Immaculate (C+ or 2.5/4 stars)
Sydney Sweeney {ubiquitous as of late - White Lotus, Euphoria, Madame Web, and most notably, romantic comedy hit, Anyone But You, with Glen Powell} brings her A-game to 'Immaculate', a religious horror film directed by Michael Mohan -- too bad the movie around her isn't quite up to the task. Set in a cloistered, fog-shrouded location in Italy, the movie builds suspense through the insular nature of the setting, but the storyline is - despite effective moments of eeriness, dread, gore, & jump scares - both too familiar, and too unevenly paced; even at 85 minutes in length.
After an effective, dread-filled opener involving a nun (Simona Tabasco, of White Lotus), an attempted escape, & a pine box ... The movie jumps forward in time & tracks the arrival of sweet, devout Sister Cecilia (Sweeney) at a remote convent in the picturesque Italian countryside. She doesn't speak much Italian and is treated coldly by Sister Isabelle, but finds a friend in the bold, brash & skeptical Sister Gwen (Benedetta Porcaroli). Sister Cecelia has arrived from the U.S. to take her vows & provide palliative care to terminally ill nuns. At 1st, Cecilia truly believes that she has found her calling. This is echoed by the seemingly supportive priest, Father Tedeschi (Alvaro Morte); who offers her kind counsel & provides English-to-Italian translation for her.
Things change one day when, after taking a bath, Cecilia falls ill. Not only had she been experiencing strange dreams, but a pregnancy test is taken and, despite never being sexually active... Cecelia is shocked to find that she is with child. Stunningly, her assertion of an immaculate conception is widely accepted at the convent and, she is soon revered as a 'savior'. Cardinal Merola (Giorgio Colangeli) & the Mother Superior (Dora Romano) are thrilled. But Cecilia's own feelings are understandably conflicted. She has concerns about the baby growing inside her, becomes aware of disturbing occurrences in the convent, and then Sister Gwen goes suspiciously missing. Sinister secrets & horror ensues as Cecelia's faith is tested & she must fight for survival.
'Immaculate' has all the elements of a successful religious horror flick: the moody macabre setting, a stellar central performance, a disturbing premise, & some creepy images. The film is also beautifully shot; with gauzy cinematography & tactile production design that oozes with authenticity. I'm reminded of a chase sequence late in the game where Cecelia races through dark catacombs with only a flashlight leading the way. But the film relies too much on jump scares and, they punctuate a fairly tame story that needed some more punch to it – a wonderfully eerie mood can only take you so far. I find no fault in Sydney Sweeney's performance, whose character starts out demure, innocent, wide-eyed & trembling, but who, by the end, gives a Bold {with a capital B} scream queen performance. As she tries to avert the demonic presence trying to subdue her, Sweeney delivers an absolute tour-de-force of anguish – her final, blood-soaked, single-take scene is a wow.
In the end, I think that despite its strengths, 'Immaculate' suffers from a Rosemary's Baby-lite screenplay that is too bare-bones for what it is; there isn't enough proverbial meat on the bones. To that, the loud, mayhemic 3rd act feels rushed because what came before it didn't lay proper groundwork. Yes, the final 2 minutes are eye-opening, but then after the screen goes black, I did not leave my theater feeling exhilarated; more so, I felt a bit baffled. The absurdity of the final minutes woke me up a bit from the tedium that was setting in {even with the ever-present jump scares & gore} and, ultimately it is Sweeney's acting chops + the moody atmosphere that engaged me enough to warrant a tepid recommendation. Just don't go in expecting a horror masterpiece -- there's not quite enough 'there' there.
After an effective, dread-filled opener involving a nun (Simona Tabasco, of White Lotus), an attempted escape, & a pine box ... The movie jumps forward in time & tracks the arrival of sweet, devout Sister Cecilia (Sweeney) at a remote convent in the picturesque Italian countryside. She doesn't speak much Italian and is treated coldly by Sister Isabelle, but finds a friend in the bold, brash & skeptical Sister Gwen (Benedetta Porcaroli). Sister Cecelia has arrived from the U.S. to take her vows & provide palliative care to terminally ill nuns. At 1st, Cecilia truly believes that she has found her calling. This is echoed by the seemingly supportive priest, Father Tedeschi (Alvaro Morte); who offers her kind counsel & provides English-to-Italian translation for her.
Things change one day when, after taking a bath, Cecilia falls ill. Not only had she been experiencing strange dreams, but a pregnancy test is taken and, despite never being sexually active... Cecelia is shocked to find that she is with child. Stunningly, her assertion of an immaculate conception is widely accepted at the convent and, she is soon revered as a 'savior'. Cardinal Merola (Giorgio Colangeli) & the Mother Superior (Dora Romano) are thrilled. But Cecilia's own feelings are understandably conflicted. She has concerns about the baby growing inside her, becomes aware of disturbing occurrences in the convent, and then Sister Gwen goes suspiciously missing. Sinister secrets & horror ensues as Cecelia's faith is tested & she must fight for survival.
'Immaculate' has all the elements of a successful religious horror flick: the moody macabre setting, a stellar central performance, a disturbing premise, & some creepy images. The film is also beautifully shot; with gauzy cinematography & tactile production design that oozes with authenticity. I'm reminded of a chase sequence late in the game where Cecelia races through dark catacombs with only a flashlight leading the way. But the film relies too much on jump scares and, they punctuate a fairly tame story that needed some more punch to it – a wonderfully eerie mood can only take you so far. I find no fault in Sydney Sweeney's performance, whose character starts out demure, innocent, wide-eyed & trembling, but who, by the end, gives a Bold {with a capital B} scream queen performance. As she tries to avert the demonic presence trying to subdue her, Sweeney delivers an absolute tour-de-force of anguish – her final, blood-soaked, single-take scene is a wow.
In the end, I think that despite its strengths, 'Immaculate' suffers from a Rosemary's Baby-lite screenplay that is too bare-bones for what it is; there isn't enough proverbial meat on the bones. To that, the loud, mayhemic 3rd act feels rushed because what came before it didn't lay proper groundwork. Yes, the final 2 minutes are eye-opening, but then after the screen goes black, I did not leave my theater feeling exhilarated; more so, I felt a bit baffled. The absurdity of the final minutes woke me up a bit from the tedium that was setting in {even with the ever-present jump scares & gore} and, ultimately it is Sweeney's acting chops + the moody atmosphere that engaged me enough to warrant a tepid recommendation. Just don't go in expecting a horror masterpiece -- there's not quite enough 'there' there.