Blu-ray Review: The Seventh Sign

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When The Seventh Sign came out in 1988, film reviewers and fans had to be careful since quite a few called the movie The Seventh Seal. This lead to other critics mocking that this new film starred Demi Moore and not Max von Sydow directed by Ingmar Bergman. This also led to the film getting a hostile reaction from critics who kept explaining that this film as nothing to do with the cinematic classic. We weren’t going to see Demi playing chess with Death. Sadly this ended up blurring the big question: how was The Seventh Sign‘s cinematic countdown to the Apocalypse?

Things start to go bad whenever a tourist (In the Mouth of Madness‘s Jürgen Prochnow) roams the globe. First it’s fish kill in Haiti. Next thing you know an arctic event that deep freezes people in the Middle East. The tourist cracks the seal on an envelope and things just go bad. The Catholic Church is concerned and they appoint Father Lucci (Peter Friedman) to investigate. He doesn’t seem to care and doesn’t think these have anything to do with Biblical Plague or the seven seals found the Book of Revelation. Abby Quinn (Demi Moore) is pregnant and her husband Russell (The Terminator‘s Michael Biehn) are having slight money issues. He’s not quite bringing in the big bucks as the defense lawyer for Jimmy Szaragosa (John Taylor). The murderer is called “Word of God Killer” in the press because he killed his parents for an Unholy act. The couple decide to rent out the spare room in the era before AirBnB. Guess who shows up to lease the bed? It’s the traveler. And soon as he’s snug under the covers, Abby begins to have strange dreams that put her in the Passion of the Christ. It appears like more seals are going to be cracked and they involve the birth of her baby.

The Seventh Sign is fine case of Biblical horror. This doesn’t mean you can run it when your Holy Roller relatives visit during Spooky Season. Demi Moore might be too much for them. The film represents Demi stepping up to being a cinema star able to hold down the film. She stole the show from the John Hughes Brat Packers in St. Elmo’s Fire as the party girl. But the films afterward had her stuck sharing the screen with a Brat Packer. But with The Seventh Sign she even got top billing over Biblical figures. She also gets to play an expectant mother so there’s less partying to her ways as the plagues arrive around her. She proves there’s a reason that after this film she would become a huge star in the ’90s. The Seventh Sign will scare you from renting rooms and reading any prophesies during pregnancy.

The video is 2:35:1 anamorphic. The 1080p transfer brings out the signs of the apocalypse easier. The audio is 5.1 DTS-HD Master audio. The sound goes into overdrive with the earthquake during the death chamber scene. The movie is subtitled in English.

Interview With Actor Michael Biehn (11:10) gets deep into the film. The producers wanted him to play Jürgen Prochnow’s role, but he wanted the husband because there was more to the part. He really gets deep into tricks to make you cry on screen. He busts out the secret of the menthol blower.

Interview With Director Carl Schultz (20:21) covers how he was born in Budapest, fled to England and ended up in Australia where he made Careful, He Might Hear You. He was brought to Hollywood to make The Seventh Sign. Demi was already signed onto the project.

Interview With Actor Peter Friedman (20:13) explores the Father Lucci character. He’s been rather active over the decades including Showtime’s The Affair, The Muppet Show and playing the rear of Mr. Snuffleupagus on Sesame Street.

Interview With Actor John Taylor (10:52) lets him talk about the role. He’s also acted in The Ringer and Jackass 3D. Screenwriters Clifford and Ellen Green discuss working with John.

Interviews With Screenwriters Clifford And Ellen Green (30:01) has the writers discuss the script and how they wrote since it was cheaper than making the actual film. They didn’t expect The Seventh Sign to get made. They get into how things didn’t go good for them when it came to working with the producer.

TV Spots (1:04) talks of the countdown to apocalypse. The second TV spot points out who people who saw the film loved it so you better go see it in a theater now.

Scream Factory presents The Seventh Sign. Directed by Carl Schultz. Screenplay by: Clifford Green & Ellen Green. Starring: Demi Moore, Michael Biehn, Peter Friedman & Jürgen Prochnow. Rated: R. Running Time: 97 minutes. Released: September 11, 2018.

Joe Corey is the writer and director of "Danger! Health Films" currently streaming on Night Flight and Amazon Prime. He's the author of "The Seven Secrets of Great Walmart People Greeters." This is the last how to get a job book you'll ever need. He was Associate Producer of the documentary "Moving Midway." He's worked as local crew on several reality shows including Candid Camera, American's Most Wanted, Extreme Makeover Home Edition and ESPN's Gaters. He's been featured on The Today Show and CBS's 48 Hours. Dom DeLuise once said, "Joe, you look like an axe murderer." He was in charge of research and programming at the Moving Image Archive.