Satanic Panic was a movie I’d heard a little about online, and I have to admit it got me curious. I vaguely remember a “Satanic Panic” wave of paranoia from the 80’s (But I was a kid then so can’t fully remember the details) whereby everyone was worried that there was a secret underground plot by Satanists to rule the world, or maybe the rock scene. This seems to be a kind of a piss take of that whole thing. I like how they’ve tied this one all in to that.
As luck would have it, one of the local retail stores in my area was closing down and they were getting rid of their DVD / Blu Ray stock so I managed to pick up a few bargains. This being one of them. This one was produced by Fangoria so you know if nothing else the gore content would be top notch. Now to chuck it in the machine and see how it goes!
THE PLOT
The plot of this one revolves around an attractive young woman, Sam. She’s trying to make a buck delivering pizza but it’s not going to well for her. She jumps at the chance to deliver a bunch of pizza’s in a wealthier part of town but is stooged again on the tip. Sam, being the enterprising young lady she is decides to persevere and talk to someone in the house about being fixed up for a tip.
Up on meeting a few of the guests at the party it becomes apparent she’s either walked into an Amway meeting or satanic cult ritual to raise the demon Baphomet from hell and thus rule the world. To do this, Baphomet needs to be reborn through a virgin womb. Yep you guessed it, Sam is our lady! She is captured but manages to escape the cult and runs down the street seeking help. She finds a neighbouring house where a babysitter lets her in and offers assistance. Turns out the baby sitter is the daughter of one of the cult members. She of course alerts the other members of the cult to come get their escaped victim. Sam befriends another girl held captive at the second house and together they attempt to bring down this suburban cult.
THE VERDICT
Overall, Satanic Panic is no much of a thinker. It’s a good bit of fun. The gore, however is top notch. While it’s not an overly complicated, the plot never really seems too hammy or stupid so that it’s an insult to the senses. One thing I have to say as someone that will admit to more than a passing interest in the occult is that the dialogue used in the incantations and rituals seems fairly legit. It’s a nice touch to know the writers of this have at least done some research into satanic rituals (or better yet, are practitioners themselves).
I have to say I had a great time watching this and glad I bought it. I should add lead star Hayley Griffiths is easy on the eyes too. Hopefully she gets some bigger roles after this. There’s no real star power in this (save an appearance from Justin Bateman) but that’s cool. It’s not a classic by any means but definitely worth a look if this seems like something up your alley.
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