THE DEVIL’S CANDY
MIDNIGHT MADNESS D: Sean Byrne, USA. 90 min. Sep 19, 1:15 pm Scotiabank 14. See listings. Rating: NN
Aussie Sean Byrne’s follow up to his Midnight Madness hit The Loved Ones features heavy metal, a demonically possessed painter and awesome character actor Pruitt Taylor Vince as a red tracksuit-wearing serial killer for Beelzebub. Too bad the writer/director doesn’t know what story he’s trying to tell.
Ethan Embry plays a buff and tatted, metal-loving artist who moves with his wife (Shiri Appleby) and daughter (fresh-faced Toronto-raised Kiara Glasco) to a Texas house that’s being sold for a song because, ya know, a couple was killed there. Before long the dead couple’s son (Vince) comes a-knockin’, and eyeing the daughter. Meanwhile, dad is selling his creepy new canvases featuring tortured kids to a sinister looking dude at a place called the Belial (get it?) Gallery.
There are some good ideas in here, an effective soundscape and the rock-loving family has a refreshing vibe – the family that loves Slayer together stays together. But the needlessly complex and convoluted plot and the vague antagonist will make you scratch your head, not hide your eyes from fear.