Resurrection - Die Auferstehung

Resurrection is intended to be a dark and creepy ninety minutes of serial killer heaven so probably the first thing that will jump to mind is 'that other movie'. You know the one I'm talking about. As such, its bound to suffer the wraith of armchair critics everywhere. However if you can keep your expectations in check - you'll find a decent flick that stands on its own. Don't be too quick to judge this one.

The dark foreboding imagery, religious overtones and a crazed killer has been done. Constantly dreary atmosphere, dark locales. Detective with a broken past, the second string banana who's the direct opposite of his partner. The twist you're not supposed to see coming. These are the conventions. That is formula, but its unfair to label Resurrection a rip-off. It features some good production values and there's no denying this is one of Christopher Lambert's better efforts. He's one of those guys that has slipped into B-movie obscurity like some actors do. In fact, this was a pleasant surprise.

Not saying Resurrection is the best thing ever, but all things considered - it's better than eighty percent of the dtv offerings I've picked up off video store shelves. The acting might falter at times, but there are also moments that rise above. A satisfying flick in its own right.

This is the type that is made for people who love to see blood and gore.

Similar to "Seven", this film takes place in Chicago as John Prudhomme is on the trail of a serial killer along with his partner, Andy Hollingsworth, who is killing men for their body parts.

I enjoyed the way that the story was told. For example, the killer is killing to resurrect the body of Christ, which I found very interesting because I have not seen it done in film before.

I am not a huge fan of Christopher Lambert; however, this film has proven that I should take a look at more of his movies because he can be a dramatic actor as well as an action star.

I'm glad I saw this movie

I put off watching this movie for a long time, seeing how director Russell Mulcahy has made a number of stinkers over the years, and that actor Christopher Lambert hasn't exactly impressed me with his acting over the same period of time. (The fact that he co-wrote the story of this movie didn't exactly give me much hope.) To be sure, this movie is not perfect. The visual look of the movie is too dark at times, and there is a mysterious fog in many scenes (even indoors) that looks out of place. Some of the clues that Lambert's character uncovers come out of nowhere, seemingly because the screenwriters couldn't figure out how the hero would uncover them at the same time as the audience. The subplot about the hero's loss of his son is eventually forgotten and never brought up again. And Lambert, except for one crying sequence, is pretty stiff and unemotional.

Despite those things, and a few other nitpicks, I still found enough to enjoy in this movie. The atmosphere of the movie is very good, bleak, dark, and horrifying. Murder is shown to be definitely not very pleasant. The progression of the investigation is very easy to follow, unlike some other murder investigation movies. The actor playing the killer is really creepy. And I can't say that at any point I was bored. So if you come across this on cable, give it a try.

Given the opportunity of clambering to the top of the directorial heap on the back of the magnificent Highlander, Mr. Mulcahy instead managed to shoot down his own chances by unwisely having any association at all with the not-quite-so-well-received sequel. Nevertheless, Resurrection, while not exactly a triple-A title, shows that the old dog's still got a few tricks up his sleeve - even if they are being deployed on straight-to-TV efforts these days.

With old chum Chris Lambert (a man equally cursed in his career choices, and looking very old all of a sudden) on board, the scene is set for another shameless reworking of Seven - which might be an obvious comment to make, but that doesn't make it any less true. While the deadly sins are replaced with the names of apostles, the relentless rain, gloom and gritty gore are still there in force, and the plot's just as threadbare.

But! That still doesn't make it a bad film, as such. It's decently performed and nicely shot, with a few nifty camera tricks thrown in to break up the free-roaming NYPD Blue feel of the general proceedings, and there are one or two genuinely effective twists encountered along the way (with some glaringly obvious ones to balance them out, unfortunately).

So it's worth catching, as long as you're not expecting mould-breaking brilliance. One of Lambert's better films, certainly, and an example of the sort of high production values he should be aiming for. So sit back and enjoy... all in all, it's better than you might expect.

While I sat through the first half-hour of "Resurrection", all I could think about was how closely it resembled "Se7en". It had the same basic theme: two cops investigating a series of brutal (and unsettlingly gory) murders that follow a common theme. I couldn't help but dismiss it as a pointless, direct-to-video rip-off, but soon I found myself strangely immersed.

"Resurrection" is better than I thought it would be. Once the story started rolling along, I was surprised at how well the movie was made. The suspense scenes are first-rate, the screenplay is smart and intriguing, and the acting is well above average. Though it's not a great movie, it's definitely well worth a watch if you're into the serial-killer subgenre. 7/10