Directed By Michael Mohan

Starring – Sydney Sweeney, Alvaro Morte, Simona Tabasco

The Plot – Cecilia (Sweeney), a woman of devout faith, is warmly welcomed to the picture-perfect Italian countryside where she is offered a new role at an illustrious convent. But it becomes clear to Cecilia that her new home harbors dark and horrifying secrets.

Rated R for strong and bloody violent content, grisly images, nudity and some adult language.

IMMACULATE – Official Redband Trailer – In Theaters March 22 (youtube.com)

POSITIVES

Most noteworthy, “Immaculate” was not the film that I expected it to be, opting away from the hinted paranormal chiller that was suggested in the accommodating trailers, and instead pursuing a psychological enveloping with very grounded realities. This is not to say that there aren’t strange things that go bump in the night throughout, as the film expresses unnerving chills with iconography among its nuns, as well as traditionalism among catholicism that does bring forth a darkly forboding and ominous atmosphere to the audience interpretation, it’s just that the winding road of its narrative does evolve to some unforeseen directions that shape-shifts expectations for the better, in turn exposing the darkness in this instance as something far more sinister and devastating, at least for my money, than I was certainly ever expecting. On top of this, the production lends itself to some vital ingredients within the aforementioned atmosphere that I wish attained more notoriety against an overabundance of jump scares. For starters, the practicality in make-up and prosthetics work is very impressive, with detailing of believability that enhances the gore factor of many blunt blows of devastation, especially in a high stakes climax that definitely isn’t afraid of getting its hands dirty. In addition, the established setting of this 17th century Italian monestary, with greying architecture and catacomb underbelly, speaks volumes to the rich history of the convenant, all the while exposing us to its many dark corridors and strange characters that make it feel like a place where God might be mentioned, but certainly isn’t present. On top of it all, Will Bates supplants both beauty and dread with a series of nun-orchestrated compositions that trigger the unease and anxiety in the dark and quiet scenes that they accompany, emitting a gothic enchantment that rises to inspiring levels of uneasiness, as the sound mixing meticulously elevates. As for the expressive elements, the film shows both great restrain and indulgence in the carnage candy that it unloads to the eyes and ears of its audience, knowing the right moments to pay off their patience with grotesquely gruesome gore that earns every inch of its horror classification. When the imagery reserves itself, it’s tastefully illustrated what our ears can only visualize, but when it’s unrestrained, the buckets of blood and aforementioned practical brutalities amid various kills concoct the kind of long-lasting impacts to the memory of its audience that will surprise them for mainstream theatrical releases, especially one such scene involving a crucifix being stabbed into the face of one unfortunate nun. I also found this a versatilic showcase for Sweeney, who as one of the movie’s producers, purchased the rights to the script a few years back, and sat on it until the right moment to unload it. That moment seems to be now, as not only does Sweeney capably articulate the fear and isolation factors as the story’s fresh fish out of water, but she also reaches for the throat when cementing her irreplacable value to this project, with gut-curdling screams during the film’s intense climax that brought back shades of Sally Hardesty’s last ride during “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre”. My original feelings for casting Sydney were a little lukewarm and of disbelief in seeing someone of model-esque beauty portraying a nun, but the materialism of her design is even used as a motivation within the film’s evolving plot, cementing her as the perfect candidate for the job, especially since her looks help her more than hurt her in this predicament. Lastly, while I did have some issues with the film’s meager 82 minute run time that I will analyze in a second, I found the pacing of this movie to constantly sift through various developments and exposition with grave urgency. Considering the essential plot is set up at around the half hour mark of the run time, I wholeheartedly expected the rest of the film to be plagued by sedated storytelling that remained lackadasical throughout, however the evolved tension surrounding Cecilia’s newfound plight energized matters in ways that essentially recrafted this as an entirely different film, sending us through a blood-curdling second half that rarely if ever slows down in the horrific heights it attempts to reach.

NEGATIVES

While the swift splendor of an 82 minute film never has to face overstaying its welcome, it does undercut vital building blocks of arcs and exposition needed to intensify my interests, in turn rushing through some of the key developments required to sell the dread factor that plagues Cecilia. I’m not a cinema snob who scoffs at long run times, as long as they’re earned, but the third act of this movie is entirely too rushed in contrast to the first two acts that deliberately methodical. Then there’s Cecilia, who has almost no backstory when we meet or grow with her, so the ability to invest in her character is one that becomes incidental with what she faces throughout the duration of the film, and while Sweeney gives her all emotionally to her passion project, the character is simply too thinly written to ever feel compelling. There are also prominent characters at the beginning of the film who go missing for ample amounts of run time, various conveniences littered throughout leaps of logic that we the audience are asked to endure, and explanations for the mystery that are cobbled together are unloaded with the velocity of a runaway locomotive, with little to no time to properly register them in the minds of the audience until after the film concludes. In addition to this, while I did enjoy and prefer the deviation to expectations that I previously mentioned within the movie’s creativity, I found the framing of it to strain those mysterious elements, especially after one key event leaves it obvious where the rest of the film is headed. During these moments, the script treats matters like a greater divinity is taking shape within Cecilia’s life, but as a result of my experience with these kind of films, or just detectable wisdom, I was easily capable of sniffing out just where the story was headed, especially since there’s only so many possibilities within the characters we are introduced to, early on. Likewise, despite the film able to conjure so much atmospheric range and uneasiness, the film still has hunger for cheaply predictable jump scares, of the never-landing effectively variety. These are the evidence into the film that I fully expected to receive, but thankfully only subjected to a few key instances throughout. Even stated, they’re easily detectable from miles away from their landing spots, and with prolonged emphasis into the various set-ups of how they’re articulated, there was nothing clever or meaningful about what they added to the experience of the picture. Finally, the film does supplant the most divisive ending that you’re bound to hear about this year, but my obvious displeasure with it didn’t come from what’s taking shape slightly out of frame, but rather it as a satisfying climax to the experience. Considering much of the film builds around Cecilia’s triumphant escape from this covenant, the scene’s bitter pill to swallow resolves things on a bit of a downer, and while I fully understand why the character would make the actions that she does, I find it difficult to believe that audiences will be energized with a lasting impressionable image that requires imagination to capably fill it.

OVERALL
“Immaculate” is a refreshing deviation from what was initially expected, even if its inconsistent execution keeps from being one of the more reputable horror experiences of the year. Sydney Sweeney shines in unfamiliar territory, with some of the thickest atmospheric dread at her disposal, but her passion project is ultimately underscored with predictably lame jump scares and overwhelming conveniences at nearly every corner, finalized with a bitter pill of a finale that will take audience enjoyment in one direction or the other.

My Grade: 6/10 or C