Soul to Keep (2018)

Movie Name/Year: Soul to Keep (2018)

Genre: Horror, Thriller

Length: 94 minutes

Rating: Unrated

Production/Distribution: Shady Tree Films, Cineque Pictures

Director: Moniere, David Allensworth

Writer: David Allensworth, Eric Bram

Actors: Jordan Theodore, Aurora Heimbach, Sandra Mae Frank, Derek Long, Kate Rose Reynolds, Craig Fogel, Tony Spitz, Brian Donovon, Jessie Jordan

Blurb from IMDb: Beelzebub, a powerful demon hellbent to possess and consume souls goes after siblings and their lifelong friends at a rundown country house.

Cat’s Point of View:

I think there is a chance that the summer heat has made me cranky. Take that thought forward, perhaps, as I tell you that I didn’t really like this movie. I watched this one with a clean slate – I had no preconceived notions of what it might be, nor did I have any expectations.

There was one positive take-away from this film. I discovered a new song that I like. "Loss of Life" by One Eyed Doll is featured during the movie and also played again during the credits. It’s a little repetitive and won’t be up for a Grammy, but I enjoyed the melody and it was catchy.

To be fair, I did appreciate another aspect of Soul to Keep. Sandra Mae Frank (Beautiful Sounds of Love, Switched at Birth, Reverse Polarity) is a talented actress who had just wrapped playing a lead role on Broadway before filming this movie. She is also hearing-impaired. The movie is signed in ASL almost as much as the characters speak aloud. The way this is implemented both through character interactions and the plot, itself, are why I rated the film as high as I did. The signing felt genuine and fluid in the scenes, and it was clear that respect was given to how it was portrayed.

Unfortunately, that’s where my praise ends.

Soul to Keep fell out of the trope-tree and hit every branch on the way down. The opening credits set a tone that, at the same time, sets up anticipation for both the demonic horror aspect and the weird-factor. While the movie doesn’t quite deliver on the first, it hit the mark with the second in spades.

College-age kids partying at an inappropriate location? Check. The same kids dabbling in things they don’t really understand? Check. Sex and drugs? Check. I could go on, but spoilers.

I also didn’t appreciate being spoon-fed one of the plot twists with the ‘how it happened’ flashbacks. It stole from the impact, rather than letting it be a bomb-drop moment. 

Needless to say, I won’t be steering anyone towards this movie. There are far better ways to spend an hour and a half. 

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – None

Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – None

Metascore – None

Metacritic User Score – None

IMDB Score – 4.3/10

CinemaScore – None

Netflix Parental Advisory Rating – TV-MA

Trust the Dice Parental Advisory Rating - R

Trust the Dice: Cat’s Rating – 2/5

Movie Trailer: