Horror Movie Review: Resurrection (1999)

Directed by Russell Mulcahy, written by Brad Mirman who wrote the story with star of the movie, Christopher Lambert. Resurrection is ballsy horror/thriller film with some impressive moments weighed down by how much of a blatant rip-off it is of Seven.

Don’t believe us about the Seven similarities? Check out this brief synopsis.

Two police officers hunt a mysterious serial killer who always seems to be one-step ahead of them. This takes place in a dark, grimy and rain-lashed city, and time is running out to stop the killer before he completes his goal.

That is Seven. It is also Resurrection.

It’s incredibly distracting, which is a shame as Resurrection has some style, plenty of substance and memorable moments.

Christopher Lambert plays homicide detective John Prudhomme. A no-nonsense cop who is dealing with his own personal tragedy, the unfortunate death of his young son. To cope, he has thrown himself into his work, abandoned his faith and distanced himself from his wife. The only one he seems to enjoy being around is his partner, Detective Andrew Hollinsworth (Leland Orser).

Being homicide cops in a big city, it’s not long before the pair are called to a murder scene. Par for the course it would seem, that is until they discover this victim has had his arm amputated, Roman numerals have been carved into his body and the words ‘he is coming’ have been painted in blood on the window.

This is no ordinary killing. In fact, it’s the work of a serial killer who has decided to theme the spree around Easter. Yes, if you can believe it, Resurrection is an Easter-themed horror movie. One that avoids the bunnies and chocolate eggs, in favour of the religious aspect of the holiday.

This killer is collecting body parts from victims who are the same age and bear the names of Jesus’ disciples. Why? So, Christ can rise again in the monstrosity created from the different body parts. Well, that’s a bit different, isn’t it?

This killer is very smart though and seems to be several steps ahead of John and the rest of the police. To catch him, John is going to have dig deep and deal with his own personal issues along the way.

It’s a cliché-filled movie, one that straddles the line between entertainment and ridiculousness. One moment, you’ll be enjoying the heart-racing tension and mystery and then you’ll be laughing about the stupidity of it all. The film certainly takes itself very seriously but that just makes the laughs come all the harder.

Part of that comes from Lambert who is his uncharismatic best here. Unlikable and wooden, if you’re not a fan of his style, he’s not going to win you over here. He’s almost always outclassed by the supporting cast and that include the killer. The identity of who you can see coming a mile away.

Does that ruin the fun? Absolutely not and the ending, while nonsensical is hilariously entertaining.