recommended

A lot of fun.

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

And what it is is not very good. SEANCE: THE SUMMONING is an entirely cheap seance/possession flick in which a quartet of rather unlikeable characters break into an old morgue to hold a seance for some stupid reason or other. Before long one of their number becomes possessed by the spirit of an ancient demon and death, murder, and madness ensue.This is a cheap little B-movie with very little to recommend it to the horror fan apart from some cheap gore effects here and there and lots of desperate attempts to be scary. Despite the intensity of pitch, none of this is remotely frightening and indeed it all seems rather familiar and lacklustre, with the usual script lines that sound like they're ripped off from THE EXORCIST and the like. The acting is bog standard, frequently verging into ham territory, and the running time drags out despite the relative shortness of the production. Next, please...

In my experience, if a film is advertised as being 'from The Producers of' a MUCH bigger movie, then it tells us two things. 1. The Producers have fallen on hard times, and 2. This new film is gonna suck. Both criteria here = fulfilled.So, we have this complete idiot taken over by a supernatural presence during a seance held at a morgue, and his three friends try to save his life. One of them gets his neck broken early... shame. The two remaining girls (One a devout Christian, the other a pagan worshipper) end up having to rely on the Bible to get them out of this mess.OH MY GOD (Pun intended) it's tedious listening to them talk non-stop about religious hogwash for two thirds of the length. We want to see heads rotate 360 degrees and pea soup vomit from the possessed victim's mouth, not scene after scene of explanations about 'How The Lord Loves All' or oblique scripture readings. In fact, I'd almost swear this whole production was bankrolled by the Church itself... if it wasn't for most of the other objectionable material on offer.And as our spiritually hi-jacked human being starts rocking up and down like an epileptic while tied up his chair ( in shots from the waist up, it looks as if he's masturbating) it was all I could do not to burst out laughing. Yes, the sole redeeming feature is the unintended humour. Whether it's someone with a gob full of toothpaste trying to pass it off as frothing at the mouth, or the hilarious excuse for a final battle which involves the head of a live rat being bitten off (Is the pagan girl related to Ozzy Osbourne?) it almost (but not quite ) makes up for all the other nonsense.At one point, during a particularly exasperating moment, those immortal words are uttered " I'm tired of this s**t". You know what? I couldn't agree more. 3/10

The person that makes this film really interesting is Nazneen Contractor, though she really should consider changing her name for fame. Nazneen reminds me a lot of Jane Russell ... she actually looks like she could be Jane's daughter, that's how much they have in common when it comes to looks, as well as attitude. If they ever make a movie about Jane ... Nazneen should get the part, if she's as good as she appeared to be in this film. I certainly hope she continues doing movies, she has the potential to become a very popular actress ... right up there with Halle Berry and Nicole Kidman, but her name will most likely hold her back ... the name you use, in this business, makes a huge difference in what goals you reach. Maybe Nina Nazeen ... it flows well?Actually, what makes this movie "good" is the casting, and the wonderful imagination of Alex Wright, whom seems to have a lot of thoughts, when it comes to religion, as The Love Ministry! If he believes what the character "Joey" says about the church.The filming was very realistic, as was the sounds. The action is superb, and the entrance of the spirit was well incorporated by giving the spirit an appearance as preparations began for the seance, showing that the spirits are already there ... awaiting acknowledgement. Totally cool.The actors are not seasoned actors, few actors are at their ages, that takes years and years of experience, but they are much better than a lot of actors ... at their ages. One thing I can say is that the parts were given to the right people, and the script was basically solid. This is a film I will enjoy watching numerous times ... because the script, directing, action, and film cuttings run as smoothly as a classic poem ... its rhythm is constant, and the parts are never, obviously, played over the top, or under-expectations of what was needed. Anyone that does not appreciate the quality of this film hasn't a clue of how many films, like this one's subject, are basically some degree of crap.By the way, and totally surprising to me, the profanity in this film actually worked ... probably because it wasn't over-used, and it was felt by the actor(s) ... and not everyone was using it. Anyhoots, the point is that this is one of the rare films where profanity worked, in most films it is so obvious that the profanity is used for shock ... not real, not felt ... just there, where it didn't belong.Anyhoots ... I love this film, and it caused me to buy the 2006 DVD "Seance", a waste of money. It was OK, but it couldn't hold a candle to this one!

Let's be fair. This is your typical teen horror film: Cheesy Script Spirit Board Setting being a creepy morgue Atheist Kid Christian Kid Pagan/Witch Kid Said kids listening to music loudly in the car. Screachy Girls in trouble Man tearing a shirt off for the sake of it Steamy snogging scene Devil/Demon/Entity/Ghost scary possession Gore and blood (albeit not excessive but about the right amount for me, ending is a little strange though)Having said all that, you know what to expect. For me it was no different to many other horror films you watch typical teens/twentysomethings being stupid and playing with things they don't understand. Worth a watch i'd say but watch it when there is nothing else that you would rather watch as it's not the best film in the world but not the worst either.