“Evil Souls” is a 2015 horror film that was directed by Maurizio del Piccolo and Roberto del Piccolo. They both worked on another horror movie back in 2011 called “The Hounds”. The antagonist of “Evil Souls” is named Valentine who is played by Peter Cosgrove. He is known for the recent film “Grainne Uaile” and the two upcoming movies “Dalriata’s King” and “Wonderland”. The protagonist of the film is named Father Albert played by Julian Boote who is known for his parts in The Killing Zone, Dead Room and Mesocafé.
The movie is working with a low budget but the practical effects are great considering that fact. “Evil Souls” relies on what the new French wave of horror has popularized and that’s what I supposed is referred to as “disturbing” or “shock gore”. Some of the shock scenes in this film were reminiscent of one of my favorite movies of all time: “Martyrs”. “Evil Souls” has a way lower budget and the effects are not as nice as they are in “Martyrs,” but I do enjoy anything that emanates it. Be warned, if you are not into that kind of horror film, you won’t like this one at all. Despite its low budget, “Evil Souls” doesn’t shy away from showing all the gore scenes full on, which is what most people love about movies in this genre. As I said above, they are all practical effects too and that’s almost always some bonus points earned right off the bat there.
After the credits roll on this one, all the images you just saw stay with you long after you watch. Yes, it’s one of THOSE horror flicks. You may not have enjoyed the film but just as with movies like the aforementioned “Martyrs” and those such as “A Serbian Film” and “Inside”, you won’t be able to wipe the scenes from your mind. Yeah, what gets presented in “Evil Souls” is not as brutal and chaotic as the films I just named but you get the point. Another thing this film has going for it is great acting. Holli Dillon, who plays the character Jess, really stole the show here. That’s not putting down the other actors here though. They all delivered swell jobs all around.
The plot starts with Dillon’s character Jess coming home to find out her sister is dead and her son has vanished. She is then captured by the perceived criminals and taken away. She awakens chained to a wall in a mysterious place. The set here is reminiscent of the first “SAW,” but I guess that is not hard to replicate. She finds another woman whose son has also been taken by the name of Susan who is played by Paola Masciadri. They team up to try and rescue their missing children.
I’m trying not to reveal too much of the plot because this movie really delivers in that department. The directors really know how get the viewers to follow along without spoon-feeding the audience the answers. Its one of those movies that’s becoming all too rare these days; sweet delivery of a mystery that you actually have to pay attention to understand. This is not a film where you can doze off halfway in and then comprehend the ending when it flashes up on the screen. You’ll want to stay awake for the entirety of this one, not that anyone could sleep through it anyway. Valentine is trying to unleash a very educated and well planned attack on the world using the two women he’s captured. Can Father Albert rescue them in time and save them from further torture and damnation?
I don’t want to spoil the ending because I thoroughly enjoyed it and everyone should get the chance to. The entirety of “Evil Souls” is a very well done independent horror film that delivers on almost all fronts. Personally, I do not even have any gripes to mention here. This film does have a lower end score on review websites but I honestly think this is a diamond in the rough. One of those everybody is skipping but should be watching! Who knows, maybe you will love it and maybe you will loathe it. Won’t know until you check it out! I’ll give “Evil Souls” a 7.5/10 and recommend it to any horror fan that likes the “disturbing” genre and can appreciate what a crew can do on such a low budget.
