Devil's Gate True Story, Summary, Reviews, Ratings, Cast and Trailer

Devil's Gate  [2018] Full HD Movie Free Download

In addition to creaky, booby-trapped buildings that scream "hillbilly serial killer," the two encounter some phenomena they can't easily explain; with Pritchard trying to threaten them off his land and sabotage their attempts to search his home, they have little chance to protect themselves before they realize what the man has trapped in his basement.

Of course, Agent Francis doesn’t comply and after speaking with Maria’s sister, Colt and she find their way to the farmhouse. Her character is still reeling from a previous case that had an ill-fated end. This redemption regrettably doesn’t add depth to her character, instead becoming contrived drivel. Maria’s car is in the barn when she had supposedly left and there is a lock on the basement door.

Suffice to say that the icky thing down there is not only connected to Pritchard's family's disappearance, but it has friends. Soon, the humans are in a siege situation, trying to fend off beasts until they can find a way back to safety.

A lot of horror films were cursed with poor acting and still managed to be effectively terrifying: The weight lies upon the shoulders of the lead, who should sell the film and communicate the terror to the audience.  Yet Schull's FBI Agent is seemingly unfazed by what would be life changing revelations to any normal person.

It’s clear that Pritchard has a secret, he’s strange and volatile, pulling a gun on Agent Francis and eventually landing himself in cuffs. He’s keeping a prisoner in his basement, but it isn’t his family, nor is it human. Pritchard describes it as a demon, for which he’s captured to trade for his loved ones. None of it seems plausible to the police, despite the creature looking obviously other-worldly. The being is covered in a gel like coating, with large deformed heads.

In fact, most of the cast have underwhelming reactions to catastrophe after catastrophe. Including a truly misguided instance where a supernatural being is dealt with in a fist fight. The real scope of the premise seemed to be crippled by the budget as these types of choices plague the film throughout.

When Frakes came on the screen, I almost pumped my fist — you don’t cast Starfleet’s first officer in a film that isn’t self-aware and attempting to subvert genre expectations. And Frakes brings some welcome lightness/creepiness to the story. His character cracks down-home jokes at Special Agent Francis’ expense and offers a strangely stern warning to her that she must not go out to Pritchard’s house — even if all the evidence seems to indicate that Pritchard may have murdered his wife and child. That seems promising: Oooh! What does the town sheriff know that we don’t? But the moment Frakes leaves the screen, Staub plays everything with a high seriousness at odds with the story’s increasing wackiness. There’s just no fun.

Though the FX and photography are competent for a film of this scale, the screenwriters appear to have put much less effort into dialogue and pacing. That, plus hit-and-miss acting, means viewers may have a hard time sticking with the film until the real action starts. Even then, they won't be rewarded with much in terms of mystery: Though Aperlo and Staub allude not just to religious faith but to real-world themes of colonialism and conquest, what's onscreen isn't persuasive enough to give those themes the appropriate weight.

However, though executed poorly, there is an interesting premise buried deep in the film. The main crux of the movie deals with how unexplainable happenings could be taken by religious individuals as signs from God. Without spoiling the movie, I couldn't help but admire some of the ambition of the plot. Though this ambition really doesn't work in the film's favor. Countless scenes could have been easily changed to give the film a actually horrifying atmosphere. It could have raised an interesting topic and preyed on fears of the unknown. Instead a lot of what could have been great concepts are jumbled into a convoluted mess. I wouldn't call the movie a waste of time, however, because it really isn't quite that.

Ventimiglia, who recently has been known for his role in television’s This is Us, takes another stab at the weird with Devil’s Gate. His intense performance stands out as we see his character shift from abusive domestic partner to protective father with the reveal of his motives. His interactions with the officers make for some interesting dynamics. Ashmore is energetic, itching to be significant, and one can admire his eagerness. Schull seemed a little out of her element here, with a character that was a combination of other strong female detectives that we’ve witnessed in TV and film. This is not her best.

A farmer's fringe-y religious beliefs prove oddly rooted in reality in Devil's Gate, the first feature by director Clay Staub and his co-screenwriter Peter Aperlo. The fact that the pic is titled Abduction in other territories more than hints at the fact that what this troubled man sees as angels or demons may in fact be old-fashioned extra-terrestrials. But his confusion and zeal add little texture to this unmoving genre exercise. A cast with plenty of exposure on TV series may help with the film's commercial prospects, but only the least critical genre auds are likely to enjoy it much.

What Devil's Gate has going for it, which definitely wasn't the initial intention, is an incredibly entertaining nonsensical experience. Like so many horror classics before it, where it fails in being scary or dramatic, it succeeds in being balls to the wall, batshit enthralling. I was not bored a single moment, and actually laughed more than in most recent comedies. With every twist and turn being crazier than the last, every moment of potential terror being undercut by cheesy dialogue and questionable delivery. There is tons of things that will stick with the viewer.

Production companies: Mednick Productions, Caramel Film
Distributor: IFC Midnight
Cast: Milo Ventimiglia, Amanda Schull, Shawn Ashmore, Bridget Regan, Jonathan Frakes
Director: Clay Staub
Screenwriters: Peter Aperlo, Clay Staub
Producers: Valerie d'Auteuil, Ian Dimerman, Scott Mednick, Andre Rouleau, Brendon Sawatzky
Executive producer: Skyler Mednick
Director of photography: Miroslaw Baszak
Production designer: Rejean Labrie
Costume designer: Heather Neale
Editors: Guillaume Girard, Yvann Thibaudeau
Composer: Keefus Ciancia
Casting director: Victoria Burrowsa