Summoning up Spirits is Not Easy in Séance: A Movie Review

Director/writer: Alex Wright.

Cast: Bobby Campo, Nazneen Contractor, Devon Ogden and Chris Olivero.

Who needs a Ghost Whisperer when Eva (Nazneen Contractor, "24"), a Santería Priestess, can do a better job? In the movie Séance: the Summoning, she proves that those folks gifted with the ability to know what they are doing while others are out for a quick buck. When the religion is a blend of both Roman Catholic and Western African (Vodon) beliefs, the knowledge they wield is far more comprehensive than any one faith can cover.

In the real life world, the Voodoo religion is still practiced in Haiti. Players are not all that careful in the deals they make at the crossroads. Eva has never come to grips with her roots and this movie is more about her compared to any of her friends.

To see Eva keep a level head throughout the film is this movie's main saving grace. The rest is throwaway. Not many viewers will care for them even though the performers do a good job in making their behavior believable. Joey (Bobby Campo, The Final Destination) is Eva's jerky boyfriend with one huge machismo complex. His best friend Marcus (Chris Olivero, Kyle XY) behaves even more asinine. How he got the security job at the city morgue must be questioned. As for why Sara (Devon Ogden) stays with Marcus, this question lingers.

The answer is simple; they're all college kids with a C grade intellect, except for Eva. These so-called friends think conducting a séance in the morgue will be fun. They are very wrong!

Eva is the only super-smart one in the group. Despite continuous warnings, her friends simply want to see her talk to ghosts. Joey needs viable proof that his girlfriend can indeed communicate with them. The plot races around a bet to see who is right. But in the end, in true predictable fashion, the only people who know right are the ones who survive.

Now if Eva started invoking Papa Guédé or even Baron Samedi to come to her aid, then this movie would not feel like another stock product. When compared to many other movies that share the college kids flirting with danger theme, this product does not stand out against the crowd. Demonizing another person's beliefs can work if it is done right, but this film does not go far enough. This film is off the mark when logic does not prevail. Results are always guaranteed when an Ouija board is used. But no one knows what kind of souls—good or bad—may be lurking about in a morgue. Some are just waiting for the grim reaper to arrive to take them away than wanting to talk with the mortician.

Eva's feeling about the place is easily summed up when she says, "The energy is all weird in here."

Unlike other neo-modern ghost stories, the presence is never met head-on. Point-of-view shots a la Evil Dead suggests the horror that is to come. And to see the cast play with an authentic Ouija board can potentially be dangerous. Was there anyone in the production team who knew how to open and close a session? To see Eva give an accurate tarot card reading by properly dissecting what the Devil card means is surprising. The facts are true!

This movie is actually entertaining even though most of the plot and character development gets silly and pretentious. The chemistry between Ogdan and Contractor is very good and their humourous antics can draw viewers in when the plot gets hairy. Nobody can really care for the boys. When the film strips away the machismo element, to see two schoolgirls try to do an exorcism while freaked out is voyeuristically appealing. Beyond that, to try to watch this movie again becomes a struggle. In this swarm of ghost, possession, and exorcism movies that are flooding the market, this movie buzzes about seeking attention. One swat and it's dead.

Overall: 4.5 out of 10.

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Posted in: 2012,2012 release,movie review,possessed,possession,supernatural