In a graveyard, a couple of high school students are playing a prank in which one of them gets "punked" when a jack-in-a-box like devil appears on a grave stone. But the two friends inadvertently discover an old book during a thunderstorm. The book entitled Ephemeris Diaboli (Devil's Diary), and it contains magical evil powers for anyone writing on a sheaf of the diary. One of the friends, Ursula (Urs), is instantly drawn to the book. The other, Dominique (Nicki) is repelled by it. This film tells the story of the bipolar reaction to evil.
The style of "Devil's Diary" was that of high camp with a series of over-the-top dastardly deeds perpetrated by Urs against her rivals in high school. The book then passes into more ambitious hands as the film proceeds, culminating in a standoff outside a church where Father Sanchez gets his hands on the book. Will the priest be able to finally put an end to the evil possibilities of the diary? Or, will he be attracted to the power?
The most interesting character in the film is Nicki. We see the action from her perspective and admire her resilience in resolutely avoiding the lure of the diary. She uses it on one occasion against her predator step-father, but her motivation is survival, not the acquisition of power.
Because of the strength of character of Nicki, it went against the grain of the film's narrative to have her placed in a mental asylum at the end. There could have been a stronger denouement to demonstrate how, in the battle for human souls, the work of the devil may be thwarted by those who have the strength to walk away, as opposed to succumbing to its temporal allure.
The style of "Devil's Diary" was that of high camp with a series of over-the-top dastardly deeds perpetrated by Urs against her rivals in high school. The book then passes into more ambitious hands as the film proceeds, culminating in a standoff outside a church where Father Sanchez gets his hands on the book. Will the priest be able to finally put an end to the evil possibilities of the diary? Or, will he be attracted to the power?
The most interesting character in the film is Nicki. We see the action from her perspective and admire her resilience in resolutely avoiding the lure of the diary. She uses it on one occasion against her predator step-father, but her motivation is survival, not the acquisition of power.
Because of the strength of character of Nicki, it went against the grain of the film's narrative to have her placed in a mental asylum at the end. There could have been a stronger denouement to demonstrate how, in the battle for human souls, the work of the devil may be thwarted by those who have the strength to walk away, as opposed to succumbing to its temporal allure.