Lord Of Illusions (1995)

Starring - Scott Bakula; Kevin J. O'Connor; Famke Janssen; Vincent Schiavelli & Barry Sherman Director - Clive Barker MPAA - Rated R for strong violence and gore, and for language and sexuality. If you could say one thing about Lord Of Illusions, it would be that it is definitely different. Scott Bakula stars as a private eye that specializes in cases dealing with the paranormal, such as demonic possessions and the like. Dorothea (Famke Janssen), who is the wife of a magician, approaches Bakula's character, Harry D'Amour. She is worried about her husband's safety. Hubby was involved in an incident, years before, where he and several others tracked down and killed a cult leader who had kidnapped a little girl. This was no ordinary cult leader -- this guy had the power to control people's minds using the power of illusions. Well, all these years later the folks that helped to get rid of the cult leader are starting to die. Famke's character thinks the reason for the deaths is that the cult leader is coming back to get revenge for his death years earlier. She wants Bakula's character to get to the bottom of it, and provide some protection to boot. That's pretty much the story in a nutshell, and if it sounds strange, it's not just because I'm lousy at describing movies. The story really is a little on the strange side, although surprisingly easy to follow. On the whole, the acting isn't bad in this film, but some performances are over the top to the extent that they end up being just plain terrible. That goes for pretty much all the villains in the movie. No, strike that. Bakula and Janssen are OK in the film, but everybody else is bad or borders on it. With that being said, it really doesn't hurt the film all that much. That is to say that you could have had Robert De Niro or Jack Nicholson in some of these parts and it wouldn't have made the film a whole lot better. It really isn't a bad film all and all. Although, if you are someone who can't stand magic, and really can't swallow mind over matter plots, then you should definitely stay far away from this movie. The special effects in the illusion sequences aren't bad, but they look like something that you would see on television as opposed to a production intended for theaters. Confusion, bad acting, and a less than wonderful idea for a movie all contribute to making Lord Of Illusions just your average thoughtless horror film. The only saving grace is the fact that Bakula can actually act, and Famke Janssen is a major babe. (I'm sexist, so sue me.) But even Famke couldn't get me to sit though Lord Of Illusions for a second time. I've never understood why Clive Barker is held up with such great regard among horror fans. His writing and direction of this film leave me even more puzzled than before over his popularity. 5/10 Reviewed February 14, 1998 by Joe Chamberlain