No assembly RequireD

The double feature has needed to make a comeback for many years now and now theaters have one of the best reasons to bring them back. Double the Nun, with both IMMACULATE and THE FIRST OMEN in theaters audiences can get their double doses of maniacal and satanic nuns. Two films that while similar in presence deliver two distinct stories exciting in their own ways. IMMACULATE, which took years in the making, is a product of the persistence of its producer and lead star Sydney Sweeney. Sweeney a celebrity phenomenon advocated for her film which was a sat in development hell until her production company Fifty-Fifty films picked it up realizing the script had a better chance with aging up its once child nun protagonist allowing Sweeney (now a bankable star) to lead the film. THE FIRST OMEN on the other hand needed very little convincing being an already known property since the original Richard Donner directed film in 1976. A prequel to one of the most famous horror films is not unheard of, in fact tis often over kill, but director Arkasha Stevenson making her feature debut brings a much needed urgency to the story with themes that resonate with today’s issues all too well. To add it it OMEN carries a tremendous star in the making performance from lead Nell Tiger Free. Both Free and Sweeney quickly establish themselves as new modern scream queens respectively. Both films deal with the endless abuse women face as well as organized religions constant use of scripture and practices to protect and excuse their wrongdoings. On top of all that they are both quite terrifying. IMMACULATE chooses slightly more conventional routes for its jump scares while OMEN brings back the patient directing of 70’s filmmaking. While this critic personally preferred THE FIRST OMEN over IMMACULATE it is still such a joy to be able to head to the theaters in a time where horror can deliver an excellent double feature. Two films that feel indebted to its inspirations, but films that can actually live up to its predecessors in style. If you weren’t disturbed by nuns and priests before be ready to never want to step inside a church again, but really in today’s world, why in the hell would you want to anyways.

IMMACULATE

Sister Cecilia (Sydney Sweeney) has always been a woman of devout faith. Since she nearly died at a young age she has believed God has saved her life for something greater. Heading out to the Italian countryside she Cecilia finds herself at a off the beaten path convent for young girls escaping their hardships to give their vows to Christ. Directed by Michael Mohan, the film wants to give off its Italian horror roots early on, from the unsettling score by Will Bates that bounces between sharp violins to playful Italian pop, Bates’ score brings a feeling that feels both Giallo and Nunsploitation all at once. Cecilia wants to be a good member of the church and soon after taking her vows a “miraculous” event occurs that involves her possibly being pregnant through immaculate conception which can only mean Christ himself is inside her. The film never shies away from the overt sexual presence that comes from many of the church’s practices. For an organization of people that pride themselves in their abstinence Mohan has good fun showing that kissing rings, bathing together, the obsession with the flesh all feels too sexual for these virgins. Sweeney as Cecilia is a great turn for the actress who has already delivered worthy performances in both the HBO series “Euphoria as well as HBO’s “Reality” and Mohan’s previous film “The Voyeurs,” (a film this critic highly recommends if you enjoy modern day DePalma style films). But here is Sweeney bringing a new side to her that thankfully avoids gratuitous male gaze and instead displays an earnest side of her innocence that allows her wide eye reactions to do the talking in the early half of the film all before it leads to full terror and rage.

Much has been talked about already on IMMACULATE’s final moments and while the film has a good time getting their it can be too quick at times causing the final scene to seem lie a moment that saved in case other moments fell short. But even before that moment IMMACULATE has many great elements that includes Benedetta Porcaroli as Sister Gwen a sarcastic chain smoking nun who knows long before Cecilia’s discovery that this convent is screwed because in the end its all run by a man and only a man can rule a world that causes women such pain. IMMACULATE also has great use of its setting, nearly the whole film takes place in this convent and its production design goes for a more gothic feel with its candlelit cinematography (don’t worry you can actually see what’s on screen something that cant be said for most film’s today), as well as creaking doors that practically become their own character overseeing everyone tiptoeing around hiding their own devious secrets. Again all this leads to a final moment that is a testament to Sweeney’s commitment to show off her range and especially her vocal pipes. No it is not the most memorable thing you will see in a horror film, but it’s an unnerving ending to a film all about the church’s refusal to see women as anything other than objects to experiment on and to be carriers for what they truly desire. IMMACULATE is the kind of horror that breezes through and will become an enjoyable rewatch and even more so it is a triumph for producer Sydney Sweeney who continues to show she cannot be contained or limited to any genre or hollywood judgement. A star in her own way Sweeney continues to prove that no person or thing can hold her back and instead has carved her own righteous path.

B+

IMMACULATE IS IN THEATERS EVERYWHERE

THE FIRST OMEN

On an even darker side is THE FIRST OMEN which is another great example of how the horror prequel can be great when still holding the lore of the original films but freshly updating the story to reflect ongoing issues. All the while never sacrificing great scares and unsettling feelings throughout. Maragret (Nell Tiger Free) a young American who has been award of the church all her life finds herself in Rome where she will soon give her vows and become a member of a large church run by family friend Cardinal Lawrence (Bill Nighy). Anyone familiar with the original Omen films knows it tells the story of young Damien who is the anti-Christ born of sin through the devil laying with a jackal. The original Omen came out at a time when both The Exorcist and eventually The Shining dived into children with disturbing presences overlooking them. The film spawned several sequels and has become a staple in the horror genre inspiring many and lesser films. THE FIRST OMEN does not want to be a film dedicated to showing how it all connect to the original film but rather allow Margaret’s story to be told. A story involving abuse at the hands of men, bystanders who refuse to help and the church who to this day still use their religion as their scapegoat for their evil wrongdoings. The film may be set in 1971 (and greatly feels like it) but its themes resonate to this day in a time where organized groups still finds systematic ways to keep women down or worse harm them with no repercussions.

Maragret knows something is off about the convent from the start. It may double as an orphanage but the nuns especially Sister Silvia (Sonia Braga) run it with an iron fist leaving some children fearful. One of these young girls is Carlita (Nicole Sorace) who keeps to herself but is clearly harboring a dark secret that nobody in the convent will speak on. Some of the early setup of THE FIRST OMEN mya feel familiar but it is a welcome return especially once Stevenson shows that this is a film that will greatly rely on the talents of Free. Free as Maragaret is outstanding, she holds that same innocence that comes with all protagonists in this genre, but she Maragret is able to come out of her shell in a way that shows there is a fully realized woman under the habit that wants to get out. A scene involving Maragret going to a discoteca with her roommate Luz (Maria Caballero). Stevenson allows this scene to be one of sensuality and freedom as Maragaret gets to enjoy her final days as a “free” woman before taking her vows. It is a significant moment in its storytelling but even more so for Stevenson’s script (co-written by Keith Thomas and Tim Smith) that demonstrates how taking a life long vow limiting all of life’s enjoyments is both unfair and one of the many issues of the church especially when so many men who become priest still go against their vows.

This is an Omen film however and the film is wonderfully patient but does eventually come to the main issue at hand when Maragret meets a mysterious and frantic priest Father Brennan (Ralph Ineson) who claims the church she is a part of is trying to birth the anti-Christ using young women who were born on the June sixth at six am. He believes Carlita carries the mark of the devil and is being sued to bring the devil to life. The church wanting to bring on a demon seems peculiar but with so many young people leaving the church Brennan knows that the church believes the only way to bring people back to the church is to give them something greater to fear. An absurd plan at first until one remembers organized groups including governments have used their own military to create fake threats to invoke patriotism. Its at that moment where THE FIRST OMEN becomes a thriller dedicated to having Maragret uncover the evils of the church she is trapped in all while maintaining her own sanity. Maragret is plagued with brutal images of her past as well as a feeling that this church has already got a hold of her. Stevenson with editors Amy E. Duddleston and Bob Murawski create an endless feeling of dread with limited jump scares, but rather strong tension building, slow moving visuals that leave us in constant dreamlike state.

THE FIRST OMEN succeeds the best in not just showing us a society that continues to find ways to push women down but by using its lead actress to embody so much of the mental and especially physical pain women endure. Nell Tiger Free brings back the physical performance that many horror actresses went through in the 70’s and 80’s. There are almost no chase scenes which often dominate the genre but instead allows the pain to come from within Margaret and in one scene quite literally. Nell Tiger Free will forever be known as the first actress to get her big destructive body moment since Isabelle Adjani in “Possession” yes huge shoes to follow, but a scene involving Maragret walking away from a car crash as she thrusts her body like a beast becomes a worthy follow up to the infamous subway tunnel scene. Nell Tiger Free in this moment feels less like an actress and more a wonderfully deranged circus performer twisted and snapping her body as she snarls like the demons chasing her both mentally and physically. And if that wasn’t enough Stevenson continues to use her two hour runtime to deliver one of the most upsetting scenes in a horror film in years not just due to the brutality of the scene but Free’s performance as a woman begging anyone to help scared to death that so many can just stand and watch the horrors being done right in front of them. It leaves the audience horrified not just for the images on screen but how all too real the ignorance of others happens. THE FIRST OMEN doesn’t want to just hold a mirror to the real world but also smash the glass onto our face as the reality cuts us. It is a film that earns its praise at every turn and bring forth a demonic feeling that will be impossible to run away from, so in a sense Stevenson has created her own anti-Christ that has brought great havoc onto the horror scene. We should be praising her for this accomplishment.

A

THE FIRST OMEN IS IN THEATERS EVERYWHERE