By Jonah Naplan

October 28, 2022

There’s a predictable jump scare in what felt like every twenty seconds within “Prey for the Devil,” a very curiously chosen horror film to be released this Halloween weekend. But the jumpscares are unfortunately not the only predictable thing about this movie, rather most of everything that happens could have been foreseen based only upon the opening scenes alone. It’s not that “Prey for the Devil” is so overtly awful, but I give it a bad review simply because of how painfully forgettable it is. The characters are thin, the plot is thinner, and the jump scares—like I mentioned before—are so cheap that I was even able to perfectly time a few of them in my head.

What is the point of this effortless exorcism horror movie trash? It’s a film that tries to start out with some ambition, but then floats up into endless nothingness with a story that can never seem to hold itself together, and characters that don’t exactly act as even minor placeholders for the next iconic horror movie heroes. It’s a film that feels so contractually obligatory and doesn’t seem like it even wants to exist, just rushing through the most mandatory minimum of plot beats to barely squeeze out a runtime only a hair over 90 minutes.

“Prey for the Devil” is about Sister Ann (Jacqueline Byers), a young nun who’s at first forbidden to perform exorcisms at the specialty school within the Roman Catholic Church. But Father Quinn (Colin Salmon) quickly recognizes Ann’s gift for communicating with the possessed, and agrees to let her attend the classes in which he teaches the ancient art. Sister Ann gets caught up into several confrontations with a possessed ten-year-old girl named Natalie, of whom Ann is able to communicate with in ways that none of the doctors nor the other exorcists-in-training can. In one moderately effective scene, Ann runs into the young girl’s containment unit underneath the church to help several other priests free her from the clutches of which several people believe is the devil.

The film seems to be very interested in the concept of the devil, much like how “Halloween” (1978) was obsessed with The Boogeyman and this past August’s “The Invitation” was obsessed with pale-skinned vampires. But “Prey for the Devil” doesn’t utilize any grounded correlation with the devil, other than Sister Ann’s traumatizing relationship with her estranged mother who used to be abusive before Ann was taken in by nuns.

Initially, Ann explains to her therapist (Virginia Madsen) that her mother never intended to be abusive, but that didn’t stop the “devil” that was taking refuge inside of her soul. It’s a plotline that keeps getting associated flashbacks and is frequently called upon during random instances, but never finds any ounce of closure in the third act. The film ends up with a mindless setpiece in a final scene that feels like every demon possession movie ever made turned into one film, and surprisingly enough, the movie ends somewhat happily? Emphasis on the “somewhat.” If you see the movie, (although you probably shouldn’t) you too will acknowledge the other way this film shows its convention in the third act, particularly in the final few shots.

Film critics have talked at length in the past about the difference between scaring an audience and startling them—meaning jumpscares, in this case. In other words, sixteen cheap jumpscares in a row doesn’t equal a good horror movie, believe it or not. Let me put it to you this way: After I had sat down in my seat before the movie began tonight, a family with three children—all younger than me, as it appeared—sat down in their respective recliners next to each other. As the movie played, these kids did not scream, show their fear, nor did they cuddle closer to their mother. Not once. Now, I can’t judge the tenacity this family possesses when it comes to horror entertainment, but I would just guess that “Prey for the Devil” is simply not an effective horror movie.

The film has its occasional moments, and I do want to give a “shout-out” to an actually pretty tense scene between Ann and a fellow student’s sister. But when it all comes together, or doesn’t, for that matter, “Prey for the Devil” doesn’t leave much of a mark. It’s still the same kind of dull horror we sometimes get in January and February, but for some reason that cinematic season has been saved for October.

If you want a good new scary movie to watch this Halloween weekend, I promise this is not the one to go with. I’d highly recommend checking out “The Black Phone” or “Nope” instead.

Now playing in theaters.