magician – Movies of the Soul

Vampire Owl: We already know a good number of mummies.

Vampire Bat: They are not talking about Mr. Frankenstein’s friend here.

Vampire Owl: Dr. Frankenstein’s friends are legends are we have always known.

Vampire Bat: You are still calling that Frank a doctor, when he has never been one.

Vampire Owl: You are still doubting the scientist’s greatness in an inferior world.

Vampire Bat: He is the scientist who invents things which were already invented.

Vampire Owl: His variations are very significant in vampire progress.

Vampire Bat: Well, whatever he does, he would never be a vampire.

Vampire Owl: He is still a leading candidate on the list.

Vampire Bat: The best he can become is a mummy or a demon.

[Gets a uzhunna vada and three cups of Vagamon tea].

What is the movie about? :: Charlie Cannon (Jack Reynor), an investigative television reporter and his wife a pregnant nurse Larissa Cannon (Laia Costa) are living in Aswan in Egypt for about a year before planning to go back to the United States. Katie Cannon (Natalie Grace/Emily Mitchell) and Sebastián Cannon (Shylo Molina/Dean Allen Williams) are their two children with whom they make a happy family with the children all ready to go back to their grandmother settled in New Mexico Carmen Santiago (Verónica Falcón). But one day, Katie who is playing outside finds a woman (Hayat Kamille) identifying herself as the mother of the girl whom she used to meet and play with, Layla Khalil (May Elghety/Aisha Laouini). She uses candy to lure Katie away from the premises before kidnapping her. Charlie tries to chase her, but loses them in an unexpected sandstorm. He and Larissa report the kidnapping to the police, and are assigned an English-speaking junior detective, Dalia Zaki (May Calamawy). She tries to help them, but her seniors feel that it is some family matter and they are responsible for the child going missing.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: In the cellar, the woman has a black pyramid with a black basalt sarcophagus containing mummified human remains. There is no clue about these people for the police, and the couple are forced to leave for the United States and live with Carmen. Years later, they go through a peaceful time with their son and the third child Maud Cannon (Billie Roy) as well as Carmen. Back in Aswan, a cargo plane carrying the same sarcophagus crashes, and inside the police find Katie wrapped in parchment inscribed with an unknown ancient language. Katie, who is in a catatonic state and inflicts self-harms, is taken to a hospital and her parents are informed about the situation. Dalia feels that this is one of the cases related to human trafficking, as many people were taken in and out of Egypt in pyramid pieces ancient coffins due to a history which goes a long way back. But as the girl goes back home, she no longer remains anywhere close to her past or even as a child. Now, the question remains about what has happened to her and what secret she brings.

The defence of Lee Cronin’s The Mummy :: Unlike that series of movies which we have known for some time, this is a darker and more intense horror style related to a mummy, and is not your regular dead wrapped in bandages coming alive. There is no chance for a sword fight here, and the focus here as left a long way from action, focusing completely on horror, and even with another movie titled The Mummy which came separately, the same was not really achieved. But this one becomes a worthy one with that name, and it often makes us feel an Evil Dead model, but with a Sinister model ancient fear ready to be unleashed, making this journey divergent and yet in a model which one would anticipate a horror movie with evil rising out of nowhere to do well. The fans of supernatural horror will not stop appreciating the film’s frightening moments and suspenseful sequences that raise its level. Along with the horror, there are emotions, and in front of the invincible, there is helplessness, and then there is that finish which would bring the whole thing to an end, as this world of fear gets the journey with the final moments that it deserved. We are once again reminded of the evil from the children with inherent evil.

The claws of flaw :: If one would keep looking for some big-time grand action with people fighting the mummies of Egypt with the usual weapons or fists are going to be disappointed, as this one never gets to be that kind of a movie. The movie is also not that quick to get to the interesting part, and we also feel that the narrative style could have been better, and some of the characters might have been better if they were more sensible within a world of horror. The supporting characters could have managed better attention, and the darkness could have been used better in the movie. The Pyramids should have also been given more focus here. The comparisons to other movies will also be there as we keep having the feeling that we have seen some of these before. The horror also gets repetitive and predictable at times, and we keep wondering how too much focus on the past could be avoided, and how the ancient could be mixed with the world shown in the movie. More of the film should have also been set in Egypt.

The performers of the soul :: Jack Reynor comes up with a compelling lead performance as he balances fear, vulnerability and determination as a father while facing supernatural terror. He keeps searching for the secret behind the incidents which led to the crisis that threatens his family and goes to any end to save his daughter. All the feelings are very well depicted around him. Laia Costa as the mother and wife makes the personal stakes feel much more, as she handles the emotional side really well. May Calamawy as the detective provide solid performances and at the same time, adds credibility to this world which is more about horror – for her character, it is her duty and the trust of others that matters, as he goes through a supernatural case and puts her life on the line. There are lots of moments that strike with her around, and along with her, another Egyptian actress who scores the best is May Elghety who blends in with that vulnerability and seemingly some regret from the character so well. Verónica Falcón does well and could have been given a bigger role and more to do against the evil force. The kids come up with some classic performances too.

How it finishes :: It can be said that the movie successfully reinvents the iconic monster for a horror-loving new generation by choosing a darker and more horror-driven approach above the earlier action-adventure model which had very less scope for fear generation. The focus on atmosphere, suspense and psychological terror successfully brings a chilling and unsettling cinematic experience which will inspire further movies with similar ideas focusing on mummies or something similar from even pre-historic ages. Still, we do feel that the movie could have had better pacing and more character development for lesser characters, along with something that transcends through to a newer age added. A deeper exploration of the film’s mythology and a more detailed examination of the ancient curse could have further enriched the story and made this one worth so many movies in a franchise which could even have a prequel – for now, this is all we know about the movie, and we still hope for a sequel. After all, horror is not limited to The Conjuring, The Curse of La Llorna, Annabelle, The Nun and team to score, and this one also brings some nostalgia from those old movies with same title.

Release date: 17th April 2026
Running time: 133 minutes
Directed by: Lee Cronin
Starring: Jack Reynor, Laia Costa, May Calamawy, Natalie Grace, Verónica Falcón, May Elghety, Shylo Molina, Hayat Kamille, Billie Roy, Lily Sullivan

<<< Click here to go to the previous review.

<<< Click here to go to the biggest movie of last year.

<<< Click here to go to the most awaited sequel of the year.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Vampire Owl: So, after a long time, we are back to a movie of this particular language.

Vampire Bat: We haven’t had many movies in this language.

Vampire Owl: Well, the ones available at nearby theatres are those mass flicks.

Vampire Bat: I vote against watching any of such movies.

Vampire Owl: Well, those need not comes to us as we are different.

Vampire Bat: Mass masala has been too much present in this world.

Vampire Owl: It is strange that such movies even get awards.

Vampire Bat: We are glad to have some horror here instead.

Vampire Owl: As long as we have Amazon Prime Video, we can search for them.

Vampire Bat: OTT platforms have served us well with lesser-known fine movies in languages other than English and Hindi.

[Gets a kadai chicken pizza and three cups of iced tea].

What is the movie about? :: Rekha (Ananya Nagalla) is a young lady doing her graduation who has the ability to see spirits. The dead people seem to appear to her randomly, sometimes where they died and often leads to her sleepwalking in the middle of the night. She is in love with Teju (Dhanush Raghumudri) who goes to the same college, and they are like the two people who believes in black magic existing in the area and causing evil to spread through their lands. Teju’s uncle Shankaram (Meesala Lakshman) also understands that this black magic or tantra had once existed in their lands as he himself had once ptractised the same not once, but twice, after which he took the decision to never do it again. According to him, it has been there for a very long time, and are even depicted in Mahabharata and Ramayana, as well as other sacred texts. He also cites incidents from history as much as religious texts.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: When the best friend of Shailaja (Kusalina Pulapa) seems to be affected by this dark magic. When a master of magic known only as Baba (Bhaskar Manyam) confirms the same, they decide to take the needed measures. They understand that Shailaja is getting weaker every day, and has started visiting graveyard at nights. Both Rekha and Teju who had their bad upbringings due to the former being born with the death of her mother and the latter having a prostitute as mother. They manage to defeat the evil sorcerer who was trying to take control of Shailaja forever as she had rejected her romantic advances. They manage to do it just moments before she would be completely under his control. It is then that Vigathi Swami (Temper Vamsi), a sorcerer and temple priest arrives at the village after a very long time, and starts searching for Rekha.

And what is to follow as evil spread during the darkest of nights? :: With a warning about death coming to the village, it is to be known how such ancient evil can be stopped. But Baba himself is helpless against this man who had done black magic with Rekha’s mother and that had actually caused her death. His return after eighteen years is with the determination that matches no other. He will have Rekha one way or the other. He has control over more than one demon, and not just some random spirit that scares people. He is powered by some evil deity that knows no boundaries of evil, and is the over-reacher who will awaken those forces hidden for centuries. With sleepwalking remaining as her habit and after finding her in the middle of the road at late nights during regular intervals, how long can Rekha stop herself from going into his captivity? What does he really want to do with her?

The defence of Tantra :: The movie effectively delivers its scares, and due to the settings used, it could elevate the side of fear with ease, at times. The movie has the pillar of the work done by the leading lady Ananya Nagalla, who makes use of a strong character with a lot of emotional depth – reminds one of the leading actresses of ARM from some angles. The performances including that of the villain remains good, and seems to suit the horror world nicely. The atmosphere is too good here, and with the help of some fine tales from the belief systems combined with the myth, the world works really well. The folklore keeps coming up all the time in here, and the cultural roots work in favour, even though the overdose of talks keeps it in check. The idea of black magic has been used to the best advantage. The links are nicely made here with the incidents and a certain narrative skill can be seen at work. The background sounds work well in support of the movie, and the twist is working with suspense maintained.

The claws of flaw :: The movie has a lot of moments which feels stretched, increasing the total length of the movie itself. It gives too many explanations, and the movie could have done well without some of them. Too much talking often makes a horror movie struggle, as a few things could be left without explaining as if it is a horror tuition class. There are too many flashbacks, and we also find those subplots to be rather too much. The drag is mostly felt due to this reason, and in the end, the movie feels long. The fear generation of the final moments is rather too less, and it seems to forced to get to that end. When there is something too dark and demonic coming in the end, it had to do more, if not with the action, at least with the scares. Well, we have met too many nocturnal creatures of the night to like any lesser one unless backup by enough power. This might not appeal in the same way for everyone due to the extra dose of strange content too.

How it finishes :: I have not seen many Telugu movies, and you would not see many film reviews of the same language here for that reason. I did not watch those most famous Telugu movies which the crowd had watched and have been looking forward to make everyone watch more than once. But I have not been a person who wished to go with the crowd. Therefore, the two Telugu movies which I have reviewed here are Konda Polam and Drushyam 2. This one becomes the third, and the first Telugu horror movie to be reviewed here. In this case, it can be seen that despite the problems with the overall pace, the movie maintains the embedded horror really well. It might have rushed towards that ending, but finishes off well enough. There are some good horror movies, and this one will surely stay with us, as that horror movie which raises its level and uses the less used elements to its advantage too. This one is recommended for horror fans for sure.

Release date: 15^th March 2024
Running time: 134 minutes
Directed by: Srinivas Gopisetti
Starring: Ananya Nagalla, Dhanush Raghumudri, Saloni Aswani, Temper Vamsi, Meesala Lakshman, Manoj Muthyam, Kushalini, Bhaskar Manyam