, I went into Lost Souls with low expectations, hoping for an, at best average little time-filler, knowing that there was no possible way it could be worse than the horrendous Bless the Child. I left the cinema ninety minutes later in a strange, disconcerted frame of mind. Truly effective horror movies are few and far between. Nowadays, they are either mired in self-congratulation, employ heavy-handed "scare tactics" or spring from the video shelves, D.O.A. For a horror movie to work, there has to be something truly unnerving, almost otherworldly ingrained through every last minute of its running time. The idea of Satan, something so unremittingly evil coming to Earth is actually a truly terrifying concept and Lost Souls rather surprisingly utilises it so very well. Maya Larkin, a young woman once possessed by an evil spirit is putting her experience to good use helping a team of exorcists led by Father Lareux to rid various unfortunates of their unearthly intruders. One such individual, a mathematician who murdered his family announces, albeit in code that the devil himself will be reborn through a journalist by the name of Peter Kelsom. Maya has until Peter’s thirty-third birthday – in a matter of days – to persuade him of this ghastly truth but he is an atheist and does not believe Satan even exists. While still a thousand miles from The Exorcist, renowned cinematographer Janusz Kaminski, here making his directorial debut has created a genuinely chilling vision. His movie, while by no means perfect has the kind of personality most horror directors would kill for. The world in which he sets Lost Souls is one of stark bleak beauty, shot through with the deadening pallor of a diseased morality under which most of the characters live. After the first chilling exorcism, the pace slows somewhat, allowing the central characters a proper introduction before smothering them in an all-consuming cloak of dread as the countdown toward the end of Peter’s life begins. The movie maintains this terrifically creepy atmosphere till the end where an underdeveloped, somewhat convoluted “twist” spoils the good work but the very ending, the final, closing scene acts as some very appropriate if brutal redemption. Winona Ryder has never exactly been the toughest of actresses. She has a gentle, fawn-like presence and doe-eyes, neither of which lend themselves to aggressive characters. Here, however, both physical qualities bring the driven, quirky intensity of Maya Larkin to life. While Winona certainly gives a decent performance, Ben Chaplin is allowed a larger character arc and takes full advantage, giving his best “Hollywood” performance to date, light years away from the obscenely pathetic Brit sitcom Game On. The scene where both actors come face-to-face while Maya tells him exactly how it will all go down is a truly spine-chilling moment. In support, John Hurt appears in one of his customary “and” roles, stamping the screen with his usual authority before giving way to the young stars. Elsewhere, Elias Koteas, an actor known for his magnetic work in David Cronenburg’s Crash and various indies, pops up in a smaller role but still works wonders with the insubstantial material. The strangest presence in the supporting cast is by far Phillip Baker Hall, an actor I have come to associate with Paul Thomas Anderson. I first noticed him in Boogie Nights but his amazing turn as the pathetically tragic game show host; Jimmy Gator has seared itself into my brain. When he first appears in Lost Souls, I fully expected him to say “excellent work ladies and germs …” At the end of the day, while it is certainly nothing brilliant, Janusz Kaminski’s directorial debut is a refreshingly worthwhile addition to the much rejuvenated horror genre. With no REAL star power or large critical acclaim, it will no doubt be viewed as middle-of-the-road fare by most cinema-goers who will most likely resign it to a possible rental but it doesn’t deserve such a gloomy fate. Lost Souls is an effective big screen movie, if only for Kaminski’s superlative work. Put it this way, if you spent £5 and ninety minutes of your life on Bless the Child, you should have no real qualms about doing the same with this far more worthwhile movie.