Review: Warlock: The Armageddon (1993)
Directed by: Anthony Hickox
Starring: Julian Sands, Chris Young, Paula Marshall
Written by: Kevin Rock
Music by: Mark McKenzie
Country: United States
Available on: Blu-ray (Vestron), DVD (Lionsgate)
IMDb
Anthony Hickox, he of the thoroughly entertaining and underheralded horror sequel, strikes again with the follow-up to 1989’s Warlock. This flick is really only related to the original by the presence of Julian Sands, who’s much more serious and much less ponytailed this go-round. Again he’s up to some evil shenanigans to bring his pops, Satan, to earth for the end times. Here, Braveheart isn’t around to protect everyone; it’s up to Chris Young, a Druid warrior unaware of his true destiny, to save the world in a timely fashion so he doesn’t piss off Cammie again (country gals only forgive tardiness once, Buck). He’s trained in the ways of Druidity by his father — played by Steve Kahan, who’s pleasant but looks a little out of his element without Riggs and Murtaugh keeping him on his toes — in a sequence reminiscent of Luke Skywalker’s training on Dagobah. Composer Mark McKenzie’s score during the scene even has what I believe are homages to (or very ill-concealed ripoffs of) John Williams’ classic Star Wars cues. Young is joined in warlockian battle by Paula Marshall, another of the many connections this movie has to Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth (1992). Both films, directed by Hickox, are similar in their tone and harebrained ambition, which half the time is wonderfully rewarding and bizarrely terrible the other half. Most of the brilliance occurs during some truly wild gore gags, including a grotesque birth, an elevator turned into an abattoir, an out-of-nowhere scalping, and the Warlock’s final, melty demise. There are also a few (such as a Picasso-inspired death) that are pretty creative, but don’t really work. Most of the gambles that lose are related to Hickox’s obsession with animating objects to give the (completely unconvincing) impression of levitation. Too bad no one told him it looked so stupid. Oddly, this entry is much less funny than the first film — a little surprising considering the director’s predilection for infusing his horror with comedy. But that’s not to say this movie is drab or in any way boring; it’s remarkably entertaining and Hickox and co. never really let you down when it counts. Even the climax, which seems at first like a disappointment, ends up being a fake-out that ends in beautifully grisly fashion. And, on top of all this mania, you’re treated to an absolutely adorable squirrel kiss thanks to Druid powers apparently including the ability to commune with animals of the forest. Sure, the story’s shallow and the acting isn’t aces all the time, but Warlock: The Armageddon brings the fun with the apocalypse and manages to keep its mythology engaging, even as it shifts.
Overall rating: 7 out of 10
