Director: Dario Argento
Year: 2007
Country: Italy/USA
Alternate Titles: La terza madre
Genre: Supernatural
Plot:
When a strange box is unearthed in the Italian countryside, the mysterious contents within spell warning's of an ancient, powerful witch's resurrection which is soon fulfilled and a woman must solve the mystery to defeating her before she gathers a following big enough to rule the world.
Review:
This one had a lot to love about it. One of the biggest pluses to this one is that there's a large amount of action which moves the whole thing along at a nearly-breathless pace. The chase through the museum, complete with the early sequence where they open the artifacts and are then attacked by the creatures, is amazing for it's an incredibly suspenseful scene as well as one with a lot of action due to the number of incredibly innovative ways of escaping danger. Other big ones include the attack at her apartment, the confrontation among the train passengers and the grand finale, which is perhaps the best scene in the whole film. With the suspenseful intros to the scene through the confusing, twisting and darkened caves which allow for them to hide from the other members in a variety of creative ways, to the eventual discovery and the bloody brawl that ensues, it really gets good once the wholesale destruction is allowed and everything comes crumbling down in a storm of fire-and-debris, but not before it features another rather well-done sequence where, as they escape, they slog through a sea of mud, skeletons and other such muck to escape the approaching fire.
Aside from the action, it's also quite creepy from time-to-time, with the already-mentioned scenes coming into play but also the frequent trips into the churches to confront the possessed members of the community as well as their chases once the cult members get news of their location. It's all quite well-done and manages to get some atmospheric scenes into this. From the different outcomes of the cult interacting within the community as the witch begins it's curse to the race to ensure it's stopped before others are put under it's spell, these elements give this a solid setup that launch into it's central mystery surrounding these accidents. This mystery, including what's causing the people to go crazy and how that's tying into the resurrection of the witch which creates a rather intriguing and enjoyable time here as the race to uncover not only her own powers but the connection the family has with the older entries coming into play with the storylines intermingling the way they are here.
Other big moments include the opening excavation and the recovery of the strange box of items, which play an important part of the film's well-done story and getting into the good areas of the film where it all comes back into play from the beginning. That the creatures used in here look threatening and quite scary is another big factor, allowing them to really get a lot out of their scenes. This one also contains a large amount of kills, and as this one is just dripping with blood, it surely satisfies. Several of the kills, from teeth being ripped out, stabbed and eventually eviscerated, a slit throat, a head crushed and an impaling in the chest, are just absolutely great and bloody, making the rest of the others a lot more brutal and just absolutely a lot of fun. Coupled with a ton of nudity throughout from those well-qualified to deliver it, this one is an absolute blast.
There really wasn't a whole lot to this one that didn't work. One of the biggest issues is the fact that there's no real classic Argento-isms in here. From a lack of artistic camera shots and a rather simplistic plot, it really doesn't feel like one of his trademark films. Aside from that, the fact that several of the supposedly-suspenseful stalking scenes aren't which makes their inclusion rather confusing. The confrontation in the bookstore is the main one, and that's all due to the set-up of the goths chasing her into the store and then basing the entire getaway plan resting on the advice of a spectral being with no explanation as to why other than a verbal assurance, and the whole thing is somewhat weird. The last thing here is that, while the main plot as a whole is rather simple, this one has just way too much going on and the whole thing just careens from one plot to another. With the arrival of the Goths to the parts with the possessed and the exorcist and the society chasing everyone to the creatures, these are just a few of the subplots on display here and this one just eventually becomes a mess since there's way too many side-plots in here rather than a single story. These here are the film's flaws.
Overview: *** 1/2/5
There's a lot to like in this one, and with a few small problems that really aren't that damaging, this one manages to raise itself up quite nicely with it's positive aspects. Highly recommended for those who enjoy his other works, are interested in such fare or want to finish off the series, while adamant non-Argento fans should heed caution.
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