Shadow Builder: A Review
Shadow Builder is a supernatural horror film released in 1998. It is based on the short story by Bram Stoker The Shadow Builder.
The film depicts an evil Archbishop and his followers summoning a demon to destroy the world, but the demon’s first act is to murder its summoners. A cult of followers of the wicked Shadowbuilder summons the demon using the image of Vic Lambert’s son. Father Vassey surprises the group and kills the followers (much in the fashion of Blade (1998)). However, Shadowbuilder flees to Grand River, a town that would have an eclipse the next day. A demon is summoned to steal a young boy’s soul, who has the potential to become a saint. By doing this, he will open a doorway to Hell, and destroy the world.
It features a stellar cast including Michael Rooker, who successfully plays the tortured priest Father Vassey. It also features Tony Todd (who played The Candyman in 1992) as the eccentric artist. Whilst the performance from Rooker was believable, the character of the eccentric artist was kind of goofy. Todd’s character didn’t add much more than a hint of comic relief. I did have to laugh out loud at one moment. It was the scene where Father Vassey asks where he can find the aforementioned boy at the police station. The cop replies (noticing he’s a priest) something to the effect of “you do know looking for little boys is illegal right?!” – to which Rooker’s character just says “F*ck off!”.
The lack of character development and backstory limited the motivations, which in turn reduced their emotional impact, making it challenging to fully invest in their struggles. Similar issues crop up with the plot as a whole. The story lacked depth, making the narrative very predictable. Certain scenes dragged on while others rushed through important moments, resulting in a disjointed narrative flow.
The eerie atmosphere was successful in creating feelings of dread and tension throughout the film. The gloomy settings such as the graveyard and the church basement adding to the creepiness of the story. Keeping the topic on all things visual, the CGI effects of this film were downright awful – even with CGI arguably still in its infancy.
The sound design of this film helped enhance the scares. The use of chilling sounds and ominous music adds to the overall unsettling experience, effectively building suspense.
Shadow Builder is a mixed bag of a horror film with both positive and negative aspects. It successfully creates an eerie atmosphere and features strong performances. Yet it falls short in terms of a thin plot, underdeveloped characters, and uneven pacing.
