The Believers (1987) User Reviews

Building Belief

[docdespicable · 7/10 · 15 January 2005]

Back when this hit theaters, I missed it for some reason - I think the ad campaign left me rather nonplussed. In any case, I gave it a miss, only to take the chance on it some years later on video. And I have to say I was impressed! This is NOT a movie for the impatient viewer. Opening with family tragedy, it then takes necessary time to introduce its characters, really introduce them and give the audience time to get to know them and care about them. During the "character study" portion, there are only rare implications that something sinister is in the offing.

Other reviews have stated that the movie is slow, that it drags, that it's padded out with perhaps unnecessary exposition, but I must disagree - to believe THE BELIEVERS, one must "believe" a bit oneself. A film that drops the viewer into a breakneck chase from the outset has its place and its advantages in storytelling, but almost invariably such movies are about the chase, rather than the people. THE BELIEVERS is about the people, which separates it from the typical batch of "supernatural thrillers". Here we get the whole story, rather than a sort of synopsis, wherein we get only the "high points", those scenes which contain the most action or gore or both. TOTAL RECALL is an excellent example of this type of film, done well; one need only look at any of the horror/slasher franchise films to have an idea of this type of film done at a dead run, for money and the most shock value. They can be fun, but I'm not sure they qualify as art.

What makes THE BELIEVERS so disturbing is that, at its best, it *builds belief* in the audience. This might seem redundant, since, going in, we demonstrate a willingness to believe that is initially missing from the main charter(s); but in this case, we no longer have the emotional distance to simply watch and say, "Oh, I saw that coming," or "Blah - never in a million years." By the time Helen Shaver goes through her ordeal with that unsightly blemish, nothing about it seems far-fetched at all! Performances are, generally, successful. Young Harley Cross is excellent as young Chris, and the rest of the cast is populated with familiar faces or faces that were destined to become very familiar indeed, such as Jimmy Smits. My sole complaint comes from certain scenes with Martin Sheen - emotionally, he goes from conversation to screaming in an instant, and it just doesn't seem appropriate to the scene, especially when one considers that he's playing a psychiatrist - a professional group who are specifically trained in keeping their cool in the heat of a situation. Some of the dialog, too, occasionally comes out sounding like they shot the rehearsal.

THE BELIEVERS is not without flaw - nevertheless, enough good remains that it rewards the patient viewer with a rich storytelling experience!

Good horror film

[fleagles · 7/10 · 6 June 2000]

Scary, good thriller about a dangerous faction of Santeria, a Latin-American based religion which believes in animal sacrifice, which here is offerring children as sacrifices in New York. Martin Sheen is very good as a police psychologist who moves to New York with his son after his wife's bizarre death, and must deal with the very strange doings occuring around him. The fine cast includes a younger Jimmy Smits, Robert Loggia, Helen Shaver, and Harley Cross. Director John Schlesinger provides good shocks, and good the movie has a fine late 80's New York feel, even though most of it was filmed in Toronto!

turns into a good creepy horror

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 11 April 2015]

Cal Jamison (Martin Sheen) loses his wife in an accidental electrocution. He moves with his son Chris to NYC as a psychiatrist for the police department. Jessica Halliday (Helen Shaver) is their landlady. His lawyer Marty Wertheimer (Richard Masur) wants to sue the coffeemaker company. Lt. McTaggert (Robert Loggia) investigates a child murder with disturbed undercover cop Tom Lopez (Jimmy Smits) at the scene. Lopez is convinced that some unknown group will kill him and tries to shoot himself. Cal is called in to investigate the voodoo murder. Palo (Malick Bowens) is the ever present voodoo evil. Cal's housekeeper tries to protect the family with her good voodoo.

The use of religion is going to anger some people and color some reviews. I guess almost any movie can cause offense if taken that way. It starts off as a crime thriller. It seems to go slowly but methodically. Then it turns more towards horror and it's quite effective. There are some good voodoo horrors. The two hours running time is a little long but it's got some good creepy scares.

Engrossing but disjointed

[drownsoda90 · 6/10 · 5 April 2020]

"The Believers" stars Martin Sheen as a forensic psychologist who moves with his young son to New York City after the death of his wife. Shortly after their arrival, a series of brutal ritualistic child murders plague the city, and his son becomes gravely endangered.

This little-talked-about late '80s quasi-horror film starts out promising--there are ominous deaths, grim warnings, and disturbing occult murders involving young children. The focus here is an urban take on Santeria that has been appropriated and perverted for nefarious purposes. The first half of the film is quite engaging, with Sheen's character slowly descending into this world and learning more and more about it, including benevolent forms of it, which are practiced by his Puerto Rican housekeeper.

At its core, the film is truly about the blind leading the blind--people so dedicated to an ideological belief that they are willing to engage in horrific acts to validate it, dragging others into their underworld as human collateral. Like much of John Schlesinger's work, "The Believers" is quite stylish, and there is a fair amount of suspense in the first two-thirds of it--but by the final act, the film begins to wobble into the realm of ridiculousness. Despite the fact that it runs nearly two hours, there is a surprising amount of connective tissue missing from the film, particularly regarding the cult practices and their overall intentions--the implications often come across as vague or oblique. There are two plot twists thrown into the mix in the last twenty minutes, and a showdown in a warehouse that feels frightfully overwrought and unbelievable. The film does end on a grim, immediate note, however, which does mitigate some of this.

Overall, I found this film quite engaging, though it lacks cogency, particularly in the third act. It is admittedly stylish and well-acted, but it contains too many unnecessary voids, especially when you take into account its runtime. I suspect the film may have been a victim of editing problems based on the way it is pieced together, though it's difficult to know for certain. Worth a watch for fans of cult-themed films, despite its lack of clarity at times. 6/10.

Unpleasant big city crime drama with Martin Sheen that morphs into sorcery-oriented horror

[Wuchakk · 6/10 · 9 August 2019]

A widowed therapist (Martin Sheen) moves back to New York City to find himself assisting the NYPD in a series of slayings linked to a Caribbean Voodoo-like cult. Things get worse when he discovers they want his son for a human sacrifice. Helen Shaver plays his landlord and possible romantic interest.

"The Believers" (1987) is an adult-oriented crime drama that gets increasingly horrific. The plot and tone are akin to "Wolfen" (1981), albeit with the brujería cult replacing the super-wolves. It's leagues superior to the similar "The Serpent and the Rainbow" (1988).

The diabolic angle makes for some ugliness (e.g. death due to electric shock, suicides, grisly sacrifices, snakes and creepy arachnids), but there are rays of light as well. Sheen is outstanding as the protagonist while Shaver offers her wares to the table. The shocking spider sequence was later ripped off by "Urban Legends: Bloody Mary" (2005).

The movie runs 1 hour, 44 minutes, and was shot in New York City & Toronto.

GRADE: B-

The Fanatics

[view_and_review · 7/10 · 9 November 2019]

The Believers can be viewed as an exposition of believers of anything. The primary object of the movie is the religion Santeria and the practitioners of that religion but, the underlying thread is that any fanatical and misguided believers in any religion are the same.

The black magic brand of Santeria practitioners weren't the only Santerians in the movie. There were others who were far less dangerous, even if their customs and ceremonies were strange. The understanding though is that in every religion there are probably messages or passages that are misunderstood by the fanatics and they end up doing extreme actions in the name of said religion.

The Believers goes deep into the black magic aspect of Santeria. By pure happenstance Cal Jamison (Martin Sheen) and his family get wrapped into that world. The movie is eerie and suspenseful as we are navigated through this strange religious world.

Darkness

[BandSAboutMovies · 7/10 · 18 June 2019]

Based on Nicholas Conde's book The Religion, The Believers is a movie that often goes where other films have the sense - or good taste - not to. Cats with their heads cut off, goats being killed, the bodies of kids being found sacrificed in rituals - if you're coming into this one expecting a fun ride, beware. This gets pretty dark.

Think I'm kidding? The movie starts with the death of Cal Jamison's (Martin Sheen) wife Lisa when she gets electrocuted by touching a malfunctioning coffeemaker as she also stands in a pool of spilled milk. Yes, you read that right.

This death moves Cal and his son Chris to New York City, where the elder Jamison finds work with the NYPD as a psychologist. One of his first patients, Officer Tom Lopez (father of Princess Leia, Jimmy Smits) has been infiltrating a cult but is now caught in the clutches of brujeria-influenced madness. Before you know it, Smits has literal snakes in his stomach and he's cutting them out with a knife.

Robert Loggia shines here as Lieutenant Sean McTaggert, who is leading the case as they seek who is committing all of these ritualistic child murders. Could it be a conspiracy that goes the whole way to noted businessman Robert Calder (Harris Yulin, the judge who caused big issues for the Ghostbusters)? And when the cult targets young Chris, can anyone be saved?

Helen Shaver shows up as real estate agent/love interest Jessica Halliday and the film also features Elizabeth Wilson (the evil Roz in 9 to 5), Lee Richardson (who - along with child actor Harley Cross - also appears in The Fly II) and RIchard Masur from John Carpenter's The Thing, the dad in License to Drive and the grown-up version of Stanley in the TV version of It.

This comes from a great pedigree, as director John Schlesinger was nominated for two Best Director Oscars for Darling and Sunday Bloody Sunday, winning one for Midnight Cowboy. He also directed another awesome thriller, 1976's Marathon Man. And get this - Mark Frost, who would go on to co-create Twin Peaks wrote the screenplay.

I find it interesting that this film positions santeria as the good magic against the bad magic of the Caribbean. Even more intriguing is that this film influenced the santeria-based cult of Adolfo "The Godfather" Constanzo and supported by serial killer Sara "The Godmother" Aldrete in Matamoros, Mexico.

voodoo doo-doo

[secretron · 5/10 · 26 September 2001]

In all fairness, I went into seeing The Believers with a glimmer of hope. A fervent horror fan, I looked forward to seeing a rare intellectual thriller. All the pieces were in place - a good cast (led by a usually stellar Martin Sheen), a renowned director (John Schlesinger) & the story of a police psychologist trying to pick up the pieces after his wife's premature & accidental death who gets involved, along with his son, in some occultish freakishness.

So where did The Believers go wrong? About halfway through, when Sheen's lonely Dad inexplicably & unbelievably takes up with the loopy landlady across the street (Helen Shaver). Not only is this an unwanted distraction to the plot, but the relationship moves WAY too quickly to be taken seriously in a 2-hour horror movie.

There are some scary moments, one coming within the first 5 minutes of the film, but the film loses its momentum as the discovery of what all this voodoo madness is all about unfolds. Like The Serpent & The Rainbow, logic & reason effortlessly give way to dark idols & poisoned dart silliness. The film's ominous conclusion tries too hard & becomes almost laughable.

Sheen is solid, but spends more than half the movie screaming at, to or for his son (another never-to-be-seen-again child actor who is 10 times more annoying than cute, making you wish that the bad guys eat him up before Martin starts filming Wall Street). Shaver sleepwalks through her thankless role, tho she's involved in one of the film's creepiest moments. A good supporting cast, including Robert Loggia, Richard Masur & a young Jimmy Smits are wasted.

Ultimately, The Believers is ambitious, but this voodoo doo-doo doesn't give you much to believe. 5 out of 10.

Hoodoo You Think You Are?...

[azathothpwiggins · 23 May 2020]

THE BELIEVERS stars Martin Sheen as Cal Jamison, a psychologist who gets mixed up with an underground voodoo cult. After having already suffered through a bizarre family tragedy, Jamison must fight to keep his son from these fanatics, who are suspected in a series of child mutilations. He is helped by a tough, cynical cop (Robert Logia), and a local practitioner of Santeria.

This movie is fairly frightening, and effectively shows black magic at work in NYC. Sheen is quite good in his role, going from dismissive disbelief to all-out survival mode.

Watch for Jimmy Smits in an early, doomed role!...

Blood Cult

[sol-kay · 7/10 · 24 September 2005]

***SPOILERS*** Moving to New York City with his nine year old son Chris,Darley Cross, after his wife Lisa, Janet Laine Green, died in a tragic electrical accident psychiatrist Cal Jamison, Martin Sheen, got a job in the New York Police Department as a special therapist for cop's who have deep emotional problem's, that in many cases could lead to suicide.

Called to a deserted theater to talk a cop out of killing himself Cal get's his first taste of what was to happen to him his son Chris and to almost everyone else he knows by the time the movie "The Believers" is over. Officer Tom Lopez, Jimmy Smits, has become suicidal after finding this young boy skinned alive and murdered, on an altar at the theater, as well as having his police badge being stolen by those who committed this ghastly crime. Lopez is terrified that he'll be the next victim with his badge, like a voodoo doll, having a hex put on it by the boys killers.

Taken away to a psychiatric ward for observation Lopez later escapes and in a last act of desperation calls Cal for help but commits Harri Kari before Cal and the police can come to his rescue. Martin together with NYPD Let. McTarggert, Robert Loggia, go to this drug rehabilitation center where Lopez worked as a youth counselor on his off time. Meeting with the center's director Oscar Sezine, Raul Davila, it becomes obvious that Lopez and Sezine, both practitioners of Santeria, were being used as dupes for what the center was only a front for the practice of Brujeria,Spanish for witchcraft. Those oculists running the center were secretly using the youths there in their blood and murder rituals.

The A.C.H.E Drug Rehibilitation Center was founded by this rich weirdo Robert Calder, Harris Yulin, together with his spiritual adviser the even weirder Polo, Malick Bowens, an African Shaman Priest. Getting the pesky Lopez out of the way, by having him kill himself, these blood-worshipers were now ready to commit a series of murders of young boys to usurer in the Summer Solstice, June 21, which is a major holiday in their, Brujeria, religion.

Polo taking Let. McTaggert's NYPD business card, that he gave Sezine, and putting a hex on it causes him to go off the deep end and later blow his brains out. Cal's girlfriend Jessica, Helen Shaver, later at a party, and fund raiser for the A.C.H.E Center,in Calder's honor has her powder puff spiked, by Polo, where she develops a large blistering infection on her face that almost kills her. Cal's maid Carman(Carla Pinza), also a Santeriaist, feels that this Brujeria cult is after his son Chris and tries to protect him, with a number of Santeria rituals. Cal misunderstood what Carman is doing fires her thus leaving Chris, and himself, to face these dangerous and blood thirsty blood-worshipers maniacs all by themselves.

Cal is then tricked into leaving Chris with his long time friends the Maslows Dennis & Kate, Lee Richardson & Elizabeth Wilson, at their summer home in the country not realizing that their members of this blood cult who in fact sacrificed their own son some 40 years ago to it and now want him to do the same with Chris!

Disturbing and creepy movie that gets a bit off course at the very end with what looks like an alternative ending, in 1987 before they became popular on video and DVD movies,that suggests that a sequel to "The Belivers" is soon to follow, it didn't.

Unbelievably dumb, far-fetched

[jkochoa4966 · 2/10 · 29 December 2011]

Wow is this movie dumb! You will hate the superstitious Latin characters they have running around yelling and carrying on in over the top Latin accents. Sheen is a concerned father and police detective investigation some child murders in NYC. These murders are linked to a voodoo/santoria type religion that seems to be 'believed' by an unbelievably big underground community in New York City! A scary black guy with albino contacts lurks around scaring the bejesus out of the increasingly frightened latins who can only speak broken English, shriek and writhe in increasing desperation for Sheen/someone/anyone to listen to them and their need for pro-tect-C-own. There are bizarre suicides, deaths, mind control trances (at just a glance), animal sacrifices, oh, and other European American believers who wear suits and ride around in limousines who are apparently in charge of this 'religion'. I also left out a kidnapping, curses, electrocutions, and Sheen's character's rebellious, uncontrollable little kid who is constantly in danger and behaves not unlike he's suddenly had a bad reaction to angel dust!

A bit disjointed, but overall a good film

[BrandtSponseller · 8/10 · 17 January 2005]

After his wife dies, police psychiatrist Cal Jamison (Martin Sheen) moves with his son, Chris (Harley Cross), from Minnesota to New York City. There, he quickly becomes embroiled in a bizarre string of occult-related murders of children and apparent suicides of adults.

If you enjoyed The Serpent And The Rainbow (1988), Angel Heart (1987) and Rosemary's Baby (1968), there's a good chance you'll enjoy The Believers as well, as it bears quite a few similarities (although it's certainly not a rip-off). In my view, it's not quite as good as those other three films, which are all 10s in my book, but it is well worth watching.

The principle flaw, which probably arises from trying to condense a novel--in this case Nicholas Conde's book, The Religion--into a screenplay, is that The Believers quickly brushes over some developments so that it's occasionally difficult to follow, especially towards the beginning. We can sense that there's much more to the story but that there just isn't time to show all of it to us.

However, a characteristic of the subgenre of occult/voodoo horror films is a prominent surrealism and dream-like narrative flow, so what might be more of a flaw in another kind of film can be more of an asset here. The Believers also benefits from a great cast--Sheen is a delight to watch (and listen to) as a psychiatrist who can fly off the handle in rage at the drop of a hat, and Jimmy Smits is wonderfully insane every time we see him.

The Believers is also worth checking out for its cinematography and set design. The set for the climax is a visual treat and integral to the plot. And the tag scene after the climax is remarkable for its visual change--beautiful, wide-open spaces and bright colors. It's just too bad that the sequel set up by director John Schlesinger never came to fruition.

Half good, half bad

[udar55 · 6/10 · 2 February 2006]

Despite featuring a wonderful cast and talented director, the black magic tinged THE BELIEVERS never lives up to its potential. It contains an intriguing premise that is eventually squashed by the killer of many a film – the cliché.

Based on the novel "The Religion" by Nicholas Conde, THE BELIEVERS presents the growing battle brewing in the back alleys and basements of NYC between Santeria (good magic) and Brujeria (witchcraft). While the good guys are only using their magic to protect, the bad guys are using it to ritually murder children. Okay, I'm with you. The mystery starts to unravel and it is engaging. But once we find out that the bad guys are affluent, predominately white yuppies, I call foul. Truly this cliché is as worn by this point in the late 80s as the other voodoo mumbo jumbo presented in the film.

That is too bad because THE BELIEVERS does feature several effective and disturbing scenes. Gruesome on screen images include snakes found post-mortem in Jimmy Smits' intestines and a boil on Shaver's face bursting forth tiny spiders. There are even some memorable sets such as the haunting empty theater turned ceremony chamber where Smits' psychotic cop character is introduced or the abandoned construction site in the film's climax (despite this candle lit structure being formula for the genre itself). As stand alone scenes and set pieces, they are quite effective. But placed in context with the rest of the plodding feature, they seem strangely out of place. This is doubly shameful given the Schlesinger's previous work. After all, he is responsible for one of cinema's best cringe inducing moments (the tooth drilling torture scene in MARATHON MAN).

In terms of acting, everyone is fine. Sheen, resembling an old Emilio Estevez, gets to scream a lot in the first hour or so. He is a bit more subdued in the end (after all, the cult drugs him) and he delivers the film's final k.o. with great subtlety. The film's best performances come from the Jimmy Smits and Robert Loggia as two cops snared by the occult shenanigans. Also good is Harley Cross as Sheen's preyed upon son. Cross stacked up the genre credits before he was even 15 with this, his role as the young Martin Brundle in THE FLY II (1989) and the lead in the still unreleased THE BOY WHO CRIED BITCH (1991).

Hollywood was flooded with occult flicks in the late 80s, second only to the underwater film craze. Titles such as THE BELIEVERS, ANGEL HEART, THE SEVENTH SIGN, THE WITCHES OF EASTWICK and THE SERPENT AND THE RAINBOW all hit cinemas with a year of each other. As it stands, THE BELIEVERS is one of the lesser entries in this list. Believe it or not.

Then I saw his eyes, now I'm a Believer!

[Coventry · 3/10 · 2 January 2014]

What happens when an acclaimed A-listed director like John Schlesinger ("Midnight Cowboy", "Marathon Man") and an acclaimed A-listed actor like Martin Sheen ("Apocalypse Now", "Badlands") decide together to cash in on the contemporary popular trend of making a religiously themed horror movie? Sadly – but predictably – this results in a pretentious, dreadfully overlong and ridiculous piece of melodramatic soap-opera schlock! Back in the era of pioneering cinema, there were a handful of titles – "I walked with a Zombie" and "White Zombie" to name just two – that put forward the theme of voodoo as something uniquely macabre and nightmarish, but ever since the 1980's, many directors mistakenly assume that it is horrifying enough just to insert images of bloody headless chicken corpses and African tribes performing silly dance rituals. Schlesinger makes the exact same mistake and, atop of that, also adds far too many family drama sub plots and redundant detective elements. The opening sequences are supposed to be tragic and heart-wrenching but (and maybe it's just me?) I found them quite imbecilic and banal. Police psychiatrist Cal Jamison loses his wife in a far-fetched kitchen accident – malfunctioning coffee machines and spilled milk do not go well together – and moves to the center of New York with his 7-year-old son. What follows is an irritating series of clichéd situations, since daddy falls in love with the new landlady but obviously doesn't want to neglect his traumatized little boy. Meanwhile, his job also drags him into a spider web of intrigues regarding the Santerío-religion. This strange religion worships African spirits in the shape of Christian Gods (or something like it, I don't know) and has quite a few of influential disciples in NY. The lives of innocent young boys are sacrificed in favor of obnoxious rich adults and, because he sticks his nose too much in the voodoo business, Jamison's own son is suddenly in danger as well. Unlike Alan Parker in the superior "Angel Heart", John Schlesinger didn't have the balls to show any controversial themes or shocking images. However, if you happen to fancy tedious and confusing dialogs, dull sentimental interludes, a complete lack of atmosphere or tension and weak performances from usually reliable actors (besides Sheen also Robert Loggia, Harris Yulin and Jimmy Smits), then you absolutely must see "The Believers". I'm required to admit there are two memorable highlights as well, though. There's one marvelous, but misfit, scene with eerie little spiders crawling out of a woman's jaw and also the casting of Malick Bowens as the sinister voodoo priest. His evil stare was the only thing preventing me to stop watching this garbage before it was actually finished.

religions have a lot of bad sects

[lee_eisenberg · 2 November 2011]

John Schlesinger was best known for movies like "Darling", "Midnight Cowboy", "Sunday Bloody Sunday", "The Day of the Locust" and "Marathon Man". But now he directs something totally different.

To understand what happens in "The Believers", it helps to have foreknowledge of Santería, a syncretic religion practiced widely in the Caribbean. It is based in the Yoruba culture (in present-day Nigeria), but includes influences from Roman Catholicism and the indigenous American cultures. The movie depicts a satanic offshoot of Santería mixed with brujería (Spanish for "witchcraft"), that is sacrificing children in New York, and is now targeting the son of Martin Sheen's character.

If you expect a slasher movie, this is nothing of the sort. There is some violence, but no guts getting torn out or anything -- only one scene can truly get called shocking (you'll know it when you see it) -- and there's limited sex/nudity. I'd say that the movie's strength is its depiction of how Sheen's character slowly but surely learns about a culture with which he was previously unfamiliar. The movie does make clear that the religious cult is not Santería, but a different group. After all, every religion is bound to have its wackos.

Does the movie have any downsides? Well, Robert Loggia's cop came across as a little silly, but I'd call that the only true downside. Otherwise, this is a good one. Also starring Helen Shaver, Richard Masur, Jimmy Smits and Harris Yulin (who I at first mistook for Richard Jenkins, aka Nate Sr. on "Six Feet Under").

Middling

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 17 February 2019]

THE BELIEVERS is a middling '80s horror flick from director John Schlesinger, who really should have crafted something better than this (his excellent '70s thriller MARATHON MAN is a particular favourite of mine). Martin Sheen is fine as a grieving husband and father who unwittingly gets drawn up in a voodoo plot in New York of all places, and finds himself battling to save his son from becoming a sacrificial victim. There was a mini-wave of voodoo flicks in the 1980s (ANGEL HEART and THE SERPENT AND THE RAINBOW being other notable examples) but this film seems to go through the motions without ever connecting. The actors are well chosen and Helen Shaver is certainly put to the test here, but the ending comes across as lacklustre and although the direction is nice the writing is strictly average.

Can't believe that I had not heard of this one before

[Stevieboy666 · 6/10 · 30 October 2023]

Martin Sheen plays a police psychologist and widower who moves to New York City with his young son after the death of his wife. This happens at the start, she is accidentally electrocuted in the family kitchen in front of their young son and it is truly shocking. Animals and children are being sacrificed by a Voodoo-like cult called Santeria and Sheen is part of the team trying to solve this bizarre and harrowing case. In addition to a few bloody sacrificed corpses we get some shocking gut churning scenes involving snakes and spiders coming out of victims, body horror with good effects. Sheen hooks up with his landlady, played by Helen Shaver. She is briefly seen full frontal nude, Shaver by name but not shaver by nature, ha ha! We get plenty of police action and the end is a shocker but the plot is a bit hard to swallow.

Not half bad, really

[eileenmchenry · 7/10 · 5 September 2005]

This is a rather slick, big-budget horror picture that is kind of low on the horror, but nice if you want some "suspense lite" of an evening. Good story progression, boss visuals, nice special effects, good production values. There was a certain lack of dramatic tension that brought the whole thing down. The story would have been more convincing if Martin Sheen had acted, you know, a little bereaved in the wake of his wife's death. Ditto his son. Now, about that kid. This is one of the most egregious examples of the Odious Child role ever -- so much so that I really suspect him of having been the most threatening person in the story. He was a more convincingly evil character than Malik Bowen's Santeria priest -- oh, sure, the priest's eyes change color when he's feeling the Spirit, but everywhere the kid goes with his tribal fetish doll, someone dies horribly. COINCIDENCE?

Cheer up, sleepy Sheen, Oh, what can it mean...

[BA_Harrison · 6/10 · 14 June 2020]

The Believers is one of those 'they're all in on it' movies where, at the end, it is revealed that 'they're all in on it'. In this case, 'they' are the friends and acquaintances of police psychiatrist Cal (Martin Sheen) who, unbeknownst to him, belong to a religious cult that achieve great power and personal reward by sacrificing their own children.

Cal gradually becomes aware of the sinister Santeria religion after he is called in to help with Lopez (Jimmy Smits), a New York cop suffering from delirium after discovering the mutilated body of a child on a sacrificial altar. The terrified Lopez tries to warn Cal of the dangers he will face if he investigates the case, but Cal is sceptical, at least until Lopez takes his own life, with an autopsy revealing snakes slithering in the man's guts. After further strange occurrences, including the cheek of his girlfriend Jessica (Helen Shaver) erupting with spiders, and police chief McTaggart (Robert Loggia) losing all control of his body, Cal starts to believe what his housemaid Carmen (Carla Pinza) has been telling him all along: his young son Chris (Harley Cross) is in mortal danger!

Taking its cues from such films as Rosemary's Baby, The Omen, and Race With The Devil, John Schlesinger's The Believer's isn't the most original of horror movies, but coming from the man who gave us Midnight Cowboy and Marathon Man, it's still a slick, well-directed, well-acted piece that should satisfy fans of all things supernatural. Sheen is excellent in the lead, looking suitably distressed by the shocking events, and he is given able support from Shaver and Loggia, as well as a commendable turn from Cross.

I get the feeling that Schlesinger's intention was to make a stylish horror, so his film is more about atmosphere than sex and gore; that said, Shaver appears totally nude in a scene that proves she's Shaver by name but not by nature, there's a decapitated cat, the spider scene is pretty cool, and we get an impalement on metal poles at the end which is nice and bloody.

A little too long at almost two hours, and let down somewhat by a silly and unnecessary twist ending, The Believers could have benefitted from a little judicious trimming, but it's still a passable time-waster, largely thanks to the more than capable cast and Schlesinger's assured direction.

Some nice moments , but overall a disappointing movie

[Maziun · 4/10 · 15 September 2014]

A good director John Schlesinger ("Midnight cowboy" , "Marathon man") plus good actor Martin Sheen ("Apocalypse now") plus interesting subject - voo doo. This is one promising combination , isn't it ? Unfortunately the ending result is rather bad.

Martin Sheen gives a good performance. The movie does give you a some knowledge about voo doo. There are some nice thrilling scenes (the beginning , the ending , the scene with the snakes and the scene with the bees). Those are the good things in this movie.

The movie isn't unfortunately scary . It isn't horrifying enough just to insert images of bloody headless chicken corpses and African tribes performing silly dance rituals. The movie can't decide if it wants to have supernatural elements in it or to be a thriller. "The believers" is also too long and have too many sub plots. There is also too much soap opera in a movie that should be scary and dark. There is no tension or atmosphere and aside from Sheen the acting isn't anything special. The dialogues are forgettable and the screenplay is rather bad convoluted.

Alan Parker's "Harry Angel" is far superior to "The Believers". It's dark , scary , has good performances and interesting story. "The Believers" is not a complete waste of time , however it is overlong, slightly pretentious with a flat detective story. There are some good elements here , however it is a disappointment. I give it 4/10.

A great classic? Don't believe it!

[The_Void · 6/10 · 19 May 2008]

Voodoo is quite an interesting topic, and as such there are many movies on the topic, many of which are very good; which means that all the movies based on voodoo generally have a lot to live up to. The Believers benefits from a good cast, a reputable director and an obviously sizable budget - but unfortunately, it doesn't amount to a sum of it's parts, mostly due to the fact that a lot of it plays out rather slowly and is quite boring - which is fairly surprising considering that director John Schlesinger was the man behind classic thrillers such as Marathon Man. The film is based on a book by Nicholas Conde and focuses on a widowed father named Cal Jamison who takes his son to live in Manhattan. Cal gets a job with the New York Police Department as a psychiatrist for troubled police officers. It's on his first call out, to help save a suicidal police officer that he comes into contact with a strange cult that has skinned a child alive. From there, the film focuses on a series of strange and eerie events that all seem to focus on the people around the lead character...

The main problem with this movie is undoubtedly the length of it - the director obviously assumed that there was enough material to fill the nearly two hour running time, but unfortunately that isn't the case and the result is a film with a lot of dull moments. The lead role is taken by Martin Sheen who does a good job of fleshing out his character and getting the audience behind him. This, however, is not matched by the plot - which doesn't ever do enough to get the audience fully behind it, which is a shame as there are plenty of good ideas going on in it. The film can easily be compared to the likes of Angel Heart and Rosemary's Baby - but clearly it is not even nearly on the same level as the aforementioned classics. To its credit, the film does not flinch too much when it comes to showing blood and gore - skinned kids and spiders crawling out of a woman's cheek are among the highlights. Overall, The Believers is not a complete dead loss by any means; but it's not a great film either and I wouldn't recommend anyone goes out of their way to see it.

The Believers: Another run of the mill Voodoo effort

[Platypuschow · 4/10 · 24 May 2019]

Martin Sheen leads a veteran cast in a very run of the mill voodoo themed effort.

I like the concept of Voodoo, it's dark, it's intimidating and there is always an element of necromancy there which has real potential. So why is it that voodoo themed movies always tend to suck so badly?

Also starring Robert Loggia, Jimmy Smits, Harris Yulin and the criminally underrated Richard Masur it certainly has no issues in that department. Alas they weren't given much to work with and what you'll find here is something that feels very familiar.

Following the same tropes The Believers tells a very generic voodoo story and though it starts strong enough it trails into mediocrity really quite fast.

It's no wonder I'd never heard of this and quite frankly it's not going to be worth remembering.

The Good:

Richard Masur

The Bad:

Instantly forgettable

Realistic and truly scary.

[spacemonkey_fg · 10/10 · 22 February 2006]

Title: The Believers (1987)

Director: John Schlesinger

Cast: Martin Sheen, Jimmy Smitts, Robert Loggia

Review: I've always been intrigued by movies about Voodo, Santeria and Witchcraft. I could go on and on about how part of my early childhood was spent in that religion and what not. But I'm not going to. Its something I like to leave safely tucked away in my past. Anyhows, this film, The Believers, depicts a couple of Santeria/Voodoo rituals that felt very, very genuine. I always keep a keen eye open to see just how truthful films can get...to see if the filmmakers did their homework right or not. Well, in the case of The Believers Id say they did their homework alright and got a straight freaking A man.

The Believers is about a police psychologist called Cal Jamison (Martin Sheen). He is trying to cope with his wives recent death and trying to continue on with a normal life. When he suddenly realizes that his son has been targeted by practitioners of "Brujeria" or witchcraft. They need his son to perform one of their rituals. Of course he opposes and goes on a terrifying journey to try and stop them.

What I found chilling about this film is its faithfulness to the whole Santeria thing. Having a background in this I could tell what was real and what was Hollywood Hocus Pocus bullshit, and let me tell you 90% of this film was highly accurate as to some of the rituals.

Heres the thing about this type of movie. It can very easily turn into an unrealistic film that simply exploits the religion and uses its mythology to scare people who know nothing about it. But in the case of The Believers, they made a very good effort to demonstrate that Santeria is just another religion. Its people who believe in different things that the rest of the world don't believe in. And it doesn't have to be evil simply because its different.

Of course, like everything, there's a dark side to the whole thing and in this movie its called "Brujeria" or Witchcraft. As it is explained in the film, its a form of Voodoo that is used for evil purposes and that its rituals involve amongst other things the sacrifice of children. The people in the film at first think that the ones committing the murders are people who belong to Santeria...when in fact they don't. So I liked the fact that the movie didn't stoop to the low point of exploiting the beliefs of people who practice Santeria.

The movie is frightening, because it feels real. These religions and the people who believe in them are out there. They exist. And the ignorance about their beliefs instantly translates to fear amongst people who know nothing about it. Of course the movie does take advantage of peoples ignorance about it and uses it to make people think one thing...when in fact its another. But I have say, the movie will prove to be quite frightening. It has some genuinely tense moments in there.

Jimmy Smitts, an unknown at the time, steals the show as Tom Lopez. A local who is frightened that "they" will get him. "They" know who he is and "You don't know what they can do!" Those sequences with Smitts going loco are excellent and will heighten any bit of fear that was already crawling up through the back of your spine. Also there's an evil Priest character played by Malik Bowens that is 100% concentrated evil. A memorable scene involves his eyes changing color and starting to dance as he is possessed by a spirit. So you can rest assured that we get some good solid performances in this flick.

In conclusion I'll say that this movie is scary in the same way that The Exorcist was scary. In the same way that Angel Heart and Serpent and the Rainbow were scary. Its all tied up to something that exists in real life. Of course the film, as is the case in almost all of these films dealing with Voodoo or Santeria, ventures into fantasy territory. But Ill say this, The Believers is the one that feels the most genuine out of all the movies dealing with this subject matter. So its worth a look see. Only if you want to be really scared of course.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Overall there are better voodoo movies from this era (Serpent and the Rainbow) but this is worth a viewing

[kevin_robbins · 6/10 · 2 May 2021]

The Believers (1987) is a movie I recently watched for free on Tubi. The storyline focuses on a single dad raising his son who suddenly becomes the target of a cult looking to kidnap and sacrifice his son. The cult starts killing, one-by-one, people around him until they can get to him and his son. This movie is directed by John Schlesinger (Marathon Man and Midnight Cowboy) and stars Martin Sheen (Dead Zone and Apocalypse Now), Robert Loggia (Scarface), Helen Shaver (The Craft) and Harris Yulin (Training Day). The storyline for this has a nice blend of voodoo and eerie sequences. Loved the main villain and how he's portrayed and what they did with his eyes. There's some great special effects in here including spiders crawling out of a characters face, the diner self stab scene and the final fall for the villain. The acting is solid and was on display during a great sequence when the son melts down on his birthday. Overall there are better voodoo movies from this era (Serpent and the Rainbow) but this is worth a viewing. I'd score it a 5.5-6/10.

The only thing that's scary is Jimmy Smits' performance

[anthonyjlangford · 5/10 · 15 October 2021]

An 80's film that doesn't feel like an 80's production. Some well directed scenes and yet without any legitimate atmosphere. The opening accident is far fetched as is the characterization of all concerned, even a solid actor like Martin Sheen.

Worth watching only for what must be the most over the top performance of any actor in a film in the crazed Jimmy Smits. It's the only thing of any entertainment value. It's hilarious!

Banal, tedious. And completely forgettable. Not worth your time.