Christian Mythos 

 

The Eighteenth Angel (1997)

Lucy Stanton (Rachael Leigh Cook) is the final thing needed by a group of Satanic monks to bring the Devil to Earth.  It is up to her father (Christopher McDonald) to save Lucy.

Screenwriter David Seltzer hadn't written a good script since 1976's The Omen, so he dusted off that old success, and rewrote it.  Satan is coming back...again...in the form of a youth.  And again, a father must uncover the truth as others die grisly, devil-induced deaths by falling from heights, being impaled, and being ripped apart by animals (this time it's house cats instead of dogs—yes, a person is killed by vicious tabbies, probably named fluffy). 

Of course Seltzer made some substantial changes so he could sell it as a different movie.  First, he took out all the mystery; everything is given away at the beginning and we just watch the obvious unfold.  Second, instead of just mating with a dog, the devil can only return if a nonsensical combination of events take place, including the countdown of a giant clock, genetically engineered humans, and the removal of the faces of a number of children.  None of that is important to the story, but it is laying there just to confuse matters.  There's also a lot less action and drama, and a lot more bitching and whining.  What could be more entertaining in a horror film about the end of days than scene after scene of an overprotective father yelling at his late teen daughter about proper behavior?  There's not a lot to recommend The Eighteenth Angel (it's a low ), but if you really want a Revelations flick and you've seen the good ones, this will do for background.

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