...you've heard this one before, right?? The angst, burnt-out and vulnerable priest, having wrestled with his own inner demons, as well as a profound loss of faith, manages to find within himself, a kindling and unswerving righteous justice, in attempting the near impossible task of exorcising a soul devouring demon from a hapless victim. Giving the last bit of strength within him, he grabs and throttles the demon-possessed human vessel...begging, pleading for the hellish spirit to 'come into' him; naturally, in the priest's weakened and vulnerable state, the demon obliges the pleading man of the cloth. However, as the evil spirit attempts to take over, the priest musters just enough of his waning consciousness to let out one last angst and anguished cry...as he jumps out the window, taking the spirit with him...falling several stories, tumbling down a long flight of stairs, and breaking his neck, at the foot of the stairway...thus sacrificing himself, and sending the demon back to it's fiery hellish underground domain...
...now, imagine an outcast rogue team...a motley crew of such angst members of the cloth, who not only have their own inner demons to wrestle with, but outright and purposefully engage in immoral debauchery, in an effort to draw the demonic forces within them, with hopes of driving and banishing the evil spirits down to hell. It's "Ghostbusters", by way of "The Exorcist", in director J.T. Petty's latest contribution to the genre...a riotous, albeit conceptually punches-pulling horror/comedy excursion, called "Hellbenders"...
...right in the onset, we are introduced to the Augustine Interfaith Order of Hellbound Saints...a rag-tag clique of renegade priests, who...by a most unconventional means...are dedicated to the expulsion of demons from the face of the earth. Their motis operandi?? Willfully and purposefully indulging in, and engaging all manner of immorality and debauchery, thus making themselves easy prey, as far as demonic possession; however, not unlike Father Karras, in "The Exorcist", once they are possessed by the invading spirit, they muster and direct the last semblance of their unassumed humanity, towards committing suicide, and in sacrificing themselves, they drag the evil spirit down to the fiery bowels of Hell...
...a fiery end-of-the-world prediction by a possessed clergyman, give reason for the Hellbound Saints to go into action; in the midst of their investigation, one of their own becomes demonically possessed. However, complications set in, when the possessed fails to self-inflict a killing blow, with the remaining Saints themselves proving hard-pressed to vanquish the possessed vessel...their friend and teammate, possessed by the highest order of demons...Surtr, a supposed 'god killer'. As the demon, Surtr, quickly takes to the streets of the city, enslaving unsuspecting citizens into it's worldly destructive cause, the Saints...clearly over their head, but still recklessly confident...attempt to counter the dark powers, hellbent upon destroying the world...all while having to deal with their disbelieving and disapproving superiors, who in considering the rebel group, an embarrassment to the cause...despite their dedicated efforts...are dead determined to shut them down...permanently...
...now, there's definitely something to be said about a good, unique premise...which, there's no denying, we most assuredly have here. There's also a lot to be said about a cast of characters that are quite likable, on a relatable, angst, 'devil-may-care' level...as well as the performers, who are playing those characters, who in the case of "Hellbenders", definitely seemed to have one heck of a good time (...all the more exuded, via the included behind-the-scenes extra), putting these interesting characters on, and walking around in them. However, the film's direction seems to be another matter; in theory, the director's role is not unlike that of being in the driver's seat of a car, and when you take a great concept...the 'vehicle', so to speak...instill some interesting & memorable characters, pack them all into said vehicle, take off down the road...and yet, don't really go anywhere, except the same old places...well, what might have proven a great flick, becomes greatly diminished. And regrettably, that's what we seem to have here, as far as "Hellbenders" is concerned; it's as if director J.T. Petty (...of 2008's notable, Lovecraftian-flavored horror/western, "The Burrowers") latched onto this great idea, reveled in it's initially novel and 'cool' moment...yet, seemed to have no idea where to take the concept...and in desperation, resigned himself in falling back on much more contrived, overly familiar and often ventured territory...hence, the obvious and aforementioned 'Ghostbusters, by way of The Exorcist' moniker...
...but again, what the film lacks in directional and literary originality & intrigue, it takes up the flawed slack in some great characterizations. Genre favorite Clancy Brown (...one of the hardest working character actors out there...physically and vocally...and best known for genre classics, such as "Highlander", "Pet Semetary 2" and "Buckaroo Banzai", just to name a few) clearly seems to be having an absolute ball, in this film, playing Angus, the grizzled, burnt-out, gravel-voiced leader of the purposefully amoral clergymen. Half the time, a hilarious picture of outrageous drunken slobbiness, and the other half...clearly in the midst of painful (...and equally amusing, in a most relatable fashion) hangover recovery, Angus is played as the type of angst person who seems to hate everything, despite his driven, odds-against purpose in the group...weaving a veritable tapestry of obscenity...all the while, making sure that his able-bodied subordinates are fulfilling their constant quota of sin and debauchery. Actor Clifton Collins...easy one of those character actors whom most viewers will recognize, but not be able to immediately recall where (...it took this viewer a moment to realize, "...hey, that's El Heron, from "Crank 2: High Voltage")...also harbors a similarly angst persona, as Angus' right-hand man, Lawrence; however, the roguish character seems to relish his 'best of both worlds' lifestyle, in the sense that he amusingly embraces the immoral activity he engages in, in a sort of self-indulgent, 'fighting fire with fire' sort of way...
...in the end, "Hellbenders"...originally released in a 3D format, though this viewer cannot imagine why, as even the sometimes-supposed-to-shock special effects seem stale (...really? A fiery vaginal gateway? Really??)...seems like the kind of wildly outrageous and energetic genre film, which promises a lot, but tries way too hard to follow through on those promises, and ultimately comes up with something essentially contrived and shoulder-shrugging...the old cliché of 'maximum effort, with minimal results. Eh, worth a look, but be prepared to walk away, recalling the chorus of vocalist Peggy Lee's "...is that all there is?"...
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