Fresh and Exciting

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

Two commandos from New Zealand arrive on the Channel Islands the day before D Day. The aim of the allies is to cause havoc there to distract the Nazis and draw their attention away from Normandy.They are about to enter a bunker but a Nazi comes out warning them of what's inside. The commandos kill him and enter the bunker. One of them is quickly dispatched. The other is grabbed and bound by the last remaining Nazi in the bunker. A woman constantly screams in the background as the Nazi aims to interrogate the commando who doesn't reveal much. The Nazi managed to grab a photograph from the commando showing a woman, but he won't reveal who she is until the Nazi threatens to burn the photo. That's when the commando starts talking.The room where they are in is filled with corpses and body parts, there is a book with a pentagram too. When the commando manages to turn the tables he investigates upstairs what's with the screaming woman. But to his surprise, it's his woman, the one from the photograph. The Nazi warns him not to believe his eyes nor what the woman says, that she's some type of female demon who is responsible for the carnage in the bunker and who has an appetite for human flesh. He's the last one of a unit that was sent to look for esoteric artifacts which then the Nazis will try to use for their military advantage. He wants to defeat the demon but needs the commandos help. They engage in a ceremony but the commando wants to eliminate the Nazis as well.The Devil's Rock sure is small budget. There are only a handful of actors and few locations, but it's a good-looking movie. We are made to spend too much time listening to the Nazi and the commando talk. Still, the movie works. Things improve once we meet the occasionally sexy demon-girl. It could have been even better had they picked a more attractive actress for that role, like the lovely Jessica Grace Smith who gets only a few seconds screen time. The historical and esoteric stuff is well researched and well done. So are the props. There's a bit of good gore and effects. It's a movie with the right ambition for the budget, they didn't try to do something they couldn't do.

I have to say that as with all occult films there are based lines of cheesy stories to say the least. But this one happen to give a nice boost to the horror genre in a most unique fashion. An island close to Normandy is housed by a creature called Ven Varas. A demon who uses lust as well as illusion to lure her prey in only to devour them like a piece of steak. In the middle are two soldiers who was assigned to blow up a gun that kept back most of the US's forces. During their sabotage they hear an ear piercing scream followed by a German soldier who runs outside to throw up from what he tried to explain was the most horrible scene a human should ever bear to witness.Seeing as this presented a problem to the two saboteurs they killed him to keep him silent. Now as they enter the bunker to investigate this sudden turn of events Grogan (Craig Hall) encounters a second Nazi soldier after his partner is killed. Both become unwilling partners to stave off an unholy demon called the Ven Varas but to Grogan's demise learns that the ritual to put her back into hell is just a ruse to keep her on earth a while longer with Grogan's life. Beating his ill-gotten Nazi partner off he realizes that the demon might be a constructive host to beating the German front men.As the Ven Varas knows Grogan's real intent she is not all that unwilling to eat her fill. With a last ditch effort he chains her to a wall in order for the real horror to begin as soon as he leaves the island. Whatever she was the Ven Varas knows the true nature of man through feeling or emotions. For many years of watching horror films I have to say this creature was very original in all aspects. No cheesy monotone mechanical voice overs or robotic sounding vibratos to give the demon its flavor. No I must say that this movie was very nicely directed with all manners of horror. Blood, gore was gratuitous as well as a nice story line to the demon's origins.I liked the music, the realm of darkness bound to an island as well as the very few individuals, which made up the plot to a thick paste. With very few actors rather than a hundred cast it gave this story a more surreal sense of true fear. Seeing all of the soldiers killed by the monstrous demon shows us that no man is safe from persecution. In some ways this story did resemble another fabulous movie called 'The Keep'. Where a demon called Molasar was hunted down and killed by another of his kind by the name of Glaeken Trismestigus. Both were of the same race but lived on separate sides of the tracks.Yet The Devil's Rock had more to offer than just special effects, it offered a good twist to the story. A nice trail to follow with Grogan and his offer by the demon. As well as seeing the ultimate way to die when his foolish German partner got his head eaten whole by Ven Varas in one gulp. I give this film ten stars for original plots, music, effects with blood and gore, and a gritty look to the scene as if to say this is all there is folks, accept your death since there is nothing else on this island.Paul Campion is a good director, his eye on shots are keen and precise. Giving the Ven Varas life on camera was an excellent image to behold and no overacting on the demon's part like all others tend to give. No offish or oafish movements, nor was there any signs of over the top movements like some mindless fish out of water. It was smooth, graceful and held terror in her stare like all demons should have. For those who like this kind of genre it has everything you can want and more. Great for over the ages of 17. Not for minors in any sense.

Nothing – not even crap movie logic – annoys me as much as an actor who thinks that mumbling is the hallmark of great thespianism. For most of the movie I struggled hard to understand what that moron was saying. Sunderland pretty much talks like a ventriloquist for the duration. It's as if his mouth had been sewn shut by a Clive Barker cenobite; you can barely see it move. Pity this wasn't a Hellraiser movie, because I would have enjoyed seeing him torn to pieces, even if it'd just be make-believe. Worse yet, this cretin talks in a very low volume. Heavy-duty mumbling + low-volume slurring = a very unhappy viewerTo make matters worse, Sunderland is part of nearly every scene after the first 15 or so minutes, and ALL of the movie's exposition comes through his barely-moving lips, so if you can't understand what he is saying you're basically screwed. If the time has come for English-speaking viewers to have to hunt down English subtitles for English-speaking movies, then it's time to EJECT A FEW ACTORS AND DIRECTORS PERMANENTLY from show-biz. I hope this guy never works again, at least until he learns the BASICS of performing in a movie, i.e. BEING FRIGGIN' UNDERSTOOD. Until then, flipping burgers is the best application I can envision for him. Perhaps rolling hot potatoes in his mouth could prove as useful practice; might teach him to separate the upper and lower jaws on occasion.As for the plot, it's pretty straight-forward. Two Ally soldiers find a German post dripping in blood, with nearly all the Nazis hacked and butchered. The rest of the movie is one big pull-and-push between the Nazi and the New Zealander, in what is supposed to be a great battle of wits. In the end, the Nazi snuffs it and the Ally soldier opts not to send the succubus back to Hell. He thinks it wise to use it as a weapon against the Nazis, not realizing that such a creature can do more harm than good in the long run. That's what you get when you let Kiwi peasants make crucial decision, I guess.So what's the point here? That a New Zealand farmer won D-Day for the Allies because he didn't send a succubus back to Hell? While it does evoke memories of "Outpost", it is fairly original with its single setting, just two men, and a female demon whose sole tactic is sex. TDR manages to remain interesting in spite of its limited setting, just three characters, and a deranged mumbler. The fact that both soldiers were wounded and badly beat up on several occasions, yet STILL managed to talk, walk and function was a quite on the absurd side. Plus, I didn't understand the entire plot – but I have that to thank Sunderland for. Nice job, moron!

Great sound, good lighting, and a solid cast make this one solid film. Not your typical Nazi Occult film at all. Unusually bright well lit corridors, and just the right amount of gore as to not be excessive, or unnecessarily over the top. If you are looking for a good movie, and you can handle the sight of a little blood, then you will be pleasantly surprised. That is not to say that any real boundaries are pushed, or that you will see much if anything new here. It gets right to the point, and does not make you wait half the movie to get clued in so you will most likely Enjoy your time spent with this particular Demon of yours.