It’s here! We finally have the first good horror film of 2024. After suffering through Blumhousian travesties NIGHTSWIM and IMAGINARY, and feeling lukewarm-at-best about the overhyped/underwhelming LATE NIGHT WITH THE DEVIL, the movie I had the least hope for this season has surprisingly inspired just that: hope. Just in time for Easter, and just like Christ’s grand return, NEON Picture’s IMMACULATE has resurrected my faith in the future of mainstream horror cinema.
I admit: I often avoid horror films revolving around the Catholic Church. Once you’ve seen one scary Nun, you’ve sort of seen them all. With the exception of THE EXORCIST, stories of demonic possession never frighten me because, as an atheist, for me, if there’s no God, there’s also no devil – the stakes just aren’t there. And, frankly, the scariest thing about Catholicism is what priests are doing behind closed doors. All that said, like any good non-believer, I’m willing to admit when I’m proven wrong.
I’ve been proven wrong.
The best way to watch IMMACULATE is by knowing as little about it as possible. Avoid the trailer, avoid reviews (except this one), and avoid your snooty, gothier-than-thou, devilishly handsome, horror-obsessed friend who chose to see it this weekend instead of GHOSTBUSTERS: ELSA’S REVENGE. (I may or may not be describing myself, here.) Just see this movie before everyone starts talking about it.
To back up my plea, I’ll say nothing of the plot one can’t gather from looking at the film’s poster: nun; blood; title. That’s it. Rather, I’ll praise its technical achievements and lead performance while delicately tiptoeing around revealing the cleverness of its pacing and structure.
IMMACULATE has more than a few surprises up its habit, most notably a clever misdirect that’s due not so much to some mind-bending plot twist, but to its use of familiar, over-used story beats to lead its audience into a false sense of the ‘I’ve seen this before’ blues. However, savvy fans of NEON should know better by now. Writer Andrew Lobel and director Michael Mohan do an excellent job of setting up their audience for the unexpected, as upon reaching the back half of the film and hurdling the audience over the story’s turning point, it becomes clear: these filmmakers knew exactly what they were doing with the first half of this movie. Even the trailer I told you not to watch prepares you for the wrong movie – a risky marketing decision, but one that will hopefully pay off and get unsuspecting butts in seats.
Performances are terrific throughout, though the heaviest lifting is done by Sydney Sweeney, (EUPHORIA, THE WHITE LOTUS) as our holy heroin, Sister Cecilia. Additional notable turns are made by Benedetta Parcorali as endearing Sister Gwen and Àlvaro Morte as hunky Father Tedeschi, though it is Sweeney who manages to maintain our interest throughout her horrific and cloistered journey. She also served as producer on the film.
Another star of the film is its clever and effective choices regarding lighting and sound. Sequences dependent entirely on natural or single-sourced light add surprising texture to the convent setting we think we’ve seen before, and unsettling sound effects are utilized to imply circumstances rather than plainly spell them out.
That’s perhaps the film’s most praiseworthy aspect: it provides viewers with enough clues to leave with a clear understanding of what they’ve just witnessed without over-explaining itself. Much like organized religion, you just have to put a lot of the pieces together for it to make sense. Fortunately, IMMACULATE’s pieces lead to a most righteous ending.
IMMACULATE is currently playing in theaters.
