‘The search for God is an open door for the Devil’
Immanence is a 2022 American science fiction horror film about radio astronomers investigating a meteor strike in the Bermuda Triangle.
Directed by Kerry Bellessa (Amber Alert) from a screenplay co-written with Joshua Oram (Amber Alert). Produced by Michael Beach, Kerry Bellessa, Summer Bellessa and Cassandra Jones.
The Bluefields Entertainment-Buffalo 8 Productions movie stars Michael Beach (Midnight in the Switchgrass; Deep Blue Sea 2; Insidious: Chapter 2), Summer Bellessa, Eugene Byrd, Anthony Ruivivar, Kasia Pilewicz, Asenneth Del Toro and Jamie Mcshane.
Plot:
While investigating a meteor strike in the Bermuda Triangle, a team of radio astronomers discover a mysterious signal in the deep sea that could be the world’s first contact with extraterrestrials. After witnessing various impossible phenomena, the team becomes convinced that something is trying to communicate with them.
Aboard their boat is Jonah (Michael Beach), a loner with a mysterious past and cryptic motives. His illogical faith leads him to suggest that this communication may be a manifestation of divinity, a hypothesis that the scientists immediately reject. Soon the communications go from inexplicable to terrifying, threatening not only the team’s beliefs but also their lives…
Our review [contains a spoiler]:
Decently shot (despite a surfeit of clichéd red/green lighting) and well-acted, Immanence initially suffers from an overly-talkative script that pointlessly posits baseless religious nonsense from thousands of years ago against current scientific facts. After 44 minutes of seemingly endless chat and no suspense or horrific moments, the mixed-match investigators find another boat. Aha!
Henceforth, all Hell breaks forth and Immanence provides a few creepy images and genuinely bonkers moments. Willingness to go along with this head-scratching stuff will depend on viewers’ individual tastes but kudos to filmmakers Kelly Bellessa and Joshua Oram for shooting a half-intriguing mystery on a boat with a micro-budget.
Based on all the previous religious babble, it’s no spoiler to reveal that “God, Jesus, the Bible and me (i.e. the Devil himself) is all real.” But why does Beelzebub (who, oddly, has one red eye) decide to reveal himself to a handful of people on a boat in the Bermuda Triangle. The Omen franchise suggested the Devil had his eyes real power (and not just a boat at sea) in the Whitehouse…
Then the film seems to suggest (it’s all somewhat jumbled) that there’s a religious conflict involving dark matter, dark energy and billion-dollar companies, apparently. So, perhaps Mark Zuckerberg or Jeff Bezos is the Antichrist?
Some of the “bullshit” (to quote the film itself) spouted in Immanence will cause most viewers to just yawn and tune out but if you are overly patient it’s the kind of cynically compiled crapola that might draw you in for a laugh at the oddball sermonising it offers. Most people will feel conned for having wasted their time watching unsubtle Biblical messaging in what they’d assumed was a horror film.
Adrian J Smith, MOVIES & MANIA
Other reviews:
“A great story and the fire of the debate of God and the Devil […] A film best left for one to watch and see how it plays out. I don’t want to spoil it so be sure to check it out. My only issue was a little more backstory of some of the team members would have filled in some gaps.” 7/10 Drop the Spotlight
“The acting of the good Michael Beach is not enough to guarantee the balance of a work that is too unbalanced in the direction of a liturgical parable. An unsuccessful film also on a photographic level, due to a bad cinematography that makes the images extremely dark. It’s not surprising that someone carries on religious belief even by pouring their ideas into the form of films, it’s surprising instead that they do it badly…” FilmTV.it [translated from Italian]
“While there isn’t much for the actors to work with in terms of setting or action, they each hold their own well enough to deliver somewhat convincing performances, and there are some glimpses of promise. However, what is most bothersome is the typical nature of the acting is for an indie project, over-extending the actors into influencing the plot too directly…” Marks Remarks
“Now, I’ll admit there are a lot of scary moments here, and the film looks quite good, despite being shot in tiny spaces aboard a fairly small boat. But in the end, I can’t really tell you what it is: a routine horror film? a Christian-themed “alien” contact story? a somewhat inept attempt at a religious horror film? Who knows.” Rivets on the Poster
“If you don’t mind being beaten over the head by the film’s message, or if you like this kind of overt sermonizing you might find Immanence entertaining. But I want my horror films scary, with any message worked into the plot. Here the plot is secondary to the message and the scares are lacking.” 1.5 out of 5, Voices from the Balcony
For YouTube reviews and more movie info click the page 2 link below
MOVIES & MANIA provides previews, our own film reviews and ratings, plus links to other online reviews from a wide variety of trusted sources in one handy web location. This is a genuinely independent website and we rely solely on the minor income generated by internet ads to pay for web costs and cover yet more movies. Please support us by not blocking ads. Thank you. As an Amazon Associate, we earn a very tiny amount from any qualifying purchases.