I’ll be completely honest, I haven’t even determined just how I’ll rate The Devil’s Tomb. I’m hoping writing this piece will help me mentally sort out what I’ve just witnessed. To call the film murky is probably generous, and it’s left my brain feeling a bit like that egg in those old anti-drug commercials.
The picture pits Captain “Mack” (Cuba Gooding Jr.), and his squad of elite soldiers in an underground bunker/laboratory (the surroundings are a little odd, and I’m actually curious as to where this flick was filmed) where they’re there to supposedly extract the trapped Wesley (Ron Perlman). Wesley’s supposed to be a scientist of the special sort, apparently, as all others trapped in the bunker are considered non-priorities.
Once the crew is in, things go awry without hesitation. Mutilated priests pop out of nowhere, Bill Moseley (as the ultra-creepy looking Professor Duncan) shows up to spew biblical antics and nasty goo, and little girls roam the corridors. The crew is targeted one by one, and whatever it is that’s haunting the place is manipulating the crew according to each of their own personal hang-ups.
It’s not long before the haunts transform into full-fledged physical assaults, and as you might have guessed, these soldiers start dropping like 200 pound flies. Of course, half of them rise again, decorated with some admittedly well executed makeup and ready to aide in the increase of the death toll. Unfortunately for viewers, while all this gooey madness unfolds, the story itself is fleshed out with all the smoothness of 30 grit sandpaper. Honestly, the only thing we know about the the conflict, is that it’s based in religion.
The big reveal (that we finally discover, about an hour and fifteen minutes into the 90 minute flick) is pretty interesting, and while I’d traditionally spare spoilers, I’m not convinced the film is good enough to seek out; so prepare for the spilling of the beans. This crew was never dispatched to retrieve anyone, they were there to blow this place straight to the bowls of hell, because trapped in this bunker in what appears to be a block of ice (though it’s referred to as the good lord’s own handy prison) is an angel, cast from heaven (they never mention if his particular name was once Lucifer or not).
It’s a cool revelation, but it should have been exposed earlier in the film, and given a few more minutes of exploration. Regardless, our stoic hero, Mack manages to escape the bunker, and the place goes up in a blaze of unholy glory; mission accomplished.
What’s odd about this Doom meets Lord of Illusions venture is the promise on hand. The cast is actually pretty impressive; in addition to Cuba Gooding Jr. and Ron Perlman, Jason London (Dazed and Confused), Zack Ward (Transformers), and Franky G (The Italian Job) all take on significant roles, and handle their duties well. The special effects, while limited are spirited, and as aforementioned, there’s some pretty nifty makeup work on display.
In the end however, the story itself is a shaky foundation facing an oncoming tornado. The editing isn’t exactly stellar, and there are (again, as I already mentioned) some serious pacing issues. It’s a tough one to handle because there really are some cool scenes on display, but in the grand scheme, the jigsaw is missing a few too many pieces to be called a quality offering. Not a bad effort for a pretty meager budget (reported in the 8-10 million dollar range), but it’s not exactly ‘good’ either.
Well, I think writing this piece did indeed help me to sort through my own feelings on the film. And, all I can honestly tell you is to watch this one at your own risk.
OVERALL SUMMARY
This jumbled tale of soldiers in an underground bunker juggles plenty of interesting ideas while managing to somehow fail to fully flesh out a single cohesive concept. There’s some cool special FX on deck, and an impressive cast, but sadly the story misses the mark on many levels.
