THE UNBORN (Rated PG-13)
There are movies intended for an audience with a median age somewhere around 15, and that’s a good starting point to understand why “The Unborn” is a sophomoric exercise in horror.
Amidst the terror that grips a number of young people, the film inexplicably involves subplots of horrific Nazi experiments during the Holocaust. After all, the intended viewers, sadly as the result of a lack of interest in anything that happened in the last century, probably have little knowledge or understanding of the unspeakable acts unleashed by Adolf Hitler and the Nazis on the Jewish people. At least, possibly “The Unborn” performs a service in its small reminder of what was truly real horror.
But then, it’s more likely wishful thinking on my part that “The Unborn” has any significant redeemable qualities. For the most part, it’s another inane horror film, one that insults the intelligence of an adult with an IQ slightly above room temperature. This explains fits of laughter at the most inopportune moments.
The story begins with the obligatory babysitter scene, where our hot college student heroine, Casey (Odette Yustman), is tending to a creepy 4-year-old boy who holds up a mirror to the face of his baby sibling resting in a crib, whispering that “Jumby wants to be born.”
After this wonderful adventure in babysitting, Casey has recurring nightmares, mostly involving a creepy boy materializing out of nowhere as she goes jogging on deserted streets in a wintry Chicago suburb. The dreams get more terrifying, and soon Casey sees the weird little boy outside her window or hiding inside her medicine cabinet.
Other visions start to creep into her life, as Casey sees more clearly that her dead mother committed suicide while living out her last days institutionalized in a mental hospital. Though she’s young, pretty and vivacious, Casey seems headed down the same disturbing path as her mother.
More unsettling is that the fact that Casey discovers the one person who can help her is an Auschwitz survivor named Sofi Kozma (Jane Alexander).
This kindly old lady has good reason to understand why demonic possession could be taking over Casey’s life. For one thing, as a young girl Sofi was subjected to terrible Nazi experiments because she had a twin brother, and the evil German scientists thought twins possibly held the key to figuring out genetic experiments, or something like that.
Strangely enough, it turns out that Sofi is actually Casey’s grandmother, and why this is a sudden revelation is just another one of the movie’s mysteries.
Somewhere in the midst of the unveiling of family secrets, Casey learns from her father (James Remar) that she had a twin brother who died in utero. Of course, at this point, you realize there’s a strange pattern involving Casey’s family, and the likelihood that it won’t rub off on her is dim. As a matter of that fact, Casey’s eyes start to change colors and demonic possession is just around the corner.
After her best friend (Meagan Good) is killed by a monster child, Casey becomes the obvious target for the evil spirit eager to take control of her body. Naturally, this is not unexpected because Casey has a nice body, something evident from shower scenes and her penchant for running about the house in tight-fitting underwear.
Since the absence of clothing is not helpful, Casey seeks out Rabbi Sendak (Gary Oldman) for a good old-fashioned exorcism. Suddenly, the audience is thinking about shades of “The Exorcist,” except there’s no Linda Blair-type head-spinning or pea soup regurgitation.
Anyone older and wiser than a kid half-way through high school paying for this movie deserves to feel cheated. “The Unborn” is an exercise in ridiculous futility.
That an unknown young actress like Odette Yustman, who looks more suited for modeling, would appear in this silly film is understandable. But what’s a fine actor like Gary Oldman doing in this mess? Does he owe Uncle Sam back taxes or was he was blackmailed by the director?
“The Unborn” is an unfortunate waste of money and talent, and a sensible person should avoid it.
DVD RELEASE UPDATE
Pardon my low-brow taste, but I confess affection for the super-charged martial arts action flicks that go by the moniker of Hong Kong cinema.
It’s a thrill then that kung fu masters Jackie Chan and Michelle Yeoh are teamed as undercover agents battling a nefarious drug ring in “Supercop,” which is now being released on a 2-Disc Ultimate Edition.
The latest entry in the celebrated Dragon Dynasty line of adrenaline-fueled martial arts films tells the story of Hong Kong police officer Jackie Chan with a knack for improvisation who meets beautiful but straight-laced Chinese agent Michelle Yeoh.
Together, they bring down the largest drug syndicate in the Pacific Rim, getting the job done with a spectacular arsenal of exciting, high-flying kung fu.
Take it from me, if you will, “Supercop” is one of Jackie Chan’s most beloved films, as it mixes his action chops with a unique brand of slapstick comedy.
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.
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