The Eleventh Commandment is perhaps the worst kind of bad movie, an all around boring one. I can’t think of one thing that really stands out, not the characters, kills, plot, villains, nothing.
The Eleventh Commandment
(1987)
Genre(s): Suspense/Thriller, Drama
Vinegar Syndrome | NR – 94 min. – $32.98 | September 1, 2020
Date Published: 08/10/2020 | Author: The Movieman
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Vinegar Syndrome provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Blog Post.
The opinions I share are my own.
THE MOVIE — 1.5/5 |
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Plot Synopsis: Robert Knight (BERNIE WHITE) has been committed to an insane asylum by his greedy and potentially murderous Uncle Charles (DICK SARGENT), as a means of depriving him of his rightful inheritance. But his time in the asylum has turned Robert into a violent lunatic; fashioning himself a priestly avenger due to his years at the seminary. After murdering a nurse, Robert escapes from the asylum and begins slashing his way through anyone who stands between his avenging the actions of his uncle. But Uncle Charles has some deadly tricks up his sleeve as well. Quick Hit Review: I’m all for good bad movies, especially ones that just beg for jeers from its viewers (which is why I like watching “Mystery Science Theater 3000” and “Best of the Worst”) but the worst kind of bad movies are ones that are just downright dull and boring. Such is the case for The Eleventh Commandment, a film that actually started off well enough but within 15 minutes was a bit tedious with the few stabbings committed by our psychopath. No real thrills happening and a finale that perhaps had a good idea or two with lots of double-crossings, in the scale of a bad soap opera, but even then those ideas don’t really amount to much. No real standouts either with a mostly unknown cast. Bernard White in the lead as Robert never quite felt like a real threat or scary and even the one recognizable name in Dick Sargent in the primarily villainous role never did anything, and worse yet was dispatched by somebody other than our main character whose objective was to kill the man out of revenge. Guess that’s a twist from the status quo? |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 2.5/5 |
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The original Limited Edition release came with a slip cover, this one, sold outside of the Vinegar Syndrome’s web site does not. The artwork is reversible and features include Interviews with Actor Bernard White (17:13) and Actress Lauren Woodland (11:55) as well as a Promotional Still Gallery. |
VIDEO – 4.0/5 |
| Vinegar Syndrome releases The Eleventh Commandment onto Blu-ray, presented with a 1.85 widescreen aspect ratio and given a 1080p high-definition transfer. Accordingly to the back cover, the picture has been newly scanned and restored in 2K from its 35mm interpositive. What a world we live in when a low-rent, low budget suspense-drama like this would be shown in high-def. As such, it is an impressive looking transfer, outside of some minor specs from time to time, it is clean. Detail is sharp and well defined and it would appear the original film grain and noise has been retained. |
AUDIO – 3.75/5 |
| The disc includes a basic DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track which did sound better than expected for presumably a production that probably didn’t have top-notch equipment for the time. Most of the film is dialogue, which comes through with relative clarity, so a centrally located audio works with some minor depth for the mundane score or ambient noises. |
OVERALL – 2.5/5 |
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The Eleventh Commandment is perhaps the worst kind of bad movie, an all around boring one. I can’t think of one thing that really stands out, not the characters, kills, plot, villains, nothing. I appreciate the work Vinegar Syndrome does bringing these obscure films to the home video market, but this one can be skipped. |