Boobirt Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Dorathen Better Late Then Never

Dotbankey A lot of fun.

Gurlyndrobb While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

GL84 Raising her adopted daughter, a nurse finds that the autism diagnosis the child has is covering a much larger realization that she has more divine powers than expected and resorts to an FBI agent trained in the occult to protect her from the dark forces attempting to control them.For the most part, this was more enjoyable than expected it would be. One of the film's strengths is the fact that there's a much stronger storyline at play here, as this one comes with a good account for the occult and it's teachings. which are quite detailed and engaging. The early build-up here involving the child murders along the foreground with the tie-in to the foundation leader and his slowly-revealed intentions make for quite an impressive build- up, and with the different intonations brought out here as he attempts to offer up the sacrifice in her that gives this an even more substantial weight to the storyline throughout here. The central concept of the religious struggle to retain her makes for a rather engaging time here that grows alongside the fight to get her back which is where this one really gets a decent-enough pace here with a rather fun slew of fine action scenes present. This one has some rather engaging elements here, with the attempted death on the bridge where they trap her in the car heading into oncoming traffic or the various car-chases attempting to retrieve her back in time for the ceremony that all come off rather nicely in here. As well, the big final confrontation in the compound makes for quite a great time here as this one goes into the different confrontations throughout the house and leading into the big encounter in the church in front of their minions which has some really well- done moments at the end when the whole church goes up in flames when they plan their break-up of the meeting. Likewise, the film's biblical imagery comes into play here with the angels' appearance and intervention in the proceedings which makes for quite a fun finale here and makes this one pretty good even though there's a couple issues with it. Among the films' flaws here is the fact that there's one of the lamest villains possible in these types of films who doesn't really do anything useful throughout here, standing around giving speeches about the gloriousness of his Satanic teachings yet never once doing anything to put him in the echelon of the more frightening wielders of the power and makes his threats look even less impactful than they already are. As well, the other factor to hold this one back was the rather dull pacing in the first half as this one really takes a while to get going here as the run-around between her and the society over what their intentions are since it's still under them simply wanting to be involved in her life. Their blandness and constant appearances makes for quite a troubled time in the first half getting this one started, and it takes the big abduction scene to even get this one moving. These here hold this one down somewhat.Rated R: Violence, Language, satanic themes and intense scenes of children-in-danger.

gpeltz So here we have, Bless the Child (2000) Directed by Chuck Russell based on a Novel by Cathy Cash Spellman, and brought to screen by Thomas Rickman. I enjoyed it, so, Spoiler Alert ahead. Reminiscent of movies like The Omen (1976) and The End of Days (1999) plainly stated, stories about the anti Christ as a child. In The movie, Bless the Child we have a twist. The movie could be called the anti Omen. The child of beauty here is Cody played by Holliston Coleman, Her mother Jenna, Played by Angela 'Bettis, abandoned the child to her older sister Maggie played by Kim Basinger. Six years pass, as the young girl Cody is brought up in a loving environment.From out of nowhere, Jenna returns to claim her child. She is married to a wealthy charismatic cult leader Eric, played with as much sleaze as can be mustered by Rufus Sewell. What follows is a fairly taught game of cat and mouse, as the cult Eric leads is investigated for child disappearances and murders. Agent John Travis, played by Jimmy Smits leads the investigation. On the good side, the movie is well acted, intelligently and entertainingly written. If taken on a cult of evil, vs the forces of good, without the supernatural flourishes, it would have done well enoughOn the negative side, I could relate to someone not wanting to have to be force fed morality. The movie is unashamed to move into the realm of the angelic. it is unabashedly pro a loving deity; For if there be demons, there must surly be angels. Effective cinematography, Editing and sound, An effective score composed by Christopher Young. All top rate production values. Eight out of Ten 'It's entertainment" Stars.

Robert J. Maxwell Unbearable schlock. Kim Basinger adopts her sister's child, a little girl who turns out to be the Second Coming or something. Jimmy Smits is the FBI investigator called in on the case when the girl is kidnapped by Rufus Sewell and his gang of thugs. They run an outfit called The New Dawn. It poses as a self-help program but is really a Satanist church.It's all mechanically slapped together with multiple borrowings from "The Exorcist" and "Omen" and their devolved descendants.Everything is predictable except that which is completely arbitrary. Hordes of skinless rats come and go without explanation. Angels appear as fuzzy balls of white light. Gargoyles sometimes fill the sky. Sometimes not.The performances by some of the talent are okay. Basinger doesn't do badly, for instance. But nothing could save this piece of unspeakable crap. Rufus Sewell, as the Satanist-in-Chief, has these goggle eyes. He's so exopthalmic that the whites completely surround the irises. And if he blinks even once during the entire film, I must have missed it because I was blinking at the same time.It's not worth going on about. How do the kids put it? Oh, yes. "It sux."

Cinema_Fan The devil resides in New York City and from the moment this film begins, we see exactly where this film is going. As the opening credits roll, its wonderful atmospheric start with its close-up night time shots of New York's gargoyles brings back memories of the great vampire movie Queen of the Damned (2002) and its visual introduction to its narrative.With the arrival of The Star of Yacov, better known as The Christmas Star, once more in some two thousand years, we see childless Maggie O'Connor (Kim Basinger) taking on her younger sisters new born baby Cody, as Cody is dumped on her door step, this elder sister, this wise mature woman and now surrogate mother takes on full responsibility. Myth has it too that Saint Margaret the Virgin is known to be the Patron Saint of Pregnancy, and who, as legend would have it, was brought up by a nurse after her father disowned her, and having once met with the devil, with him in the form of a dragon. Irony and coincidence perhaps for both, considering her name being Maggie and her inability to have children and baby Cody's circumstance.Dealing with this child and her seemingly autistic state, autism being a condition that is caused by a disorder that prevents the brain developing properly, this in turn can impair interaction both socially and emotionally. It isn't until she reaches six years of age that Maggie's worries slowly turn into fears of what exactly is wrong with this exceptional child. There are more than just physical and mental states at play here that are more than concerning and enlightening. Maggie's doubts and fears are soon to be tested, to and far beyond the boundaries of human restraint.Bless the Child uses fables and myth to bring old legends to contemporary settings. With the killing of the innocent children to flush out the Prophecy, the way in which we see this being done is very subtle and coaxing, if a little disturbing, bringing an uncomfortable reality that something sinister, something malevolent, something lurking in the shadows and something extremely evil is all to ready to pounce. Here lies the winning formula, the evil that we see is not so much dark forces of the underworld, but be warned, they exist here too, it is more the evil of man and his willingness to be lead and be controlled by them. Man against man, sin against morality and the age-old battle of Light against the Darkness. We see Eric Stark and his followers taking parallel lines in the similar vain as the real life Satan and occult master Aleister "The Beast" Crowley (1875 - 1947), founder of The Golden Dawn, and once labelled "The Wickedest Man in the World". With Eric Stark renaming his cult The New Dawn Foundation, it is he who most certainly carries this trade of old evils and new Beasts to a tee. English born Rufus Sewell plays Stark with convincing zeal, with both phoney exterior compassion and charm to literally devil-may-care cold indifference, intermingling both persona's well enough to know that we are dealing with more than just the basic human traits that we see, hear and deal with in life. Evil, as it seems holds no bounds.Kim Basinger and Holliston Coleman (born 1992) bond very well, and a great performance as surrogate mother, she plays her role with devotion and with an honest and convincing feel. With just three years after winning her Best Actress in a Supporting Role for L.A. Confidential, this isn't Ms. Basinger going down a peg but raising the stakes in this thriller horror movie genre. Her integrity is most certainly kept in tact, and this is with the assistance of one Chuck Russell, director of A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987), The Blob (1988), The Mask (1994) and The Scorpion King (2002). A fine team they make, and as with the gelling of the two leading ladies, it is his fine work in crafting young Holliston Coleman to a standard of high-end child acting. Expect to see more of this young girl. Especially, if she were to take the good advice from the ever professional and independently versatile actress Christina Ricci as the heroin addict Cheri Post, which is always a pleasure to see her working.Bless the child also has its own parallels too, and lends itself to the likes of The Omen (1976), The Exorcist (1973) and the 1968 Roman Polanski film Rosemary's Baby, where we see children as axis of evils', Bless the Child sees the innocence and purity that is The Child; untainted and undemanding. Thus bearing the special gift of Life and the blessing of Divinity, sometimes disturbing, but slight, and at times touching, but never over demanding and horrific, which sets this movie of as being different and a little unique.With moderate violence and with the help of a little CGI, a script that fights its own ground when in the amphitheatres of right and wrong, excellent and well cast, we can then be assured that Bless the Child most certainly has not been cursed.