Interesteg What makes it different from others?

Greenes Please don't spend money on this.

Gurlyndrobb While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

Jerrie It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

Scott LeBrun Co-producer / director John Schlesinger of "Midnight Cowboy" fame is at the helm of this interesting film that takes a look into the religion of Santeria. Martin Sheen plays Cal Jamison, a police psychiatrist who moves with his young son Chris (Harley Cross) from Minnesota to New York after a horrible accident involving his wife. Soon they find that the terror isn't over as they get mixed up with various members of a cult that believes in the sacrifice of children.As in any film of this kind, it does get fascinating to see characters partake in rituals and utilize assorted items. The story is based on a novel by Nicholas Conde, condensed here by Mark Frost of 'Twin Peaks' fame, and it's fairly meaty stuff that runs close to two hours. It gets appropriately surreal, and while it may not always make absolute sense, that isn't such a bad thing in a film of this kind.The cast is above average and quite convincing. Supporting Sheen are the lovely, under-rated Helen Shaver, and old pros such as Robert Loggia, Lee Richardson, Elizabeth Wilson, Harris Yulin, and Richard Masur. Jimmy Smits has a great, memorable, small but pivotal part as a detective who's part of the puzzle; he's found flying off the handle after being discovered at a murder scene. Also appearing are the excellent Raul Davila and the striking Malick Bowens; co-star Carla Pinza, who plays Carmen the housekeeper, was also the films' cultural adviser.Despite a deliberate pace, this story just draws the viewer right in with its weird atmosphere, attention to detail, and its sense of doom and gloom. After a while, one has to wonder if there is anyone that Cal can trust. The characters are compelling; it's refreshing that our hero is flawed and not perfect. For one thing, he's prone to nasty outbursts.The special effects are generally good, especially when insects emerge from a sore on a persons' face. The music by J. Peter Robinson is likewise good. The finale is well executed on impressive sets by Simon Holland and the cinematography is the work of the great Robby Muller.Worth a look overall; the finale would seem to be setting up a sequel but no sequel ever got made. For another look at Santeria, check out the 1972 film "The Possession of Joel Delaney".Seven out of 10.

FlashCallahan After the death of his wife, police psychiatrist Cal Jamison moves to New York.There he has to help in the investigation of the murder of two youths, who seem to have been immolated during a cult ritual.Jamison believes it's been Voodoo and, ignoring the warnings of his housekeeper, enters the scenery and soon gets under their influence.They try to get him to sacrifice his own son....A very worthy and sometimes very unsettling thriller, that has to be seen to really appreciate the subject matter. Sheen excels as the doubting doctor, who has to contend with the loss of his wife, and bringing up his son alone.The film is quite long and can be slow at times, but this just adds to the tension, as Schlesinger has crafted a very unsettling beginning scene, which sets the tone for the rest of the film.The first act concentrates on Sheen and his coping mechanisms, but when Palo enters the US, the film goes for a more macabre turn.Pal is a convincing creation, but a lot of the time, he stands around looking like a lonely Terminator, which sorts of crushes his sinister side.As always with film like this, there is a little twist that throws the audience, and while it is explained well and the rationale justified, the final act is a little too obscure, but still very well made.I would have rated this higher, the narrative and all the performances are great, and it is very tense throughout, but the final scene, which to be fair, looks like it was thrown in for a final 'they could be still around' scene, is out of place in this, and kind of spoils the rest of the film.Do yourself a favour, and if you see this, turn it off when you see Sheen stroking the dog, you will appreciate it a lot more.

disdressed12 i guess this movie is a bit eerie at times.it's basically about people who practice an obscure religion,with bizarre beliefs.but i've seen at least one movie quite similar to it,possibly more.so not only is there not much originality,but nothing new is done with the material.plus i pretty much figured things out from the get go.the whole movie is basically one slow build.but to what,i'm not sure.i mean there is a bit of excitement in the last 25 minutes or so.but the ending is very predictable.generally i found this movie too boring to watch right through.i had to stop it several times,and then try to continue.actually i completely stopped it at one point,until this morning,when i finally finished it.some people will like this movie,and some will not.i fall into the category of not,for the most part.the acting was good though,so that's always a bonus.even so,i give The Believers a 4/10

Frederick J. Frenger John Schlesinger's weird occult horror is an interesting curio for fright buffs. Martin Sheen plays a recently widowed police psychologist who moves to New York with his 7-year-old son and finds himself endangered by an ancient underground religious cult that practices the ritual sacrifice of children.I found The Believers to be a genuinely scary and disturbing supernatural horror. Okay, the plot contains some silly mumbo-jumbo and mystical red herrings, and critics complained about the xenophobic attitude towards the religion Santeria. But it has gore, suspense, good production values, stylish Robby Muller cinematography, plenty of jolting shocks, nightmarish visuals and, above all else, a really strong atmosphere of evil. There is a powerful, convincing sense of malice from beginning to end, which is what always gets me in a horror film. It reminded me variously of Rosemary's Baby (diabolical goings-on in upscale NYC), The Serpent and the Rainbow and even Schlesinger's earlier NY thriller Marathon Man.Scariest parts: the opening electrocution scene, the spiders coming out of the woman's cheek, anything involving that white-eyed Haitian voodoo priest. No classic, but worth a look.