You can always count on an inventive and intriguing movie when it comes to anything that Argento has touched, and this Argento-scripted film is just that! The great director has left the directorial duties up to his protégé; Michele Soavi for this movie, and that is somewhat ironic because The Sect easily tops anything that Argento himself directed in the 1990's. Michele Soavi looked pretty promising up until 1994 when he released the astonishing 'Dellamorte Dellamore', and then promptly disappeared off the horror radar. It's a massive shame that the man, up until now, hasn't followed up on his four horror films; as I, and many other horror fans (I'm sure), would agree that if he'd added a few more films to his oeuvre; he could be right up there with the master himself. The plot for this film follows a young woman who almost knocks a man down while driving in her car. She then takes the man home, but due to the events that transpire; it quickly becomes obvious that she didn't take him home purely by chance...
As soon as the movie opens, with America's "Horse With No Name", and then a character quoting lyrics from The Rolling Stones' "Sympathy for the Devil", you just know that you're going to be in for a great ride; and the rest of the film doesn't disappoint! Soavi succeeds in creating a fabulously foreboding atmosphere throughout the movie, and his direction isn't bad either. The locations are great; the underwater labyrinth underneath the house at the centre of the movie, which echoes Inferno, being the very best in that department! Soavi excels at direction, and this only reinforces my point about the massive shame it is that he hasn't followed up on Dellamorte Dellamore. His camera angles are superb and he really knows how to build tension and suspense! Herbert Lom is the pick of the cast, and the classic horror actor delivers an excellent hammy performance and every moment he's on screen is a delight. The film definitely does have problems, however; the fact that it's about twenty minutes overlong is one of them, and the rather silly ending is another - but on the whole, this is an excellent exhibition of horror and comes with a high recommendation from yours truly!
