Immaculate – A Gonzo Nun Horror (Early Review)

Hot off the holiday season’s smash romcom hit Anyone But You, the Sydney Sweeney-aissance continues with her first foray into the horror genre. Immaculate, directed by Michael Mohan (who previously helmed The Voyeurs, another Sweeney vehicle) is a modern update of the “nunsploitation” subgenre with a few extra tricks up its sleeve. The film is certainly one that is best when going into it as blindly as possible, to better embrace its fun and shockingly over-the-top finale. It’s just a shame that the series of events leading up to that finale is less inspired.

Immaculate follows Sister Cecilia (Sweeney), an American nun who has relocated to an Italian convent that specializes as a hospital treating elderly nuns during their final days. Slowly integrating herself into the inner workings of the convent, making friends with Father Sal (Morte) and her fellow sister nuns. Following a shock virgin pregnancy, those around her believed Cecilia to be the reincarnation of the Virgin Mary and as her belly grew, so did her suspicion of what may have led to the pregnancy and the odd (perhaps supernatural?) happenings taking place within the convent. As most audiences have come to expect time and time again from films of this ilk, not everything is quite as it seems, and the way the film tackles that trope this time around saw it progress in a way that led to an incredibly fun twist that will not be spoiled here. Meanwhile, Sweeney, as an actress, has been a mixed bag for many audiences, never quite being believable outside of her natural charm. However, here, she cements her status as the next “final girl.” Her success here perhaps suggests that horror is a genre that Sweeney should take on more. As the fate of the entire film rests on her shoulders, it works all the better because of it.

The marketing, story and general “air” about the film initially gives off the impression of it being more of a thoughtful treatise on, faith, fanaticism, gender politics in religion. Ultimately, the film instead delivers a more traditional (and slightly schlocky) jump scare fest over the course of its 89 minute runtime whose focus rested entirely on getting to its scares as quickly as possible. While nothing that horror fans haven’t seen countless times before, its very filmic visual style creates a few memorable sequences. Also, a much gorier film than one might expect, it features some really gnarly images that are to have some audiences wincing in places. Though its ultimate destination is fairly inspired, the time leading up to it is enjoyable, if slight. Its build up of suspense and dread is fairly rushed, giving Sweeney less to chew on as the story lacks a slow unraveling of understanding. Instead, the story seemingly flips a switch from slight unease to full out “I need to get out of here” which does this story a disservice.

In the end, Immaculate doesn’t quite live up to (or entirely earn) its final act reveal, but it remains an entirely watchable and quite fun horror watch, all thanks to Sydney Sweeney’s presence anchoring it. While the film should have worked to better convey some of that finale’s energy throughout to truly create a “made for sickos” vibe, it is still more gonzo than similar films as of late. Fans of Sweeney and those looking for a fun scary movie should find themselves, for the most part, satisfied even if they don’t find it all entirely immaculate.

still courtesy of Elevation Pictures

If you liked this, please read our other reviews here and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter or Instagram or like us on Facebook.

Alex Josevski

letterboxd.com/groovyalex391/