dbborroughs Review of Chemical Wedding

Chemical Wedding (2008)

this doesn't quite work despite some very good pieces

[5/10 · 28 April 2009]

From the lead singer of Iron Maiden comes the story of a science experiment that goes wrong and puts Alister Crowley into the body of a mild mannered college professor. Long winded horror film is well made with a great sense of place, but an almost complete lack of shocks. I don't know what it is but this film just doesn't work. I think the failure to find scares is due to two things. First the science lab stuff feels like a bad TV movie. It seems as though it was added in from a bad scifi film, especially when the rest of the film feels likes its in a real place. The other problem is Simon Callow as the professor who becomes Crowley. I love Callow and his inclusion in the cast was what brought me to see the film. The problem is that his performance prior to the possession by Crowley is laughable. The stuttering flubbering performance under the gray fright wig was awful.It brings to mind the numerous performances that great actors give where you want them to give back their awards (Ben Kinglsey in Blood Rayne for example). It just doesn't work. Its not horrible, actually some it is quite good but as a whole it never comes together and never gets scary and it just sort of lies there. It may click with you, it may not. I'd wait for cable when the cost of movie to dollar is much lower.