Parents' Guide to

The Unholy

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Disappointing horror movie is boring despite jump scares.

Movie PG-13 2021 99 minutes
The Unholy Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 10+

Based on 1 parent review

age 10+

No nudity

Please ignore the comment below as I choose to watch it by myself because I read the review below, not sure what they were watching but can guarantee there is no NUDITY at all in this film, so watch it and relax because you will not be seeing any naked woman
2 people found this helpful.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1):
Kids say (4):

This atmospheric horror movie starts off well, with plenty of intriguing imagery and history, but it eventually drifts into autopilot, falling back on routine scares, lazy dialogue, and shortcuts. The Unholy is set in a small town where faith plays a key role, which means old churches and plenty of statues and candles, stained-glass windows, and other symbols -- and even a creaky church basement and a musty old book. There's whispered dialogue about the ancient mechanisms of good and evil and God and the devil. But once the story is underway and the mysteries are revealed, the mood is undone.

Morgan is terrific at this kind of thing, grizzled and sturdy but with an undeniable warmth. Yet his character changes rather rapidly from a self-obsessed, hard-drinking wreck into a man who cares deeply about others. (Other characters barely develop at all.) The plot twists happen too quickly, and mainly on the surface. The scary stuff is perhaps most disappointing, relegated to jump scares, buzzing or flickering lights, and a stale old digital monster that twitches and contorts and lurches ahead in fast-motion. All in all, The Unholy should say three "Hail Marys" for the sin of being boring.

Movie Details

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