This is a pretty poor EXORCIST rip-off with more dodgy special effects than you can shake a stick at. The film isn't helped by a confused plot, which bombards us with bizarre visuals and keeps repeating key points over and over again instead of taking the film in new directions. In the end, it all boils down to something so simplistic and vague that it was hardly worth making a film of it.
This is a typical example of late '80s horror; despite trying to be scary, it just falls apart when the abysmal and rubbery special effects come into view. As a film, it's just too '80s to take seriously, with billowy and weird hairstyles, appalling fashions, and lots of bizarre dream sequences which make little sense. The story of a priest fighting demons is an old one, and needs to be done with a better script than it has here. Admittedly the film starts off well, with some real scenes of tension concerning the fall, but quickly descends into meaninglessness with the introduction of a Satanic nightclub which seems to serve as a den for perverts and punks who are into leather and mock rituals.
This film has a cast better than it deserves, with loads of well known, earnest actors making fools of themselves by appearing in this. Ben Cross is pretty good as the lead, but fails to give his character life or even make him likable. Ned Beatty plays an extraneous cop who totally disappears from the film towards the end with no explanation. Goodness knows what Trevor Howard was doing appearing in this mess, but he obviously needed that paycheque very badly. There's also a silly '80s guy with bleached blond hair who looks like a right idiot.
Things fall apart very quickly towards the end of the film, after a lot of mumbo jumbo and nothing much of substance happening. Then, all of a sudden, the producers suddenly decided to throw in as much nudity, gore, and violence as humanly possible, so we get people being nailed to crosses, getting gutted, set on fire, vomiting blood and lots more. When the "demon of desire"'s true form is finally revealed, it turns out to be a huge dog-like rubber monster which looks absolutely fake. I can appreciate the scenes of the creature walking unaided which are in their own way impressive, but mostly the creature is seen in close-up and very obviously being held and moved from inside. I know the special effects were typically bad in '80s films, but come on, did they ever expect anybody to find this scary?
Things get even worse when Cross very nearly falls into Hell, portrayed too literally. All of a sudden a load of rubber masks appear on screen, flashing past in quick succession, the dry ice machine goes into overdrive and a hole comes out of nowhere. The eventual sight of the demon dog falling into the pit is hilariously awful. Then there's an ending which seems to rip off THE BEYOND for inspiration. Watch out for the bit where the priest says "Get thee behind me Satan!" too - it has to be seen to be believed. THE UNHOLY is a missed opportunity and a good example of all that was wrong with the '80s horror film - starting off with an interesting plot, but quickly descending into special effects madness.
This is a typical example of late '80s horror; despite trying to be scary, it just falls apart when the abysmal and rubbery special effects come into view. As a film, it's just too '80s to take seriously, with billowy and weird hairstyles, appalling fashions, and lots of bizarre dream sequences which make little sense. The story of a priest fighting demons is an old one, and needs to be done with a better script than it has here. Admittedly the film starts off well, with some real scenes of tension concerning the fall, but quickly descends into meaninglessness with the introduction of a Satanic nightclub which seems to serve as a den for perverts and punks who are into leather and mock rituals.
This film has a cast better than it deserves, with loads of well known, earnest actors making fools of themselves by appearing in this. Ben Cross is pretty good as the lead, but fails to give his character life or even make him likable. Ned Beatty plays an extraneous cop who totally disappears from the film towards the end with no explanation. Goodness knows what Trevor Howard was doing appearing in this mess, but he obviously needed that paycheque very badly. There's also a silly '80s guy with bleached blond hair who looks like a right idiot.
Things fall apart very quickly towards the end of the film, after a lot of mumbo jumbo and nothing much of substance happening. Then, all of a sudden, the producers suddenly decided to throw in as much nudity, gore, and violence as humanly possible, so we get people being nailed to crosses, getting gutted, set on fire, vomiting blood and lots more. When the "demon of desire"'s true form is finally revealed, it turns out to be a huge dog-like rubber monster which looks absolutely fake. I can appreciate the scenes of the creature walking unaided which are in their own way impressive, but mostly the creature is seen in close-up and very obviously being held and moved from inside. I know the special effects were typically bad in '80s films, but come on, did they ever expect anybody to find this scary?
Things get even worse when Cross very nearly falls into Hell, portrayed too literally. All of a sudden a load of rubber masks appear on screen, flashing past in quick succession, the dry ice machine goes into overdrive and a hole comes out of nowhere. The eventual sight of the demon dog falling into the pit is hilariously awful. Then there's an ending which seems to rip off THE BEYOND for inspiration. Watch out for the bit where the priest says "Get thee behind me Satan!" too - it has to be seen to be believed. THE UNHOLY is a missed opportunity and a good example of all that was wrong with the '80s horror film - starting off with an interesting plot, but quickly descending into special effects madness.