Wes Craven’s My Soul To Take Review

• 4th Apr 2011

After five long years Wes Craven finally returned to the director’s chair with his most recent feature. His first as writer and director since New Nightmare back in ‘94, this teen slasher film feels like it is trying to relive some of his past glories. Which unfortunately does not fair too well, it tanked at the US box office and had a very limited release in Blighty, making this reviewer slightly apprehensive about viewing Craven’s most recent work.

It plays out like a hybrid of Nightmare On Elm Street, Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2 (without the homoerotic subtext) and the first Scream. All of which feels stale with an uncomfortable feeling of familiarity. After five years I would have thought Craven would be the one to inject a bit of life into the supernatural slasher genre.

The plot concerns a group of teens, seven in total, all of which were born the day the town’s infamous serial killer, the Riverton Ripper, was exposed and subsequently disappeared after being mortally wounded. Sixteen years later, seven children who were born that night begin getting slain under mysterious circumstances. Is it true that the soul of the Ripper has gone into one of the teens or is there something else at work altogether?

After an attention grabbing prologue, containing some of the best visual images Craven has created for some time; it quickly descends into generic slasher territory. It seems that Craven is content to just repeat the same moments from some of his better known films, leaving little or no surprise for the viewer. During several moments I found myself to have a distinct feeling of deja-vu. Herein lies the problem for My Soul To Take, its lack of originality coming off as one of those rushed out, greatest hits compilations you inevitably receive at Christmas.

For a film that only contains a small smattering of interesting ideas, it succeeds at not following through on them. For instance, it feels as though Craven is rehashing past glories, one moment even has a decidedly Nightmare On Elm Street vibe. It’s a shame because it was done so much better, and without CGI effects, 26 years previously.

It all feels a bit old hat and after a five year hiatus there is the sense that Craven is treading on safe ground. Where Red Eye felt like a step forward for Craven, My Soul To Take is almost seven steps backwards. He has produced a film which is decidedly mediocre and undeniably inferior to his past efforts. I think the main issue is, this is far from an evolution and contains none of the dry wit or darkly comic humour that has been peppered in his script work.

One of the films saving graces is that it is beautifully shot with some eye catching vistas, so even if the cast does not contain any moments of worthwhile acting, the scenery and eye for dark and gloomy detail is ever present. The new ‘Boogieman’ – in the form of the Ripper – is an effectively creepy presence at times, with Craven being wise and confining it mainly to the shadows or dimly lit areas.

This is certainly a low point for Craven – of which he has had more than his fair share in the past – becoming a predictable and often boring attempt at resurrecting some respect within the slasher field. It is a real shame as this reviewer genuinely wanted to like it and it is with baited breath and an equal dose of trepidation that I await the incoming Scream 4 which will hopefully be a new Craven film to savour.

Both the DVD and Blu-ray arrive with the same extras. There is an interesting commentary by Wes Craven and 20 minutes worth of deleted and extended sequences – none which add anything to the film itself. There is also an extended and alternative beginning and ending, all topped off with a trailer (which makes the film look more exciting than it actually is). In all honesty, this is one for Craven completists and even they will be hard pushed to find this anything other than a slasher-by-numbers film, far from what the great man of terror has produced in the past.

Dominic O’Brien