The Unholy

R

1988

1h 40m

Horror

List

25%

8 Reviews

Tomatometer

44%

250+ Ratings

Audience Score

An archbishop (Hal Holbrook) puts a priest (Ben Cross) in a New Orleans parish where Satan poses as a temptress in black.

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jeff l

If you like exorcism movies, the church vs. the devil movies, or 1980's cheesy XF, then this should work for you.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Kind of interesting and atmospheric, but ultimately, it kept losing my interest. My mind kept wandering the whole movie, to the point I had to rewind it three times, and I still don't fully understand what was going on. That's not a good sign... The awful creature effects didn't help its cause.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/01/23

Full Review

Audience Member

no se entiende muy bien el propósito del demonio al matar a los curas.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Little-Known Horror Gem, Which Features Priests & Demons & No Demonic Possessions. Which Gives This Film A Watch Factor As Most Big Demonic Films Are Exorcism Related. This Features A Demon Known As The Unholy Who Between Good Friday & Easter Sunday Will Attack Both Priests And Virgins. A Young Priest (Ben Cross) Is Assigned To A Church By Archbishop Mosley (Hal Holbrook), But The Last Two Priests Were Mysteriously Killed By The Demon. A Well Made Film With Almost An Original Plot That's Worth Watching For A Difference In Story.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/21/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Boring, slow, poppycock religious nonsense. Nothing makes much sense, the characters are bland, and I could barely pay attention. Overall uninteresting and dimwitted shlock.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/02/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Quite a creepy sort of movie, but the main character is totally unbelievable: A priest who smokes and doesn't believe in the devil?? How did he become a priest in the first place let alone be put in charge of his own parish?

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

Full Review

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Camilo Vila

Director

Ben Cross

Father Michael

Hal Holbrook

Archbishop Mosely

Jill Carroll

Millie

William Russ

Luke

Trevor Howard

Father Silva

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Anton Bitel

Little White Lies

...one priest's prosaic struggle neither to break his vows nor to exploit sexually a young ward is another's epic, eternal battle between good and evil - and The Unholy tells it both ways...

Feb 25, 2019

Full Review

Walter Goodman

New York Times

There's enough dry ice and tomato sauce laid on to supply a fast-food joint for a couple of years.

Aug 30, 2004

Full Review

Rene Jordan

El Nuevo Herald (Miami)

The Unholy has many good ideas but it's bothersome to see how it all goes to waste in the end. [Full review in Spanish]

Jun 28, 2022

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

It's hard for a movie to maintain any measure of tension when most of its demons look like Ghoulies rejects.

Rated: 2/4

Nov 8, 2021

Full Review

John Higgins

Starburst

After a bright and bloody opening, the film settles into a more mystical story before building to an atmospheric, if silly, climax.

Rated: 6/10

Feb 19, 2019

Full Review

Chuck O'Leary

Fantastica Daily

Rated: 1/5

Oct 20, 2005

Full Review

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Synopsis

An archbishop (Hal Holbrook) puts a priest (Ben Cross) in a New Orleans parish where Satan poses as a temptress in black.

Director: Camilo Vila
Screenwriter: Philip Yordan, Fernando Fonseca, Henry Vargas
Rating: R
Genre: Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 1, 2007
Box Office (Gross USA): $5.5M
Runtime: 1h 40m
Sound Mix: Surround