I'd heard about this film fairly recently and thought it sounded good. It's a John Carpenter film based loosely on the works of H.P. Lovecraft who is, of course, one of the greatest horror writers of all time. Sam Neil's (Jurassic Park) in the film as well so I figured that was a plus. He's always great. I decided to check it out today and fortunately, it turned out to be one of Carpenter's better films.

The film opens up with John Trent (Neil) being hauled into an insane asylum. A doctor is sent into his cell to see what's up and finds the whole room, including Trent himself, covered in black crayon crosses. We know immediately that he's been through some experience. Once Trent and the doc have become aquainted, he begins his story.

Trent is an insurance claims investigator with a nose for bullshit. His story begins with him instantly sniffing out an insurance fraud involving a man who's burned down a warehouse full of what seems to be fur coats. We can immediately tell Trent's good at what he does.

Trent is summoned by a book publisher requesting Trent track down acclaimed author Sutter Cane, who has mysteriously disappeared. Cane's work is notorious for its strange effects on its readers (after his agent reads his latest book, he tries to (litterally) axe Trent in a resturaunt before being shot down by the police) and is even more popular than Stephen King. Trent accepts the offer, at first thinking Cane's disappearance is a publicity stunt.

After a little snooping, Trent finds a clue to Cane's whereabouts and travels to a secluded New England town, Hobb's End, with Cane's editor/devoted fan, Linda Styles. Once there, they immediately start to witness strange events that bear a strong resemblence to those in Cane's latest novel.

Neil is terrific as Trent. He's extremely charismatic and has a real, no-nonsense private-eye aura about him. As things get increasingly weird, he constantly tries to cling to rationality and what he believes to be reality. Yet continuously, reality gets stripped away from him making Trent's descent into madness an entertaining one.

The hallucinations and supernatural aspects of the film are very well done. There are a few lame jump scares but for the most part, there's a strong, sinister atmosphere sustained throughout the film. The monsters are, for the most part, appropriately kept in the shadows but what we do see of them bares strong resemblence to those of Lovecraft's work (that means a lot of tentacles). The violence is also mostly implied but unlike most horror movies, it doesn't compromise its effect.

All in all, a great flick. Recommended to all horror fans but in particular, fans of Carpenter's and Lovecraft's work. Enjoy.

This is one of my favourites, if not, THE favourite movie of all time. There's something so appealing about this movie...can't quite place my finger on it.

Great movie and worth a watch.

I loved it, sick adventures of one man. I kept thinking about Stephen King. The homeless guys rocked! Also the dude with the bleeding eye and the axe, about to enter the bookstore hahaha. Oh and the dude on the bike god that part scared the hell out of me!