The Church

Produced and co-written by horror legend Dario Argento and directed by his talented protégé Michele Soavi, this 1989 Italian horror film was originally developed as a second sequel to 1985’s Argento-scripted Demons before Soavi set it apart with a distinctive backstory. The premise is similar—a group of people trapped in an enclosed building are attacked by demons who possess the bodies of their victims—with the major difference being the setting: a medieval Gothic cathedral built on the site of a massacre carried out by the Knights Templar in the Middle Ages. The Church starts slow and takes a while to unleash the demons for a furious third act. Much of the film was shot in a Gothic cathedral in Budapest, and Soavi brings Bosch-like frescoes on the walls to life in a living sculpture that rises out of the church altar. It's a minor but intriguing example of giallo, the stylistically flamboyant genre of Italian horror. Remastered for its Blu-ray debut, extras include new interviews with Soavi and costar Asia Argento. A strong optional purchase. (S. Axmaker)