The Seventh Sign

Starring: Demi Moore, Michael Biehn, Jurgen Prochnow, Peter Friedman, John Heard, Manny Jacobs, Lee Garlington
Directed by: Carl Shultz
Rating: R
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Horror
1988

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A pregnant woman (Demi Moore) begins to suspect her unborn child factors into an apocalyptic prophesy that will usher in the end times.

Review:

Tim: I tend to enjoy religious horror films- there's something inherently creepy about the darker aspects of religion, especially in regards to the end of the world. The Seventh Sign does a good job of pulling from a few different religious belief systems to create this frightening, uncomfortable story. This movie pulled me in and was scary- mission accomplished.

The film does a good job of explaining the mythology behind the events. This obviously requires a good deal of exposition, but I found it very interesting. I'd never heard of the Guf, which was absolutely fascinating. It provided this intriguing peek into Jewish mysticism and served as this enlightening and frightening template upon which to build the rest of the film. For that reason, this movie felt slightly different than many others in this subgenre.

The cast isn't bad at all. Demi Moore is effective in the lead role. She clearly isn't the most talented actress, but she's serviceable enough here. I thought she worked well. Michael Biehn gets a thankless role, but I thought he made the most of his limited screen time. Jurgen Prochnow was good in a mysterious, creepy role. Peter Friedman worked well also. None of the cast members really gave a lights-out performance, but everyone delivered performances that worked. I didn't have any major complaints about the cast.

The story did a good job of unfolding in a somewhat unpredictable manner. While the whole arc follows the pattern you'd expect, there's a few nice unexpected twists. This kept me guessing throughout the movie and ensured I'd pay attention. Leading up the film's conclusion, I wasn't wholly convinced of how it would end. The movie did a good enough job of subverting my expectations so that I questioned how the whole story would turn out. That's better than the average movie.

The Seventh Sign is the kind of film that is easy to criticize. I totally get it and wouldn't hold it against anyone who hated this movie. It is on occasion fairly corny and our characters do behave in some very questionable and illogical ways. That obviously detracts from the film. Despite that, I'm a sucker for watching Biblical wrath unfold on the big screen, especially when the fate of the world rests in the balance. This film gives the audience a few things to think about and at least attempted to be somewhat different. I really appreciated those aspects of the film.

So, in the end, while flawed, I enjoyed watching The Seventh Sign. It's not a great movie, but it did enough to entertain me. I would very likely check this movie out again at some point.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend:
The Golden Child, The Exorcist