4K ULTRA HD Review: THE CONVENT (2000)

 

THE CONVENT 

Directed by:  Mike Mendez

Distributed by:  Synapse Films / MVD

  I am not sure how this film avoided my radar, but not only have I never seen THE CONVENT, I have never even heard of it!   I find this very odd, as it was so much fun!   How did I miss this one all these years!!   Here is the basic plot synopsis from the Synapse Films website:

In 1960, a young woman named Christine enters St. Francis Boarding School for Girls and lays waste to the resident nuns. Four decades later, a group of college students head to the long-abandoned building late one night to tag it with their fraternity letters, little knowing that rumors of the place being haunted are terrifyingly true. Stir in a couple of disapproving cops and a band of unlikely Satanists, and the table is set for a feast of demonic infestation and bloodshed that only the grown-up Christine (Adrienne Barbeau, THE FOG, SWAMP THING) can possibly stop.

  

 This film had me hooked from the very beginning.  In fact, this might be one of the coolest movie openings of all time.  The movie shows us young  Christine going into a convent and wreaking havoc, shooting up the place, and burning the priest and nuns.  This is done in slow motion, to the tune of "You Don't Own Me" by Lesley Gore.  This is such an effective opening, and the music is perfect for this opening scene.   

  We don't really know why Christine is doing this, but later in the film we get the full story of why she did it from the adult Christine, played by horror legend Adrienne Barbeau.   Speaking of horror royalty, we also get to see the great Bill Moseley in this film, although I was not a fan of his part.  He plays a cop alongside an interesting casting choice in rapper Coolio.  They play a very comedic pair, which was very reminiscent of the horribly out of place cops in THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT.  The comic relief was not needed in that film, and it wasn't needed here either. 

  

  This film reminded me of movies like, DEMONS, and NIGHT OF THE DEMONS.  If you liked those films, you will love this one.   Although made in 2000, it had more of a feel of a 80's or 90's film, and that is a compliment for sure!    The film was full of some great practical effects, and the makeup effects on the main demon were amazing, utilizing some sort of glowing make up to make it look like her veins were glowing a cool blue color.  Very well done!  

 While I never saw an older version to compare it to, I have to say that his 4K UHD version looks amazing.   Very vibrant colors and super sharp picture!  If you have an older DVD of this film, you'll definitely want to do yourself a favor and make an upgrade to the 4K Ultra HD disc!

  THE CONVENT is available now from Synapse Films and MVD Entertainment and contains the following special features:

• *Limited Edition Combo (4K UHD + Blu-ray) Release of only 4000 units total
• *Limited Edition Slipcover only on this combo release
• *4K remaster of the uncut version supervised and approved by director, Mike Mendez
• *Mastered in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• *5.1 stereo surround mix from the original 16-track audio masters
• *Cast and crew audio commentary, featuring director Mike Mendez
• *“Lords of Hell” audio commentary featuring Saul and Dickie-Boy
• *Video tour of both THE CONVENT and KILLERS film locations
• *Vintage “Making of” featurette
• *Vintage original studio Electronic Press Kit (EPK)
• *“It’s Always Something with a Virgin” Liner notes booklet from Corey Danna
• *Deleted scene
• *Gore outtakes
• *Still gallery
• *Promotional trailers
• *Reversible cover art

CLICK HERE to watch the trailer

CLICK HERE to purchase the Blu-ray

CLICK HERE to purchase the 4K UHD