The Crypt (2009)
Director: Craig McMahon
Craig McMahon
Back in June we brought you the trailer for a creepy and so-bad-it’s-good looking movie called The Crypt. At the time, it looked like a creepy zombie movie. After watching it, the film comes across as more of a ghost story. Either way, the bottom line is whether the film is good or not. Read on to see my thoughts.
The Crypt revolves around 6 criminals. After the only male in the group, Perry, is released from prison, the group gets together to plan a new gig. One of the women, Constance, reveals that there is a potential gold mine in an underground crypt. During the 1930’s, many people chose to be buried with their priceless possessions. At the urging of his girlfriend PJ, Perry initially turns down the job, as does the rest of the group. However, they all seemingly change their mind and head into the crypt via a secret entrance. Once they get down into the crypt, the group begins moving through various tombs, taking any jewelry they can find. As they make their way through the tombs, creepy and ghostly looking people keep appearing. A small earthquake closes off their escape route just as the ghosts begin to attack the group. As the survivors make their way through the crypt, looking for an exit, the ghosts begin to pick them off one by one as all hope looks lost.
The trailers and the posters made this film look like it might have been a great B-movie romp. Unfortunately, too many problems creep up and take you out of the story. For starters, the editing of the film is uneven and at times horrid. Almost every major scene transition is preceded by the same “fade to black”. However, these scene transitions can come at awkward times, often when the scene seems to be mid-stride. The script is riddled with major plot holes, horror movie stereotypes and bad decisions by the characters. Characters make bad decisions solely to move the film along, even when more logical choices are available. To make matters worse, the actors are mostly awful. Showing little to no emotion or fear and reciting their lines as if they were reading from the script directly.
All isn’t lost in the film. The ghosts themselves actually look very creepy. The makeup is quite effective, and gives them a very decayed look. Their hollow, white eyes stare blankly as they attack. It’s very easy to mistake them for zombies, but their behavior is strictly that of apparitions. The handling of the ghosts is actually handled decently. Having them slowly reveal themselves in dark corners, or appear out of nowhere to kill someone is decently effective. The setting itself is also quite disturbing. People crawling through tunnels and ripping open graves to steal the belongings of the dead is a creepy setup.
In the end, the effective ghosts and the creepy setting aren’t enough to save the film. The uneven pacing, poor script and senseless editing really take you out of the movie. It’s really a shame as with a bit more of a seasoned presence behind the camera could have turned this into a great B-movie flick. As it is, it’s just disappointing.
Overall: 4 out of 10
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