User reviews

There is hardly anything left to say; the title says it all. Crappy CGI (a bit better than average for SciFi channel) meets silly cardboard characters. And cardboard wins because CGI is virtual! It's like one of those Santa Claus and a smart beautiful blonde jokes.

Anyway, with the limited, but larger than average budget they could have chosen one of the thousands of good scripts floating out there. No, they chose a story where German sadists try to kill brave Americans helped by the beautiful French resistance girl. Oh, and there are gargoyles around. Puh-lease!

Bottom line: total waste of time. Not bad enough to count. Not good enough... for anything ;)

Given the well documented interest of the Nazi party hierarchy in the occult -Hitler and Himmler especially -it is a minor pity that so few supernaturally themed movies or science fiction movies have taken this as a starting point ."The Keep" , a pretentious rambling Michael Mann movie and the altogether better if more modest Trancers apart it remains a relatively unexplored area for genre cinema.Reign of the Gargoyles does tackle this subject and makes a decent if somewhat undercooked stab at it Nazi scientists are able to resurrect stone demons and set them loose in an attempt to sabotage Allied attacks on the Central European heartland .An American aircrew is dispatched to try to discover what is going on ,and are brought down by an attack of these winged demons .They combine with a small local partisan band to destroy the creatures ,and this involves locating a sacred spear from the grave of a long dead knight who had originally imprisoned the demons some time in the Middle Ages The problem is a lack of quality in the special effects ,which are workmanlike rather than exceptional and a cast of unknowns whose talent is such they are likely to stay that way .The script is underpowered and allows for little or no character development The location photography is good however and makes good use of the bleak ,wintry landscape to give an eerie and edgy look to the picture

A bigger effects budget and sharper scripting would have made this a better movie .As it is ,what we have is an okay picture which just fails to do justice to its premise

I guess it could've have been worse. The straight-to-TV presentation 'Rein of the Gargoyles' mildly entertains, but artificially dodgy CGI effects and pompous dialogues really do shoot it down. Bad computer visuals are one thing, but that script had me giggling and groaning at the same time. Too many random inspirational speeches, than explanations about the topic at hand or that of the Nazi's involvement in the occult had me wincing. The concept behind the film (An American airborne crew involved in WW2 in Eastern Europe find out that they have more to worry about than Nazis when they encounter Gargoyles, and join forces with resistance fighters to achieve the sacred spear that vanquished these gargoyles centuries ago) has something strong to go on, but alas it's given weak treatment and slaps in a stew of war clichés. Soon the mythological side is drowned out, and the interest begins to peter out. I can't knock its spirit though, and the locations and time period was well-shaped in presenting a dreary, war-torn backdrop. Performances fair up with no-one really standing out or overplaying it. However those accents (namely the Germans) were terrible, as if they were straining too hard. Joe Penny was dependably stalwart and Wes Ramsey is fine as the go-getter. No one really takes it entirely serious (even the script), but it doesn't fall away for any cheap laughs or a lighter tone of self-consciousness. The action is slight, and small. Sadly the gargoyles cop the brunt of it. Too little screen time, same for those Nazis who brought them to life. Sometimes the vigorous activity felt like something out of a video game, as the camera bobbed up and down. Moments do work, like atmospheric imagery in a graveyard. But really it's non-effective and flaky, despite its efforts. An okay time-waster… nothing more.

Some hot shot WWII pilots are flying around, rattling off some old 40's movie dialog. Suddenly, some flying creatures with sticky feet attach themselves to the planes' wings. Then they destroy the planes and go away for a while. Then they come back and do it again. Nazis have unleashed a bunch of gargoyles, in some cult legend practice nobody ever heard of before. They want to use the monsters to conquer the world but the things just croak them too. Oh, and meanwhile, Allied and Nazi forces have battles.

This film tosses around bits and pieces of war and horror genre stuff, and loosely fits it all together. Some attempt is made to tell a creative story; there is an evil-encounters-evil motif about the modern Nazis and their ancient cultist counterparts. Acting is strong enough, but character development is minimal. Lots of violent action, but little explanation of why the gargoyles are so anti-social. CGI looks to have been done by students in a "Computer for Dummies" class. The ending is unintentionally funny. Overall; about average for SyFy channel; good fast food fluff if you're in the mood for some cheap entertainment.

Interesting to read comments about this film picking holes in the correct way for a WWII SAS officer to wear their beret when there are hundreds of (below average) CGI Gargoyles running around. A bit like having a go at Star Wars because Chewbacca does not have split ends. The film is straight to DVD/Sci-Fi Schlock and there are thousands of other similar movies out there which take themselves a lot more seriously and are more in need of being deflated. The film tries hard and does quite well considering it must be low budget. A more interesting goof is the comment that the holder of the Spear of Destiny was buried like a commoner and then watching the heroes breaking into his tomb - hardly the resting place of a commoner. Nice comment earlier about NAZI interest in the supernatural and mention of the excellent THE KEEP but add to the list RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK and HELLBOY.

If I could give this a 0 then that would be too good for a movie like this. Most of the dialoge used is wrong. More for today then 1944 or 1945. When got dumb writers you get a dumb movie. Nazis animating anything would be a major event. I knew after 10 minutes this was pure Sci-Fi channel crap. I love the Sci=Fi channel, but their movies suck. They have a big build up and then show junk. Actors were cardboard, scenes were made up. It was just horrible to endure. Take it from a WW 2 historian they got it wrong in every way possible. It was just a throw together and hope somebody watches it. One of truly the worst movies ever made.

The animation here is HORRID, and the story is lacking, but the performances are what drives this Sci-Fi Channel original. The dialog is hokey, but the delivery is about as good as it gets. These guys at least make you believe they and their situation is meaningful ... at least to them. Most of these movies are done with an almost tongue-in-cheek delivery as if the film not only does not take itself too seriously, but the actors are making FUN of it while, at the same time, drawing a check for doing it.

This dreck-fest at least showed some heart. There are a couple of places where the performances made you forget (if only momentarily) that this was a typical "B" flick.

All in all? It was enjoyable, in spite of itself, and showed some real heart. Tom Penny was an asset this time. While it is NOT fit for Friday/Saturday night viewing, it is still more fun that first imagined.

It rates a 7.2/10 on the "B" scale, which is around a 4.6/10 on the "A" Scale, from...

the Fiend :.

I'm afraid that like most Sci Fi original series this movie is mediocre at best. It just doesn't have any spark. I wish that I could point out some major flaw, but there really isn't any. Stock characters; evil Nazis's,nasty monsters, valiant ally soldiers and partisans. Whee! But the characters just spin their wheels. They practically have labels stamped on them. The VALIANT FLYING FORTRESS PILOT mouths a few words about how he idolizes Lindberg thereby establishing that he's a good egg and an all American joe. I'd love to see Sci Fi channel try to have subtle, nuanced characters for once. There's so much unbelievably good Sci Fi out there. Heinlein, Brin, Asimov, LeGuin, Niven, I could go on. Still, I hope that they keep trying.

Powerful science fiction film from gifted director Ayton Davis, this is not the usual SyFy production. With careful attention to period detail and the creation of strong characters, Davis brings both the era and atmosphere of the Second World War to life. The special effects are extraordinary and some sequences are absolutely haunting in their imagery. The scene where an ME-109 is challenged with only a mortar is one of the most exciting ever filmed. Joe Penny gives one of his most effective performances in years as the battle hardened Gus, a man who has seen far too much combat but still answers the call of duty. The Germans are depicted as more than an enemy in this motion picture and it is made clear they regret deeply they have unleashed and uncontrollable and ultimately unholy evil.

Wow, can this dude be any cuter???? Upon viewing, it is obvious that he is quite talented; however, blessedly, he is also "gifted." There are a lot of actors out there--a LOT--and to rise above the rest enough to be noticed at all is quite an accomplishment. H has worked in television, theatre, and film, and is destined (I believe) for an admirable career. He started with "Charmed" (in my book, anyway, because I had not seen his previous work), and was impressive even before that in "Latter Days".... my gosh, the guy is so OUT THERE! However, despite (or, in addition to) his obvious talents (which, admittedly, many actors possess), THIS ACTOR is quite diversified. If you watch his acting, you will see how "into-it" he gets... he is exceedingly believable. From "The Guiding Light" to "Dark Honeymoon," not even taking into account this performance in "Reign of the Gargoyles," this guy has shown his acting prowess. Fellows like him have to fight against their looks, and I think he still has to do that, but he is definitely on his way.

My husband, a military man, was understandably hesitant to give "Gargoyles" a shot, but was pretty impressed with the final result and admittedly humbled by the experience. Give this movie a shot if you are a WW2 fan, a Wes fan, or even a symbiotic-drive dramatist. He delivers.

I wish him luck and good fortune.

I'll admit it and say that I dislike, even hate, most of the movies from the Sci-Fi Channel, with a couple of exceptions. If you're wondering why I keep watching them, it is mainly because there is something compulsively watchable about them in how awful they are. I also try and watch any movie of any genre and age regardless of the critical and audience consensus. I was expecting very little from Reign of the Gargoyles, and in the end I got very little. It does have a good idea, and the acting from Joe Penny, John Ashton and Wes Ramsey is alright but not great. However, that is it for any redeeming qualities. The editing is very choppy, the lighting dull and the sets too scaled-down. But on a visual front it was the special effects that fared the worst, the movements of the gargoyles are very stiff and in their design they look very crude. Considering that they do feature prominently in the movie, that is a major issue. The dialogue is as unnatural as the effects with a lot of talk but no flow, and apart from Penny, Ashton and Ramsey the rest of the acting stinks with the accents laughably fake. The story is energetically told I suppose, but much of it is unsurprising and veers into the face-palm-inducing ridiculous far too much. True, there is some conflict here but executed in a very clichéd way. The flying sequences have a great concept and not so bad in the action, but I would have enjoyed them more if the editing was better than it was. The characters are little more than walking cardboard cut-outs, in particular we learn absolutely nothing about the gargoyles. Overall, I have seen worse from the Sci-Fi Channel, but that doesn't stop Reign of the Gargoyles from being very bad. 3/10 Bethany Cox

Sci-Fi Pictures has such an incredibly bad track record that I am amazed that they are still churning out movies. This effort by them does nothing to break their long streak. In fairness, I will admit that not everything was badly done. The locations were pretty convincing, and some of the sets were okay. And... uh...

...well, that's about it for what's decent here. Everything else is REALLY badly done. I won't get into details like the uniforms, which were clearly wrong to this viewer who isn't an expert on World War II details like this. I will rip into the movie's really bad CGI special effects. These poor special effects may explain why the killer gargoyles stay absent for most of the movie - hard to build terror when you don't see what is causing the terror. The characters were also pretty weak. Maybe I could excuse the East European actors for not having convincing British accents, but I could not excuse the movie for having not one memorable character. They all seemed to blend together.

Must I go on? If you have seen one Sci-Fi Pictures movie, you can guess just how awful this one will be before watching it.

You know the sort of thing in which they have Fred Astaire dancing with a vacuum cleaner? I mean, when you've got Nazis, World War Two Pilots and supernatural creatures and they're referring to UFOs at least three years before the term was coined.... well, it seems that someone has written a script by channeling the spirit of Raymond Shaver, then edited the text while hitting himself on the head.

There is some interesting casting. The actors playing the pilots are as young as they actually were. There is also some fine cinematography by Lorenzo Senatore, who needs to be noticed by a real film maker far, far away from the Sci Fi Channel. These strengths cannot begin to make up for the overemoting actors and insane High Concept script. Next time, guys, make sure you add in the gladiators.

What a true piece of garbage at every level. The uniforms were all messed up. Fabric billed garrison caps were used in the British Army not in the USAAC. All the trainees or gunners or what ever they were, wore infantry officer devices on their lapels not enlisted Air Corps insignia. The uniforms had epaulets that did not extend under the collar. An RAF officer was wearing the US Air Force Commendation Medal that was not yet even issued. An Army Air Corps colonel was wearing the Navy Cross. All the wings were gold not silver. I could not recognize what they were as close as I could tell they were similar to US Navy Crew wings. In addition the movie totally sucked. What a waste of money to produce this piece of junk.

Reign of the Gargoyles is set during World War Two in Europe, snow is on the ground and French is the local language. Some soldiers of the Nazi SS enter some ancient ruins where there are large winged stone gargoyles, a human sacrifice brings these to life and they are used to attack American aircraft (though they are partial to killing Germans too). "They are not bats, they are gargoyles!" I have seen - or should that be suffered - many Sci Fi Pictures TV movies so my expectations were low. However it didn't turn out to be too bad. There is plenty of action, both gargoyles versus humans and Germans versus Allies, and the acting was of an acceptable standard. The creature effects were OK though the CGI for the many aircraft and explosions looked cheap. It is silly but I found it to be a reasonably entertaining one time only watch.

It could have been a mildly entertaining adventure movie but the visual effects are abysmal. Script and acting are tv-tier and exactly what you would expect from a movie with CGI gargoyles and nazis, i can't complain too much since this is clearly meant to be harmless fun. Sadly the the CGI and the other visual effects are so bad it makes the movie basically unwatchable.

I have seen worse, much worse, in SyFy channel original movies.

What I don't understand is the DREARINESS in every minute of all of these movies. Special effects cost money, but does decent lighting and even a little comedy or even some light hearted-ness cost that much extra money? Making every minute of a horror movie or creature feature DARK AND GREY AND WET elevates it in NO WAY. It just makes for a dreary movie. You've got a passel of young hot male actors playing fighter pilots and not one shirtless scene. Top Gun, for all if its special effects, is often remembered by many fans mostly for one shirtless volleyball romp. The guys are not even shirtless for one second while working out in their bunks. I like Wes Ramsey quite a lot, but his hair cut and overly plucked and arched eyebrows do not make for an even slightly realistic WWII air gunner in this movie. I wish SyFy would try harder on the inexpensive stuff in its B movies. They would be more watchable and feel less stupid than most of what the channel cranks out.

Since it's sci-fi, the creators have a lot of latitude with the story. It's okay if watched with that in mind. It contains lots of pretty faces, heroic poses, dramatic lines, and the most incredible weapons skills. It is pretty amazing the way that a crash-landed B-17 crew handles a complete array of infantry weapons, including scoring a direct hit on an ME-109 with a single mortar round from the ground. Of course, every German Army officer has the SS Death's Head Division insignia on his hat because that's popular in WW2 films, and each German infantry soldier carries a Schmeisser sub-machine gun instead of the standard issue K-98 infantry rifle. That doesn't matter much anyway, because only the good guys can hit their targets.

Personally i applaud the SyFy channel for putting out B movies. I haven't enjoyed this many rainy Sunday afternoon movies since the 50s and 60s. This movie I have seen a few times and I actually like it. To bad it isn't in one of the three movie sets the SyFy channel has released on DVDs.

A group of WWIi soldiers find a secret Nazi weapon that has brought Gargoyles to life. These soldiers must figure out a way to destroy them. They use all weapons they can find and even a German Heinkel bomber to try and destroy the demon controlling the gargoyles. I hope this becomes available on DVD.