Boone has dreams of a city called Midian where the monsters live. He is not alone -- others have dreamt of it, too, and the reason is because it may just be real. That is interesting enough, but then we have the other plot: Boone is also suspected of being a masked serial killer who has amassed more than fifteen victims.
Clive Barker wrote this story (as "Cabal") and directed the film. It is probably his weakest film, despite an underground fan following. It clearly does not rank on the level of "Hellraiser". Yes, it has a decent cast such as Doug Bradley and Simon Bamford (though Doug was almost completely unrecognizable). And there is David Cronenberg, probably one of the greatest directors who ever lived, playing a really creepy psychiatrist. I think it is fair to say he is the highlight of the film. In fact, without Cronenberg, the film would have been a complete waste of time.
The film has some major plot issues Where did the priest come from? He shows up and acts as though he was in the film the entire time, though we know this to be false. In fact, he then becomes a main character somehow. Is there an earlier scene with him that got edited out? Why is the psychiatrist so intent on wiping out Midian? Why does he care? And why should we care about the "nightbreed"? None of their characters is ever developed. And why are they called a different race when it is clear that people can cross over? It is just so strange that the more questions you ask, the fewer answers you will get.
The film as a whole has too much going on. Focusing on the serial killer part would have been enough, but they introduce thirty characters and develop none of them. Recently, an additional 44 minutes of footage was found from the film. Would it probably explain the plot better? Yes. But is it worth sitting through a three-hour version of this film? I suspect not. If two hours was just average (at best), the longer version could not improve on this.
Now, I still support its release. Clive Barker is fighting Morgan Creek, who refuse to release or sell the footage, so for those who want to see it, they cannot. And, to be fair, some is just a second here or there cut by the MPAA (the hospital scene where the man removes his face was trimmed down, for example).
Should you see this? Well, if you like Clive Barker, yes. Or Doug Bradley (though you cannot even recognize him due to the German voice dub). But it is not one of the better films I have seen... none of my reference books even mention it! That is a sad state of affairs!
Clive Barker wrote this story (as "Cabal") and directed the film. It is probably his weakest film, despite an underground fan following. It clearly does not rank on the level of "Hellraiser". Yes, it has a decent cast such as Doug Bradley and Simon Bamford (though Doug was almost completely unrecognizable). And there is David Cronenberg, probably one of the greatest directors who ever lived, playing a really creepy psychiatrist. I think it is fair to say he is the highlight of the film. In fact, without Cronenberg, the film would have been a complete waste of time.
The film has some major plot issues Where did the priest come from? He shows up and acts as though he was in the film the entire time, though we know this to be false. In fact, he then becomes a main character somehow. Is there an earlier scene with him that got edited out? Why is the psychiatrist so intent on wiping out Midian? Why does he care? And why should we care about the "nightbreed"? None of their characters is ever developed. And why are they called a different race when it is clear that people can cross over? It is just so strange that the more questions you ask, the fewer answers you will get.
The film as a whole has too much going on. Focusing on the serial killer part would have been enough, but they introduce thirty characters and develop none of them. Recently, an additional 44 minutes of footage was found from the film. Would it probably explain the plot better? Yes. But is it worth sitting through a three-hour version of this film? I suspect not. If two hours was just average (at best), the longer version could not improve on this.
Now, I still support its release. Clive Barker is fighting Morgan Creek, who refuse to release or sell the footage, so for those who want to see it, they cannot. And, to be fair, some is just a second here or there cut by the MPAA (the hospital scene where the man removes his face was trimmed down, for example).
Should you see this? Well, if you like Clive Barker, yes. Or Doug Bradley (though you cannot even recognize him due to the German voice dub). But it is not one of the better films I have seen... none of my reference books even mention it! That is a sad state of affairs!