Scream at the Devil

I know some might think me giving this 5/10 is crazy, which is fair enough, though I was referring to the movie or its theme in general. And I do know, that the movie has flaws. Beginning with some of the acting, the shot selection and the script. Some might even take offense because this does pay tribute (read copies!) some classic horror movies (Rosemarys Baby to name just one).

But generally speaking there is appeal. There is appeal in the really out there, trip this is offering. And you don't have to be on a "trip" to get it or to like it either. It's about paranoia, it's about seeing things that may or may not be there. It's about mental health and about demons. Or just one rather than the other? But which one? If you are able to watch this, with a mindset like that, you will be entertained enough to like it (despite all the flaws)

"A beautiful schizophrenic woman is pushed over the edge by her husbands illicit affairs" Let's start with the description written by the director. I am sorry but the lady is a grandma! A beautiful schizophrenic woman sounds more like a young student character not a grandma! Okay lets move to the story, narrative, and character. The main lady character acts like she was 30 years old who wants to be pregnant again when she looks like she is at least 50 years old. She also has a very annoying character. Basically a dumb aggressive old woman refuses to take her meds and instead suffers from weird hallucinations. Acting is amateur, directing is basic and the story is very simple. Overall, the movie is awful.

I'm watching the last of the movie as I'm typing this. I just can't take anymore of this pile of garbage...and believe me...I want to use much worse language, but I'm trying to be classy. First clue was putting it into the DVD and seeing it go straight to PLAY MOVIE. No trailers of any kind. RED FLAG. A movie is like a new book. If the first chapter doesn't grab you, the rest of the book never will. I kept an open mind, but after the first 45 minutes...and let me remind you that this movie is only 98 minutes long...I kinda gave up. Like in looking around and wondering how much longer I'd have to endure this. I also wondered how this piece of dung was green lighted in the first place. How does something like this ever make it to a group of people who put their money into something that if the screenplay is read out loud that they don't leave the room at that very moment! The only reason I gave it a 1 is that they don't have a zero! I DID see one person I knew in the film...the guy who played in the film Canyman. God...he MUST be on hard times if he actually said yes to this steaming pile of....manure. Sorry. Tried not to use that kind of language, but every man has a limit. Don't watch this trash. Don't rent this trash. Try to not look at it when you see it in the Redbox. It isn't worth your time. It's 98 minutes and a $1.60 I'll never get back. I'm gonna go get drunk and try to kill the brain cells that carry the memory of this movie!

After losing her baby and finding that her husband Gabriel Jones (Eric Etebari) has a love affair, the housewife Mirium Jones (Shari Shattuck) travels to Venice and makes a pact with the devil to become pregnant again. When she returns, she moves with Gabriel to an isolated house for a new beginning, but Mirium is unstable and disturbed with evil daydreams and visions. After a violent argument with Gabriel, he vanishes and Mirium is tormented by her neighbors. Is Mirium really lunatic or part of the Devil's plan?

"Scream at the Devil" is a film with good ideas from other movies, special effects and performance of the lead actress Shari Shattuck. However the storyline is a mess and the director / writer Joseph P. Stachura is totally lost in an awful screenplay. In the end, "Scream at the Devil" is boring but never scary. My vote is three.

Title (Brazil): "Grito de Pânico" ("Scream of Panic")

SCREAM AT THE DEVIL is an awful and pointless independent horror production. The cover has been designed to make it look like your standard possession flick, but this is nothing like. Instead it's the humdrum tale of your ordinary housewife who begins to suffer from mental illness and finds herself assailed by weird, demonic visions and other phenomena.

I'm not sure what the market is for a film like this, which so obviously must have been a non-starter for those making it. It lacks a single sympathetic character in the whole cast and for 90% of the running time the viewer is saddled with the below-par acting of Shari Shattuck, an ageing former TV star who fails to hold the attention at all. Oh yeah, and Tony Todd cameos as a cop, but he's no reason to tune into this silly and pointless production.