Prey for the Devil is just another run-of-the-mill possession-horror-thriller offering nothing much new to the genre outside of the idea of the Catholic Church’s exorcism school which doesn’t get fully utilized here.
Prey for the Devil
(2022)
Genre(s): Horror, Supernatural
Lionsgate | PG13 – 93 min. – $42.99 | January 3, 2023
Date Published: 01/18/2023 | Author: The Movieman
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Lionsgate provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Blog Post.
The opinions I share are my own.
Note: The screen captures were taken from the included Blu-ray disc.
THE MOVIE — 2½/5 |
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Plot Synopsis: Sister Ann (JACQUELINE BYERS) believes she is answering a calling to be the first female exorcist… but who, or what, called her? In response to a global rise in demonic possessions, Ann seeks out a place at an exorcism school reopened by the Catholic Church. Until now these schools have only trained priests in the Rite of Exorcism – but a professor (COLIN SALMON) recognizes Sister Ann’s gifts and agrees to train her. She finds herself in a battle for the soul of a young girl (POSY TAYLOR), who Sister Ann believes is possessed by the same demon that tormented her own mother years ago. Determined to root out the evil, Ann soon realizes that evil has been expecting her.
Quick Hit Review: I’ve said this in past reviews, but when it comes to horror, the supernatural ones really aren’t my cup of tea with rare exceptions (The Exorcist) and this latest possession-horror, Prey for the Devil, doesn’t deviate from what has come before, from the look, (darkly lit scenes) to characters, I cannot distinguish this from the other run-of-the-mill exorcism films, and that would include director Daniel Stamm’s own The Last Exorcism from 2010. I can’t say there’s really a whole lot positive to say about Prey for the Devil, the acting I suppose was okay led by the lovely Jacqueline Byers as well as the criminally underrated Colin Salmon, but the biggest issue, beyond that there’s not a whole lot new here, is there was zero emotion behind anything; I wasn’t scared during the possession scenes and I wasn’t invested in some of the more heartfelt scenes with Sister Ann and her tragic past. Literally there is nothing that this film has to offer that would make this worth even the short 87-minute running time (minus credits).
Unless you’re somebody who has to see every exorcism-horror movie out there, this is one you can completely skip. |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 4¼/5 |
| This release comes with a semi-glossy, title-embossed, slip cover. Inside is a redemption code for the Digital HD copy. All features are available on the 4K and Blu-ray discs.
Audio Commentary — Director Daniel Stamm and Actress Jacqueline Byers Featurettes:
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4K VIDEO – 4½/5, BLU-RAY VIDEO – 4¼/5 |
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Prey for the Devil comes to 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray where it’s presented in the original 2.39 widescreen aspect ratio and given 2160p and 1080p high-definition transfers, respectively. Detail on this is decent enough considering how dimly lit the majority of scenes are, particularly the finale which at least showed how severe the black levels were while still, albeit barely, being able to discern what’s going on. In terms of the 4K, this is nothing that shows off the format and doing a brief comparison to the Blu-ray, I didn’t really notice a significant difference. |
AUDIO – 4½/5 |
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The disc comes with a Dolby Atmos track. Although nothing outstanding, the track does showcase solid dialogue levels and good depth especially during the exorcism scenes, along with the generic and forgettable score. |
OVERALL — 3¾/5 |
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Prey for the Devil is just another run-of-the-mill possession-horror-thriller offering nothing much new to the genre outside of the idea of the Catholic Church’s exorcism school which doesn’t get fully utilized here. Otherwise this is one to skip. |