The Soul Collector (II) (2019) User Reviews

Moths, Souls & South African Lore

[babyjaguar · 5/10 · 19 October 2019]

This film by Harold Holcher explores the supernatural world via a story of a family encounter with a man with a curse. It does this with a good performance by Tshamano Sebe playing the character of "Larazus". Although this film has a good story with beautiful landscape shots, the delivery of the supernatural was not as strong.

A common theme throughout the narrative are references to the natural world: moths, worms, etc. Again the story have some interesting metaphor with insects and the afterlife, Sebe's performance holds the film together. His performance alone, deserves a looksie into this film, hopefully he will reappear in another supernatural film.

That being said this film.with the idea of South African "Fantastic" and "genre" cinema, this still a film to see. The growth of these films are growing in South Africa, like couple of years with 2017's "Lullably" by Darell Roodt.

Very slow moving, moody lore based Horror Story. Beautifully crafted, but somehow ultimately lacking...

[lathe-of-heaven · 6/10 · 22 February 2020]

This is kind of a hard one to write about. If it were just the story alone and it had not been so well technically put together, I probably wouldn't have even bothered to write a review about it.

The story itself is basically pretty simple. You definitely will need subtitles for the non-English parts so you will be able to understand what the indigenous people are saying and dealing with, not to mention some important dialog between Lazarus and his, uh... companion. If you do not have subtitles, then you will not be able to follow the story very well, unless of course you happen to speak the South African language that is being spoken : )

I think one of the reviews that I read on one of the sites I normally check for films like this stated that he felt that this film had one of the best openings he had ever seen. I would agree. But, I don't feel it ever really reaches that level of intensity from that point on. And, FWIW, the cinematography, lighting, and editing are are done extremely well. The scenic shots are lovely. This is a VERY beautiful looking movie. BUT... in my lowly and wretched opinion I feel that although crafted really, really well, and the acting by the primary Lazarus was outstanding (the girl, not so much...) ultimately, to me the story was not really quite substantial enough or fully satisfying to fill it out completely. It was okay and certainly not terrible, and like I've mentioned, technically executed really well. I just don't think that it really packed the 'punch' that it could have. It kind of went in a more Metaphysical, ethereal direction as opposed to cranking up the intensity, which with this kind of Horror film I think would have worked better. The very, very ending though, not mentioning anything specific of course, but the ending at the very last moment is a little bit of a Gobsmack, but I didn't really quite understand it. As a matter of fact, I was just now kind of scouring the Internet to see if I could find some opinions or explanations about what it meant : )

Anyway, honestly not a film that I would get hugely excited about, I gave it a '6' which for me is just about at the borderline of maybe being worth a look. But, I really DID think it was a very beautiful movie and it was constructed very well, so I thought that it was at least worth a mention here...

I would say that if you truly don't mind extremely slow and fairly simply plotted films and you appreciate beautiful photography and some light but decent atmosphere AND you are not expecting a lot, then you might find this one mildly enjoyable.

A Horror Movie With Soul!

[WalkdenEntertainment · 6/10 · 1 December 2020]

The film opens with an older man on his death bed. With his final breath, he sees another man by his side, and instantly the old man in his bed passes away while the stranger walks away. On the flip side, the film introduces us to a family which consists of William (Garth Breytenbach), his wife Sarah (Inge Beckmann) and their adopted daughter Mary (Keita Luna). The family are driving back to William's family farm to attempt to start a new life. As they begin to settle in and restore the farm, young Mary meets a man in the woods named Lazarus. While Lazarus seems mysterious, he appears to be friendly towards Mary and soon meets her parents. Lazarus reveals that he used to work on the family farm a long time ago and offers his services, including fixing the generator which provides power to the house. While William and Mary see no harm in accepting the extra help, Sarah is not convinced on the stranger's intentions.

But little does this family know, the older man who calls himself Lazarus is a soul collector and is capable of speaking to the dead. Lazarus made an ultimate deal with the devil in a desperate attempt to save his daughter's life and soul after a tragic house fire. An agreement was made, but unfortunately for Lazarus the deal he made was too late, and his daughter died. Now Lazarus roams the lands as he wrestles with his past and his inner demons are hungry for souls.

The film's opening feels relatively slow mostly because nothing made sense to begin with. I'm proud to say after sticking with this film, it pays off significantly. I found this film hooked me in quite quickly as I was eager to understand more about Lazarus and ultimately, what path he will take when it comes to this new innocent family.

Another element that surprised me is that this film is a directional debut by Harold Holscher. As a film debut, I am impressed by the results. The Soul Collector delivers something different and something quite mysterious, which held my investment right till the end. It's also shot well, even during quite dark scenes. And, most importantly, the sound design is also quite impacting and powerful for those that love using their home cinema and surround sound.

As for negatives, I only have a few nitpicks with a release like this. The film's opening, while being mysterious, takes risks in regards to its pacing, and I would imagine some watching the movie may check out quickly rather than having the patience to let the story reveal all the details. While the film is classed as a horror, the film relies on good old jump scares which personally didn't deliver any real suspense. For some viewers, these jump scares could be effective. The film's ending did bring me slight disappointment as some elements are entirely unclear and may offer a different view depending on the interpretation of the audience member. For me, the weaker ending was a significant factor as I enjoyed everything that was being built up towards it.

Overall, as a directional debut, I am genuinely impressed by this film. It's quite mysterious, and I enjoyed how dark this film was. Performances are pleasing, particularly from actor Tshamano Sebe who plays The Soul Collector named Lazarus. Visually, this film is also pleasing and carries an impressive audio track. The movie exceeded my expectations, and I look forward to the director's next film, which I'll gladly support in advance. The Soul Collector is easy to recommend for those seeking a new style of horror film.

6.4/10 - Walkden Entertainment

This is not a good movie.

[Patient444 · 4/10 · 2 March 2020]

I don't think the pacing is the problem here, neither is the execution, I just believe that the plot isn't strong enough for a good story.

I had to take my time with this one, as it seemed to go on and on and on, but when I checked, only one hour had passed. So yes, I do agree with other reviewers that said it is a slow movie, but somehow, it simply fails in keeping your interest up. It was difficult to watch it in one view, even tho things were happening on the screen, I just wasn't drawn into it, at all really, so I just let it play until finally it was over.

Hard to recommend 8, sure, it is nice to see what foreign cinema can do..perhaps Africa needs more time. An ok effort at best, and maybe for some, but definitely a lot of room to improve things.

Cheers!

An excellent well-crafted film

[mjsreg · 7/10 · 22 February 2020]

This is one of the better horror films released this year.

It will appeal more to adults who enjoy an engaging and well produced movie rather than the trashy shock-horror kind of teen film that saturate the horror genre at the moment.

The acting is superb with well-rounded and believable characters.

Well worth seeing.

Interesting but fails ultimately in its goal

[omendata · 5/10 · 29 February 2020]

Great performance from Tshamano Sebe, the rest are forgettable as is the story.

Great photography and landscapes and an interesting idea that toys with nature and the hereafter but that holds little water, no scares, no tension and fails to ultimately deliver anything worthwhile.

Admittedly I did not have any subtitles so perhaps I am missing something but the ending was rather confusing - where did the little girl go and why was the soul eater re-incarnated/taken over the wife of the farmer, where did his demon/soul eater/daughter go, where did Lazarus go - who knows, only the writer perhaps but it does have a certain air of mystery and dread but not enough to carry the whole movie!

An OK low budget flick

[alitaha-88852 · 6/10 · 24 February 2020]

This is the trick guys, go into this movie knowing it's low budget and nothing over the top and you will kinda enjoy it. The story is somewhat original, 6/10

Marred by bad editing, dumb character choices, and a touch of bad acting.

[thekhaavren · 5/10 · 12 January 2021]

I'll keep this short. Great concept, love the setting and Lazarus is a solid character with a talented actor to play him. However, I found it extremely difficult to look past the constant establishing shots that would come in the middle of a tense scene, the inconsistency in choosing a transition style, and the random ending of nice moments with a jump cut to black.

Not only do the characters make bad choices (i.e. Sarah storming into the shed where she knows a murderer and his demon daughter are located in) but the filmmakers seem to cut their own suspense by building up a scene only to bring it immediately down by changing the shot and now the characters and score anxiousness levels have been significantly reduced (I.e. the scene where Sarah runs into the house after seeing the demon daughter and bloody clothes).

I have a tendency to over analyze. If you want something that has a unique setting, great main actor, and a slower pace, then you might like this. However, it wasn't my cup of tea.

Good Movie

[zenmarujean-87670 · 7/10 · 26 June 2020]

It does starts slow, but builds up to a great story. Looking at the SFX, for a South African movie, the SFX has grown up from where it was. The aspect of the limbo dimension is brilliant and the soul vessel. It takes time to come alive, but I enjoyed it.

not bad

[yamahapic · 5/10 · 22 March 2020]

A simple and interesting movie..a one time movie if you enjoy suspense films..good mood and script

An original foreign horror film

[Horror_Flick_Fanatic · 8/10 · 27 February 2020]

I really enjoyed this film. The production value and cinematography are top notch. Stellar actors with great performances. It's very rare to see an original story in the horror genre, this one certainly qualifies as one. As others have said, this film will most likely appeal to older audiences. Unfortunately the version I watched did not have subtitles for the African speaking portions of the dialog so I did feel I missed out on some of the deeper meaning behind the man's actions so I will probably have to watch this one again when a copy with full subtitles become available. In any case, it is hidden gems like this film is why I love to watch international cinema rather than just watch the cookie cutter Hollywood jump-scare mediocre films.

Super Natural Storyline Eclipsed

[zac-68274 · 5/10 · 21 February 2020]

Exceptional storyline for 1hr then movie plunged into unanswered mysterious torment!

The Acting Was Good

[twelve-house-books · 3/10 · 30 May 2021]

As with many Horror stories in our day, somehow the director takes what could be a good story and fails to tell enough to make it important enough to know about. The actors were good and believable and very human, but what is the story really about? There are some classic fabulism elements here, but they are thrown onto the table in a haphazard manner. I can honestly only give this one three stars because of the bad storytelling. The actors had little to work with.

Pretentious and slow

[johan-p-nortje · 4/10 · 26 June 2020]

As a South African, nothing about this movie seems authentic to the setting. The old farm house is not typical of real farm houses and looks like it is trying to copy the archetypal "haunted mansion". The way the opening scenes are shot with a car driving on a lonely hillside surrounded by trees is immediately reminiscent of similar American movies. The way they tried to force an essentially old, unoriginal story into a South African context makes it even less enjoyable to watch. The characters behave like modern ones, but the story is set in 1970. How can one know this? It was Apartheid. There is no way they could have possibly set a story where a young white girl is allowed to hang out with an old black man during Apartheid and STILL make it seem believable. A situation like that would never have occurred. Another telling part of the anachronistic setting of this film is where the young girl calls the main character "sir". Black people were not addressed like that by white kids during Apartheid. They would have used the character's first name. The out-of-place setting immediately comes across as pretentious to a South African viewer. Then there is the aunt and uncle. They're supposed to be married, but they come across as strangers - though that's clearly not the aim of the story. Never so much as a hug, a kiss or even a smile. The husband does not seem to care about the wife and neither the wife nor the husband seem to care about the little girl. The family dynamic isn't off or atypical, it simply isn't there. We never get to know the characters themselves, yet the film feels like it dragged on forever. There should have been some time where the audience could get to know the main characters before jumping into the proverbial "house of horrors". Perhaps one could then have more interest in the film because of the bond created with the characters. The cinematographers did shoot and edit some very good scenes, but this was the wrong story for them to be wasting their talents on.

I can not be fooled or tricked.

[nogodnomasters · 3/10 · 25 February 2020]

William (Garth Breytenbach) inherits the family farm when his father dies in the first scene. He is with his barren wife Sarah (Inge Beckmann) and niece (Keita Luna) who lost her parents and is light years ahead in maturity for her age .Lazarus ( Tshamano Sebe) is a worker who comes with the place. He is a wanderer for souls and local healer.

Strange things happen that center around Lazarus' deceased daughter who walks around like Juon.

The film moves slow and failed to fright or hook me. Sarah w as a lousy character.

Guide: F-word. No sex or nudity

Viciously boring

[lespritz · 1/10 · 22 February 2020]

Not scary and you want to throw things until it ends. You won't get this time back...

A great african original story

[Sirnyjel · 9/10 · 25 February 2020]

The story writing and the acting was good. We are used to the western kind of horror stories and it overshadows our own African Stories. This has a great sense of originality as these are some of the scary stories you hear in Africa. This opens up a whole lot of possibilities for how those stories can be enacted into movies. Great for African audiences as they can relate. Slow but mature movie, resonates better with adults.

unconvincing

[reney-96617 · 4/10 · 17 March 2020]

"An old man, fated to collect souls for eternity, seeks atonement after trading his daughter's soul."

In the opening sequence of this "South African horror story", you see an old man lying in bed. His overdramatic make-up, surely applied in excess to indicate that he is dying, did not bode well for the rest of the film. Styling is key, and we have the talent in South Africa.

The biggest problem with 8 is the script, though - the dialogue and story. Both feel staged and weirdly out of place. You could see the experienced/acclaimed actors struggling to deliver their convoluted lines, lines which are supposed to be profound, but end up just being silly ("We come in peace", "Life is death and death is life", etc).

The horror tropes abound. A family arrives at a spooky house in the middle of the night. The electricity is off. There is something in the shadows. A pigeon flying out of a window scares everyone. There is the stranger, the other. The house creaks. Someone has made a deal with the devil; someone else has nightmares.

Where I completely gave up, not that I was very intrigued from the start, was when William visits the local village to introduce himself as the new neighbour, the accountant-turned-farmer. When he does not receive the welcome he expects, he dashes off to the Mercedes and grabs a pistol from the cubby. One, the threat the villagers pose by asking him to leave does not demand a weapon. Two, it does not make sense for this mild-mannered pen-pusher to have a pistol, or for him to hold it behind his back.

You must commend the South African film industry, where budgets are small, for attempting genres other than slapstick or drama, slightly more commercially viable options. That said, we still need to produce remarkable films. The highly anticipated Poppie Nongena, releasing in January, will be the new standard for South African film.

Another worst horror film! Slow like hell, and full of annoying overuse scene! Bored to freaking death!

[kwenchow · 1/10 · 13 August 2020]

This film start with a man "Lazarus" collecting an old man's soul, and the introduction of the family of three(Sarah, William, and Mary) scene! As turnout, this film is about Lazarus seeking atonement by letting Mary choose to follow her death parents live in the hell or her adopted family live in human world, after wrongfully taking Mary's soul to pay for his debt! Entire film full of boring conversation, and super annoying overuse scene! Such as, overuse of the jump scare scene, overuse of the blackout scene, overuse of the dreaming scene, overuse of the searching things scene, overuse of the mountain views scene, overuse of the car driving on the road scene, overuse of the shouting names scene, overuse of the close-up facial scene! Make the film unwatchable! Barely intense scene is, Lazarus kill Suno by stab him to death! At the end, Mary choose to reborn as a child of Sarah! That's it! Wasting time to watch!

It's not good

[saphira_dragon-80270 · 3/10 · 18 June 2020]

The idea was cool. But the movie was very slow. We had to fast forward after watching for 45 min. It was just so slow. The end was weird too. It just wasn't good. We didn't really like it.

Just dull

[petera00 · 1/10 · 9 January 2021]

Storyline had a lot of promise... however no payoff... Very dull movie.

Booooooooriiiiiiiinnnnnng!

[robertolopes-1 · 2/10 · 28 December 2020]

Slow slow slow movie. It seems like they had material for a 20-minute short and stretched as hell to make it a feature. No payoff.

Good cinematography, though. That's why I gave it a 2/10.

Skip it. Really.

Really loved its originality

[MovieQween-33622 · 8/10 · 15 February 2021]

I wAs surprised to see this with such low scores. This is such a unique and original film that also feels non fiction. Starts a little slow but the buildup was good in the second half! Don't want to give any spoilers but was a little unsure of the meaning of the ending. Overall pretty impressed by this film, the acting, storytelling, sense of dread and even displayed importance of family.

Wow...

[nickmrkonja · 3/10 · 30 December 2020]

I absolutely loved this movie, everything about it... the originality, the story, the acting, the tension, the scares... but never in my life, not ONCE, has an ending RUINED the entire movie for me. Every last positive thing about it has just been swept away by real life anger and resentment.

I'm honestly sitting here, so frustrated and furious beyond belief, because of a MOVIE ENDING. Yes, it's directed at the filmmakers for trying to be "different" and "impactful".. it most definitely had an impact, that's for sure... it's ruined my night and my mood. I guess you can say this movie is a true one of a kind achievement for eliciting such actual feelings from the person watching it. Except, I would equate these feelings to the exact same I would have, say, after watching Dane Cook do an entire set insulting and making fun of my mother at her own funeral.

Yes, I know that sounds stupid and ridiculous, but I'm seriously that enraged right now. God, I need a cigarette...

Garbage!

[aprilwalton-27682 · 1/10 · 21 February 2021]

Wish I never watched this lopsided film. I absolutely HATED the family. The WHOLE family. I couldn't have cared less if the worst was happening to them because they were all so unlikable. The wife was hard to looked at. The husband had filthy nails. The kid was annoying. The villagers were stupid. I couldn't believe they intervened in all the mess. All sides were horrible. Can't recommend this movie. It will piss you off.