Review No.39: American Evil

It's funny how much the artwork on some of the DVD covers affects what you think the film would be about. Take the case of American Evil, a 2008 film only released thanks to Bradley Cooper's new leading man status, which on the cover has Cooper surrounded by blood suggesting that this is some sort of gruesome horror film. But then I went to imdb and sought out the original cover poster for the film initially titled Olden than America which has a large cross signifying a grave with Cooper's face one of the three main leads. In fact Cooper is only a supporting part of the story as a geologist who has journeyed to a small Native American community to investigate a possible small earthquake and what has caused it. The main focus of the story is Rain, played by writer/director Georgina Lightning, who is having visions of her mother's childhood in a strict Catholic boarding school run by a sinister priest who is now very friendly with her aunt. Indeed Rain's aunt Apple is one of the main reasons that her mother has ended up in an instituiton and the reason why Rain doesn't want to leave her to go off with her fella who has been accepted into the FBI. Though there are some deaths I wouldn't call this a horror film instead it is Lightning's expose of how the Catholic church treated the Native Americans and how the tremors at the old school are part of their revenge.

The deception about the cover art makes me suspect that this film has been tailored towards fans of Bradley Cooper as well as those who like a good horror film. If you're in either of these camps I feel you'll be disappointed as I feel Lightning has set out to make a film about her ancestors and Native American culture and in that respect she has done quite well. I do applaud her for wanting to make a film that sheds light on the treatment of her people but at the same time it is let down by the story, the camerawork, the dodgy score and some seriously shoddy acting with only herself trying to make the situations seem believable. The prize for wooden acting has to go to Stephen Yoakam as the sinister priest who is so bad his performance is almost worth watching the film for its laughable qualities. Outside several of the Native American ceremonies depicted in American Evil there is not much to like although it does share some similarities with the Spanish film The Orphanage those similarities make you realise just how good that film is. I do think there was a good film in there somewhere but it has been muddled by some really basic errors and some deceptive advertising my advice would be to seek out The Orphanage instead as its a much better film.

Verdict: Just because I admire all the work that Georgina Lightning put into this muddlled and messy film I will give it a 3/10