2009 is starting off as a good year for the horror genre as the new psychology horror film THE UNBORN (2009) proves that you don’t have to be a remake (of an old American or recent Asian film) or sequel to be a good film. Written & directed by the prolific David S. Goyer (who contributed to both of the recent Batmen films including all three BLADE films and the classic DARK CITY) THE UNBORN tells the story of Casey Beldon (Odette Yustman of CLOVERFIELD) who believes that she is being haunted by her dead twin brother who was never born.
As her nightmares about the undead brother intensify Casey is forced to look deep into her past where is discovers that the entity that she believes is haunting her is really a Jewish dybbuk, a type of demon trapped between the land of the living and the land of the dead. Thought vanquished by Casey’s ancestor the dybbuk has been watching over Casey slowly regaining its strength so that it can return to the land of the living once and for all. Casey’s only help to rid herself of the dybbuk is Rabbi Sendak (Gary Oldman) who must perform an exorcism in hopes of saving Casey from what may happen next.
THE UNBORN works as a horror film because it presents many difference aspects of something that most audiences are unaware of. It’s an relentless horror film that’s not self-referential and takes the subject matter very seriously. There are many circumstances that are left unexplained which add to the allure and mystery of the film as well as adding another level of horror to what is going on with Casey. Goyer has made a career out of writing complex characters and engaging films and the same can be same of this film.
There will no doubt be references to THE EXORCIST (the grandfather of all religious exorcism films) but this is a good thing as THE UNBORN is easily better then any of that franchise’s inferior sequels. In fact, THE UNBORN presents one of the best exorcisms of any film since the original THE EXORCIST and will have you screaming in your seats before the end credits role. Yes, this is a great start for 2009 whether it be a horror film or any film for that matter.
As her nightmares about the undead brother intensify Casey is forced to look deep into her past where is discovers that the entity that she believes is haunting her is really a Jewish dybbuk, a type of demon trapped between the land of the living and the land of the dead. Thought vanquished by Casey’s ancestor the dybbuk has been watching over Casey slowly regaining its strength so that it can return to the land of the living once and for all. Casey’s only help to rid herself of the dybbuk is Rabbi Sendak (Gary Oldman) who must perform an exorcism in hopes of saving Casey from what may happen next.
THE UNBORN works as a horror film because it presents many difference aspects of something that most audiences are unaware of. It’s an relentless horror film that’s not self-referential and takes the subject matter very seriously. There are many circumstances that are left unexplained which add to the allure and mystery of the film as well as adding another level of horror to what is going on with Casey. Goyer has made a career out of writing complex characters and engaging films and the same can be same of this film.
There will no doubt be references to THE EXORCIST (the grandfather of all religious exorcism films) but this is a good thing as THE UNBORN is easily better then any of that franchise’s inferior sequels. In fact, THE UNBORN presents one of the best exorcisms of any film since the original THE EXORCIST and will have you screaming in your seats before the end credits role. Yes, this is a great start for 2009 whether it be a horror film or any film for that matter.
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