The Unholy (1988)

Synopsis

Father Michael is brought in to reopen a church where the previous priest had been murdered. But, who murdered the priest? Is this all the work of the devil, or a local sleazy businessman? Only Father Michael can find out. 

Thoughts

The 80's were a (insert your own word describing the decade) for movies, complete with cheesy acting and candle lit sex scenes accompanied by sultry saxophones. 

I remember how I found out The Unholy existed. My parents rented Dirty Dancing on VHS and it was one of the coming attractions before the movie started. It looked interesting enough for a $0.99 five day rental. 80's horror are a gamble and I knew that going in. 

So, the good. The special effects and makeup are pretty damn awesome, especially for the 80's. There are a lot of horror films from the 80's that had some amazing monsters in them. Remember The Stuff? Here, we get minions that look like Alien had sex with a the Toxic Avenger. Picture that for a brief second. Miniature gooey toxies pretty much. The demon, known as the Unholy, looks like a reject model from An American Werewolf in London with Gene Simmons tongue getting his acting chops. Somehow, it still looks fantastic. 

The dialogue, corny at times, wasn't all that terrible. Then again, how many 80's movies can you name that didn't have corny lines? The corny dialogue might not have been so bad if it weren't for the delivery. It's not what you say, it's how say it. 

The film is supported by a strong cast. Not your big name stars, but that doesn't stop the performances. Well, not all the performances. You get a mixed bag from the actors and actresses. Nicole Fortier, who played human form of the demon, seems to have disappeared from the screen after filming this. Not exactly sure why. Oh, I cannot forget to mention the seance in the club scene. The moaning extras really add to the hilarity of it. Not to mention the music played in the background. 

The Unholy is quite fun. There's something here for the whole family. It's actually a decent horror film about religion even with some suspense thriller aspects thrown in. If you enjoys stories about good versus evil, even religious cliched ones, then definitely check out The Unholy. It's available on Hulu for free until January 2015. 

IMDB: 4.8

Rotten Tomatoes: ?/10 (Audience 2.9/5)

WeFLM: 5/10 

Come for the soundtrack. Stay for the demon's saggy breasts. 

-kp