Shaman

There is a reason a movie like "The Exorcist" is a classic and movies like Shaman are extremely pale imitations. The Exorcist was well written with Oscar worthy performances. Shaman is just not compellingly written and the acting is poor to say the least. This is a horror movie that relies on loads of quick hallucination scares and the this new trick, let's throw in many sudden loud sounds. Jump scares are plenty but none of it is scary or suspenseful. The shame is, the story had real potential with good cinematography but a good movie needs great, interesting dialogue and performances to match. The directing was bland. At times I felt like I was watching some old TV movie. Jett Klyne was not good and Sara Canning could not carry this film. The Latin actors were definitely better than the leads but be warned this is another new film shot in 2 languages , as if this makes it more authentic. An authentic possession film, why bother ? If you must see one more possession/exorcism film, well here it is, but there isn't one thing memorable about this.

I think sometimes we get a little bit too spoiled with special effects and we take for granted how less is more. The movie had a good story line, character development was indeed scarce but they made up for it by painting a picture of why these people were in Ecuador. I think that did a really good job grasping the struggle between forced Christianity in parts of the world and also the fact that using things like food and clothing can persuade people to convert. But what happens when the Christian god is quiet and people have to call upon the old ways of their people? That's the question this movie answers and aside from the fact they did a damn good job explaining that, it was shot in Ecuador and completely captured the setting for it. Add to that the fact that the acting was pretty decent and boom we have 6 stars possibly even 7. They used real life situations to execute supernatural possibilities. What more can you ask for in a possession movie? Spinning heads? Contorting bodies? Pea soup? Stop being so spoiled and enjoy a well told horror movie.

Without knowing anything about this 2025 movie titled "Shaman", aside from it being a horror movie, of course I opted to watch it since it was a movie that I hadn't already seen. And of course, since I love everything horror, then I needed no persuasion to check out this movie from writer Daniel Negret and director Antonio Negret.

The storyline in "Shaman" was not overly interesting or entertaining. Sure, it was a watchable enough movie, though it sort of lingered on the boring side. The narrative was slow paced and there just wasn't enough of a drive or momentum to really carry the movie up until about halfway through. It took writer Daniel Negret half of the movie to sort of establish the mood and setting, and it was a bit of a struggle to sit through that build-up.

I was not familiar with a single actor or actress on the cast list, which was actually something that spoke in favor of the movie. I do enjoy watching new and unfamiliar talents on the screen when I watch a movie. The acting performances in "Shaman" were fair.

Watchable, sure, but hardly an outstanding moment in horror cinema. Would I recommend horror fans to rush out and get to watch "Shaman"? No, not really. Will I ever return to watch "Shaman" a second time? No.

My rating of director Antonio Negret's 2025 movie "Shaman" lands on a four out of ten stars.

I have to be honest. After watching possession films until it felt like I was in one. This was a pleasant change.

For a start. It's not your usual possession. It's set in some of the most amazing back drops you'll ever see. Has some great acting and enough jumps to keep it steadily moving along.

You will guess what's going on and what's gonna happen way before it does. But hey. Ain't that typical of most possession films.

Anyway. Its a decent enough watch so if your a fan of this genre.

Give it a go.

I watched this so-called horror movie and honestly, it was a huge disappointment. The jump scares were mostly cheap and relied heavily on loud, random sound effects that felt more annoying than scary. The plot was painfully predictable, filled with clichés we've seen a hundred times. Most scenes lacked any real tension or atmosphere, making it more frustrating than frightening. If you're looking for a genuine horror experience, this one's not it.