The Prophecy: Forsaken - 2005

Castel Film Romania, Dimension Films

Directed by Joel Soisson

Cast:

• Allison – Kari Wuhrer
• John Reigert / Satan – John Light
• Dylan – Jason Scott Lee
• Stark – Tony Todd
• Simon – Jason London

Story: Allison is living in Romania, protecting the book, when the angels come again to recover it so they can know the name of the antichrist and kill him before he begins Armageddon. This time an angel named Stark is using a hit man named Dylan to do his “wetwork”, but Dylan is one of the resurrected and slowly dying who is acting out of duress. When he meets Allison, he does everything he can to foil the angel's plan. Allison heads toward the only ally she has, Satan. But Satan has his own agenda and is not in the mood to protect her. The battle between the forces of good and evil continues, and soon Allison is revealed as the only weapon needed to foil the angel's quest.

Review: In this second and final episode of the Prophecy “homage”, all the confusion and blanks spots from “Uprising” are filled in. When you realize that both films were released in 2005, and went straight to video, you have to wonder if Soisson was doing all this to fluff up his resume. The first ten minutes are the same footage from the first film, so our next actions are “in media reas”, and Satan is once again walking to and fro about the earth, causing trouble. The cast now includes the excellent Jason Scott Lee as Dylan, the reluctant hit man trying to protect Kari Wuhrer, and the exceptional Tony Todd, an often underestimated character actor who shines in this performance. Overall, the film moves well, and the action is much smoother in this second installment. But one question comes to mind. If Allison is a Nephalim, why would she still have a scar on her cheek? In the third Prophecy film, the Nephalim was said to have spontaneous tissue regeneration, so the scar should have healed years ago. Okay, okay, I'm nit picking, but let's face it, if you can't point out the obvious errors, where is the fun in that? Rated R for violence, language and a semi amusing scene of nudity with a young lady whose film credits include ONE film...this one. Collectible? Hardly, unless you are a fanatic Prophecy fan.

The Prophecy II - 1998

Dimension Films, NEO Motion Pictures, Overseas FilmGroup

Directed by Greg Spence

Cast:

• Gabriel – Christopher Walken
• Valerie Rosales – Jennifer Beals
• Danyael – Russell Wong
• Izzy – Brittany Murphy
• Samayel – Glenn Danzig
• Joseph – Steve Hytner
• Michael - Eric Roberts

Story: Four years have passed and Lucifer is tired of Gabriel's presence in Hell and releases him to walk the earth again. Meanwhile, the angel Danyael has come to earth with a very specific mission, to create a Nephalim, a being born of a human female and an angel. Valerie Rosales, a nurse in a hospital, is driving her car when Danyael falls out of the sky in front of her. As he recovers in her hospital, they become close, and after several weeks he walks her home, and they make love. Within a week, she discovers she is pregnant. Nearly 4 months pregnant. Gabriel is on the move, wanting to eliminate the Nephalim as an abomination who might change the balance of heaven and earth and end the second war. He kills Samayel, and angel sent to watch over Valerie, and when the corpse is brought to the coroner's office, Joseph, the coroner who was a close friend of Thomas Dagget, recognizes who the body is and tries to warn Valerie about the angels and what is happening. Danyael must take Valerie to Michael, who guards the now polluted Eden with his angels, and Valerie must trust the voice of God to save her child.

Review: I'm not usually a big fan of sequels, but the continuity of story line and the introduction of some new characters keep this one fresh and intriguing. I was a little disappointed they could not get Elias Koteas back to reprise his role as Dagget, brief as that part is, but was pleasantly surprised to see Steve Hytner back in the role of Joseph, the coroner. Walken, of course, is consistent as the stars as Gabriel, and brings back a near corpse in the form of Brittany Murphy, who does a much better job in this film that others I have seen her in (In my opinion, the epitome of her career was in Uptown Girls, where she was totally upstaged by Dakota Fanning). Russell Wong is strong in his portrayal of Danyael, with the perfect balance of passion and aloofness. He cares for the human female, but realizes she is mortal, while the Nepahlim they create will not be. Jennifer Beals could have been a bit more passionate in the role, but her performance is passable and doesn't detract from the film's overall theme. Finally Eric Roberts does what he does best, let's his personality shine through, which is to say dispassionate, cold, and ambiguous. But that works here, and since the role is brief, does not detract from the plot or the action. Rated R for sexual situations, language, and graphic violence, this film is a worthy companion to the first, and if you own The Prophecy, this will make a nice addition. But as with all sequels, its a toss up. Definitely worth a viewing, but I suggest you rent it first before you buy a copy.

The Prophecy - 1995

First Look International, NEO Motion Pictures, Overseas FilmGroup

Written and Directed by Gregory Widen

Cast:

• Thomas Dagget – Elias Koteas
• Gabriel – Christopher Walken
• Katherine – Virginia Madsen
• Simon – Eric Stoltz
• Lucifer – Viggo Mortensen
• Jerry – Adam Goldberg
• Mary – Moriah “Shining Dove” Snyder
• Rachel – Amanda Plummer
• Joseph – Steve Hytner

Story: A young man is about to become a priest. He prostrates himself before the cardinal, is prepared to say his vows, but suddenly a vision comes over him, a vision so bleak and full of despair, he cannot continue. Flash forward several years to this same young man, now a Los Angeles police officer, who is called to a murder scene normally off his shift. A man has been run over by a car in an alley and smashed into a wall. In the room the man has jumped, or was pushed, from, is a copy of a book written by Thomas Dagget, the police officer who wanted to be a priest. The coroner informs Dagget of some irregularities with the body. He has no, nor has ever had, eyes. His bones have no indication of growth. And in his possessions is a hand written Bible with an extra chapter that refers to a second war in heaven. Soon Dagget discovers he is caught in the crossfire in a war between angels over the right of man to be in heaven.

Review: After his incredible success with the Highlander franchise, Gregory Widen wrote and directed this incredible eerie tale of suspense and horror. The characters are crisp and fresh, and the cast depicts them with an eerie sense of reality. Elias Koteas is incredibly adept at his role, portraying the disillusioned Dagget with a humanity we can all associate with. Eric Stoltz is adept at his role as Simon, the angel from the forces loyal to God's will concerning man. Christopher Walken is the perfect Gabriel, smiling and deceptive, treating us “talking monkeys” with the same sort of casual disdain as one may treat a retarded child. Virginia Madsen plays the lone teacher for what remains of an abandoned mining town, and she portrays the role in such a manner as to have us believing she has taught school for years. While the remainder of the cast is proficient and talented in their roles, special mention has to be made of Viggo Mortensen as Lucifer. He delivers his lines with such precision of depth and directness, you can believe he is the devil incarnate. Rated R for violence, gore and language, this is truly a work of art. Collectible as the first in a series of five films, or by itself as just an incredible work of fiction and the imagination of Gregory Widen.