Review of Lord of Illusions (1995) by Everett J — 25 Mar 2009

Lord of Illusions.

Written and directed by Clive Barker.

Starring Scott Bakula, Famke Janssen, Daniel von Bargen, Kevin J. O?Connor, Barry Del Sherman, Joseph Latimore, Sheila Tousey, Susan Traylor, Vincent Schiavelli.

Magic, a guru and a wacky cult are employed in this intriguing noir/horror film from Clive Barker.

The story begins in the lair of Nix (von Bargen) showing a fire trick to a slavish group of his followers. He?s apparently a master of fire and can levitate among other things. He is thought to possess actual magical abilities as he is demonstrating to his flock when we first confront him. He and his cult are quickly confronted by the person of Philip Swann (O?Connor) and his own band of merrymakers. They have arrived in order to rescue a 12 year old girl named Dorothea (Ashley Cafagna-Tesoro) unknowing that the kidnapping was set up as a trap to lure Swan to Nix. Nix uses his power to afflict Swan with a vision where everyone he sees crumbles away leaving an oozing mess behind. He eventually recovers just as the released Dorothea shoots Nix in the back. A few more bullets ring out and soon Nix is buried deep into the ground presumed dead.

Fast forward 13 years and Detective Harry D?Amour (Backula) is sent out from New York to L.A. after an insurance fraud. Instead he finds himself in a mystery that links the cult, Nix and Swann together in a cosmic dance that the film expertly explores and illuminates.

Harry meets Swann and Dorothea (Janssen) who is all grown up and married to Swann. They live in a massive mansion because Swann is one of the most sought after illusionists in the world. He plays a huge show at an old theater the next night and decides to unleash an illusion he?s never attempted in public before. Unfortunately it goes horribly wrong and Swann is killed.

Swann learned real magic from Nix and uses it in his illusions. Subsequently he is shunned by the other magicians who carefully adhere to the edict that their work consists entirely of illusions. They are tricks and real magic does not play a part of them. There is suggestion that they are jealous of Swann either for his gifts or his beautiful wife.

There are persistent mutterings that Nix is going to rise from the grave and take his place at the head of his flock once again. One realizes that the film is building up to this reality and the tension is quite formidable. The film is genuinely creepy and creates an insurmountable sense of dread which agreeably works on the nerves.

The combination of a noir with horror works considerably well. Harry is presented as a straightforward, physically able cop whose sole mission is to solve the case before him. That is, however, until he falls for Mrs. Swann and suddenly his priorities shift. He?s still on the case but now it has been slightly compromised and becomes more of a urgent effort to keep Dorothea safe from harm.

Famke Janssen is photographed exquisitely throughout this film. She truly radiates with a beauty that is both alluring and terrifying. The use of framing and lighting harkens back to an earlier age when cinematic women were consumed with glamour and treated like impossible, intoxicating exotic creatures. Janssen is presented here as a classic noir heroine only she?s tougher and more resilient that many of her predecessors. She?s gritty and fully capable of protecting herself as she demonstrated as a child when she picked up the gun and killed Nix.

There is a clarity about Barker?s vision here. The film has many dream-like elements but they are all properly contained within the narrative. There is a richness of texture to many scenes and the film conveys a strange erotic allure that comes through both Dorothea and other scenes where eroticism is gently toyed with through simple gestures or postures. Indeed, the cult is entirely seductive and the ways in which the worshipers behave is fraught with a delicate sexual tension that calls to mind ancient sex cults.

Thirteen years after the alleged death of their leader the cult members gather up loose ends and head back to the compound. For reasons that are left mysterious they all murder the remaining members of their families, including children, before making the trek back home. They are crazed and eager for something significant to happen and before Nix arises they all cut out most of their hair. They smash glass bottles and when Nix asks them if they will suffer to come onto him they all kneel down on the broken glass emitting tiny cries of discomfort. These individuals are treated as a collection of poor deluded souls who have been horribly tricked by a man who would pretend to be their master. They are lost to themselves and commit horrific crimes all for the sake of following a crazed lunatic.

Nix is a complicated figure of fun in this film. He clearly possesses real magic and has the potential to put it to good use. However, he falls into his own trap and starts to believe he is something of a god. Gradually he becomes disabused of this notion and it?s not altogether clear when he made this assessment. What is clear is that his sole mission in life becomes at some point to ?Murder the world.?

Late in the film it becomes more of a traditional horror film. The focus is set on the resurrection of Nix and all of the preparations that are part of the process of bringing that into fruition. The detective work is set aside momentarily as the great and final confrontation is set in motion.

The performances in this film are all very strong. Scott Backula plays the everyman perfectly and his character is exceedingly affable and easy to get behind. We see much of the film through D?Amour?s eyes and are as bewildered and riveted as he is throughout. Famke Janssen is a fascinating combination of sophistication and street smarts. Dorothea?s presence is clearly felt even when she is not on screen as the film is simply haunted by her intense beauty. Janssen captures the sadness of her character and the heaviness that she maneuvers about with. Daniel von Bargen makes for really intense and charismatic villain. He plays his character with such gravity that it?s easy to understand how he gathered his little flock. Kevin J. O'Connor captures Swann?s fear and despair. Swann is bored with his success and this aspect of his character is readily conveyed by O?Connor. Barry Del Sherman plays one of the most interesting characters in the film. Butterfield dresses like a rock star in his tight glitter pants. He is a most dangerous person and will stop at nothing to ensure that his dark Lord treads the earth once more.

Overall, this is a moody, open exploration into a world of great delight that nevertheless lends itself to great cruelty. Magic is presented in this film as something that can both inspire and destroy and we see how this is made manifest in the characters of Swann and Nix. It is a well constructed film that is successful in both its noir and horror aspects. The film lingers in the imagination and the effect is entirely upsetting which so very few horror film prove themselves to be. The special effects are impressive and the costumes, especially those worn by Famke Janssen, create a glorious sensation that is worked with throughout the picture.