Tuesday, December 10, 2019

End of Days





End of Days
1999
Director- Peter Hyams
Cast- Arnold Schwarzenegger, Robin Tunney, Gabriel Byrne, Kevin Pollak, C. C. H. Pounder, Udo Kier, Victor Varnado, Miriam Margolyes, Derrick O'Connor, Rod Steiger
    
    Remember the end of the 20th century, when everyone was afraid of Y2K and there were all sorts off doomsday prophecies that people were claiming and then in the end the worst thing that happened was that it took us all 3 months to get used to writing 20 instead of 19 when dating something? This movie, which swooped in right at the end of 1999, capitalized on that trend.
      
     As the end of 2nd millennium approaches, Satan (Gabrielle Byrne) arrives on earth seeking a woman (The Craft’s Robin Tunney) who has been prophesized to be his mate. Apparently, having sex with her will trigger the events foretold in Revelations. A cynical ex-cop (Schwarzenegger) stumbles onto this and is determined to protect the girl. Standing in his way (along with the Prince of Darkness) is a legion of devil worshipers (including Udo Kier) and a secret branch of the Catholic Church determined to kill the girl rather than let her fall into Satan’s hands.
            

     Action and horror is a difficult mix to sell. The essence of horror is peril, where as a good action film is about overcoming such peril, often numerous times. Arnold isn’t bad in the film.  He turns in about as a good a performance as the script allows. The problem is that Arnold is, well, so Arnold! He is so charismatic and physically impressive, you never doubt that he will overcome the odds.
            
     Despite the odd combination, the film does have some selling points. Gabriel Byrne makes a humorous devil and Kevin Pollak makes for a funny straight man. There’s also supporting performances by C.C.H. Pounder (Demon Knight) and Rod Steiger. Not a great movie, but an entertaining attempt at blending genres.
 

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