Common Sense Media Review
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Disappointing horror bores despite jump scares.
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The Unholy
What's the Story?
In THE UNHOLY, disgraced reporter Gerry Fenn (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) arrives in the small community of Banfield, Massachusetts, to do the kind of story he's been relegated to: investigating a local man's "mutilated" cow. Instead, Fenn finds a strange doll under a nearby tree. He breaks it so he can make up a creepy story to go with the cow and collect his newspaper payment. Not long after, Alice (Cricket Brown), a young woman who is deaf and nonverbal, makes her way to the tree and is suddenly "healed": She can hear and speak. The "miracle" was seemingly performed by the Virgin Mary, and Alice implores others to believe. Fenn starts covering the story, and, as more miracles happen, he begins returning to his former glory. But Alice's uncle, Father Hagan (William Sadler), warns that, where miracles are present, the devil cannot be far behind.
Is It Any Good?
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 imposing 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.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about The Unholy's violence. Does the lack of blood and gore make it feel any less intense? How does the movie create a sense of threat, and which parts stand out as scary to you?
Alice is shown living happily using ASL, but it's later considered a miracle when she "heals." Why is this considered a cliché in disability narratives? Are there other movies you can think of that use this plot device? What are better ways to feature deaf culture and deaf characters?
Do you believe that miracles can really happen? Why, or why not? What constitutes a miracle in your mind? Do you think there's a danger in believing in or hoping for miracles?
Movie Details
- In theaters : April 2, 2021
- On DVD or streaming : May 25, 2021
- Cast : Jeffrey Dean Morgan , Cricket Brown , Katie Aselton
- Director : Evan Spiliotopoulos
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Screen Gems
- Genre : Horror
- Topics : Fantasy
- Run time : 99 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : violent content, terror and some strong language
- Last updated : February 12, 2026
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