Lost Souls

New Line Cinema, VHS, DVD, 2000, Rated R, 1 hr. 42 min.

Maya Larkin (Winona Ryder) was exorcised in her youth, and now she helps perform exorcisms on others. During one such exorcism, Maya learns the name of a man who will soon be possessed by Satan and begin a reign of evil over the world. When Maya confronts the man, Peter Kelson (Ben Chaplin), he is, rightly so, skeptical. But he soon comes to believe her and together they try to reverse what has already begun before the time of Peter’s transformation. 

Director Janusz Kaminski, who in 1993 won an Academy Award for his black-and-white photography for Steven Spielberg’s Schindler’s List, delivers a creepy, suspenseful film in the tradition of The Exorcist. The movie is purposely filmed grainy, which creates enhances the atmosphere. Lost Souls is filled with disturbing imagery and a deep sense of foreboding and helplessness. It makes the coming of Satan more real and scary than other movies, such as The End of Days, while using less special effects.

This is definitely not a great movie, but it is an entertaining rent. One of its problems is that the script never really gets going. It’s like there are a few good scenes held together by a bunch of junk. The acting is good, especially Winona Ryder, who brings vulnerability, strength, and believability to her role. 

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Reviewed by: Hauntmistress 4/08/2001