Let Us Prey (2014)★★★★☆

I think I have a thing for Pollyanna McIntosh. She’s just so good in everything she does. Well, okay, she’s normally not good (character-wise) but her acting is fantastic. Here was no exception. Well, okay, it was kind of an exception – her character was actually good in this one. (Spoilers ahead) In fact, she was really the only good one in this movie.

There are definitely a lot of bad characters in this movie, though. Poor Rachel Heggie (McIntosh’s character)…her first day on the job in a local police department staffed by horrible, horrible people. And they don’t take long to reveal themselves as horrible, do they? I found myself wondering why Mundie and Warnock were such jerks to Heggie from the get go.

But only sort of wondering, because if they’re the type to fuck around (literally) on the job and get themselves involved with the kind of things they were definitely involved in, then they’re definitely not going to be discerning about who they’re horrible to. But they get what’s coming to them. That’s basically the theme for this whole film – everyone gets what’s coming to them.

I’m not totally sure why they turned it into a romance at the end – it was unnecessary and the film probably would’ve been better off without it. I almost feel like the religious aspects make the romance weirder, and I definitely feel like the fact that he’s been watching her since she was a young girl makes the romance weirder. They could have just removed the kiss scene and everything would have made just as much sense (or more).

And let’s talk about Six for a minute. He had some of the best lines and was definitely my favorite character (though Macready-turned-Rambo was pretty stellar too…in a completely different way). It felt like the role was made for Liam Cunningham, who delivered each line perfectly and kept the same deadpan expression through all of it. I do think Pollyanna McIntosh was a great choice for Rachel, but Liam Cunningham was Six.

I love the use of sound (both background music and effects). I especially liked the effect of the crows stopping when Six closed his book. I think the crows might have been the creepiest part of the film. Well, okay, the discovery at Dr. Hume’s house might have been creepier, but the crows definitely evoked more dread than anything else. The dialogue isn’t great, but there are several one-liners that are pretty good and they’re all delivered in delightful Irish accents.

Overall, this is a really entertaining movie (if you can get over the religious aspect). It’s a bit slow at times but towards the end they get the pacing right. Some parts of the story are a bit confusing – it’s not always easy to follow whose flashback we’re seeing, and there are a lot of flashbacks.  The special effects are a bit over the top, but so is the premise of the film. The pun in the title should be a clue that this movie doesn’t take itself too seriously, which works for it. I’d recommend it to anyone who doesn’t mind some blood and gore in their entertainment.