A troubled father and son find themselves staying farm that was the site of the Garden of Eden, and their evil host wants them to repeat history's first mistake in this interesting misfire. I find myself in a bit of a quandary with movies like this. I have given worse films better reviews because of a varied level of expectation. If, for instance, "Dark Town," had the same production values and the level of acting talent on display in this film, I would have been thumbs-down on it. However, as it was, I recommend it on what it was able to accomplish on a shoestring. "The Garden" looks great and features real actors and therefore has to stand toe-to-toe with the "real" movies I see in the theater. Sadly, it falls short on that level. The main problem is the script. It is a very interesting idea, but the internal "theology" ultimately doesn't make sense and therefore it isn't especially compelling. For instance, how is Sean Young able to "call" the sword protecting the tree? Is the Apocalpyse a good thing meant to help man that Satan is trying to stop? Why would another human eating from the tree through the moral universe upside down? Those are just a fraction of the questions I had that the film left unanswered. I should perhaps congratulate the film for making me think, but, I think I would have preferred to be entertained instead. A little sharper writing would have made all of the difference.
This is the third of the recent Stephen J. Cannell horror films which I have seen. (The other two being "Room 6" and "It Waits.") All three featured good production values, acting and make-up effects. Sadly, I didn't find any of the three particularly compelling. Hopefully that will change as Cannell continues to make these films. I admire the fact that he is attempting to tell interesting stories and not just offering up more blades and babes films. I am relieved that someone is trying to tell horror tales that someone over twenty can watch. He just needs more compelling stories. I hope he finds them.
This is the third of the recent Stephen J. Cannell horror films which I have seen. (The other two being "Room 6" and "It Waits.") All three featured good production values, acting and make-up effects. Sadly, I didn't find any of the three particularly compelling. Hopefully that will change as Cannell continues to make these films. I admire the fact that he is attempting to tell interesting stories and not just offering up more blades and babes films. I am relieved that someone is trying to tell horror tales that someone over twenty can watch. He just needs more compelling stories. I hope he finds them.