Spellbinder (1988)

Sorry, this movie sucks

best movie i've ever seen.

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

This review gives away the remarkable twist at the end. So, if you don't want to know the result, look away now! Back in 1989, our family used to rent a video every Saturday night from our local store. Usually, it was a tacky horror film, nearly always forgettable, but very occasionally we got something a cut above the rest. The very few I recall include Neon Maniacs and Killer Klowns from Outer Space. Most memorable of all was Spellbinder, from MGM/UA Video, because of its never-to-be-forgotten ending. The hero of the movie is about to be sacrificed by a bunch of devil worshippers. But, not to worry, his best friend is on his way, accompanied by two uniformed police officers. After a long sprint, they get there just in time, so everything's going to be fine, OK? Well, as Alfred Hitchcock liked to tell his audience: "So you think you know what's going to happen next, but do you?" The friend, of course, turns out to be the leader of the coven, but the scary part is the cops stripping off their uniforms to change into satanic robes. Even the devil never saw that coming!

When Los Angeles attorney Jeff Mills and his friend Derek rescue Miranda Reed from an abusive boyfriend, the trouble starts. Miranda has no home so Jeff offers her to stay at his house. Jeff becomes involved with Miranda and the mystery that surrounds her. But as the two become closer, Jeff learns that Miranda is on the run from a witches' coven.The coven wants Miranda as a sacrifice at the winter solstice. She must come to them of her own free will, and the coven try to force her into doing so, using sorcery to taunt the two of them. Miranda tells Jeff, but not the entire truth, and Jeff helps Miranda out of her troubles, but in doing so creates his own........From the trailers and the one sheet, I was expecting nothing more than a romance with a mild thriller/horror element to it. And for the most part of the film, that's exactly what it is, apart from two really random scenes involving a cut price Hugo Weaving running about like he needs the toilet before his head combusts, and a random scene in a lawyers office where an old woman goes nuts.They are certainly out of place in this film, but then the film really turns on its head in the last fifteen minutes, and it really makes the film worth watching, despite some really glaring plot holes.The cast are fine, we are given red herrings galore, and the chief bad guy looks like a cross between a really elaborate over the top Las Vegas Magician, and a catwalk Highlander, so that quenches any thirst you have for your eighties fix.Present as usual is perfectly fine as the apparently innocent Miranda, which makes the final fifteen all the more satisfying.The makers have obviously homaged The Wicker Man in essence, but that's not a bad thing if it's done right, and the final shot ends the film perfectly.Well worth seeking out..

Saw this on netflix recently. WARNING: SPOILER ALERT! This movie is a waste of time for 2 reasons. 1. It shouldn't take an entire movie for the coven to select and sacrifice only ONE rather stupid victim. With Kelly Preston as bait, they could snag one man in 10 minutes, or kill dozens each weekend, and with far less work. But NO, the script drags us through an unnecessarily elaborate set up, and then boring plot twists, just like a high school girl tormenting a nerd with the run around. The Wicker Man, original version, is a masterpiece compared to this movie. 2. Not enough nudity. Bottom line: fast forward through this turkey, stopping only to admire a young Kelly Preston.

Some of the commentators have ragged on this movie for it being predictable, and some parts of it are, but some parts of the ending really surprised me. Again, I saw this movie originally when I was about 19, so maybe what would be obvious now weren't so obvious to me back then. Anway, given the context of the late 80ies when Spellbinder was made there was all this talk about Satanism, most of which later proved to be just urban legend type of stuff, probably made the movie for me a little more spooky in the 80ies then say if someone just randomly saw it now. Anyways, the movie I thought had a pretty cool plot that had some surprises, the acting was good, Kelly Preston was hot, and the movie freaked me out a little back in the day, so I'm giving the movie 8 out 10 stars. I haven't found it on DVD yet, if I did I would buy it and add it to my collection.