Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		2.5

Prey for the Devil Blu-ray Movie Review

The Exorcistette?

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 27, 2022

Prey for the Devil is supposedly "ripped from the headlines", or at least what this film's creative staff said was a documented rise in cases of possession over the past several years which led to the Catholic Church opening "exorcism schools" globally. If that part of the story at least has some tether to reality (since an exorcism school is at the heart of this tale), another plot conceit is still somewhat fanciful, in that a nun named Sister Ann (Jacqueline Byers) is trained in the rite, which any practicing Catholic will tell you is a major "no no", since only Priests or higher (male, lest that need be said) Prelates are permitted to rid humans of the demonic spirits supposedly residing within them. Director Daniel Stamm and screenwriter Robert Zappia are on hand in some actually rather interesting supplements included on this disc where they talk about "exorcism movies" as a subgenre that virtually require certain kinds of set pieces, and Stamm in particular mentions that he was more than willing to provide those, while also attempting to deliver something new. Therefore, yes, we get lots of projectile vomiting, the weird broken back floating trope (where did that become an exorcism motif?), and once beautiful young faces now cover in pustules and other disturbing blemishes. But the film also attempts to weave in a kind of "is she or isn't she?" aspect to possession, both in terms of a focal little girl named Natalie (Posy Taylor), but also with regard to memories of Sister Ann's mother (Koina Ruseva), who may or may not have been possessed, or "merely" schizophrenic.

Prey for the Devil is one of those films that offers viewers a torrential rainstorm under more or less bright blue skies in an opening vignette that documents Sister Ann as the lone person without an umbrella, as she makes her way into a "new, improved" (?) school for exorcism. This was either an "innovative" style choice, or more likely the result of less than careful post production tweaking of imagery, but it's not the last time that there is a certain disconnect between the story and how it's presented. Also early in the tale are quick interstitial flashbacks (which then of course recur later under different circumstances) of Sister Ann's harrowing childhood with an obviously disturbed mother.

Some kind of semi-provocative subtext attends this piece in that it's a female supposedly doing the exorcising (or at least lending a rather major helping hand), and part of the story is the obvious challenges the Church hierarchy set in front of Sister Ann, who one way or the other may seem spectacularly ill equipped emotionally or in fact theologically to handle these issues. What's kind of odd and maybe will be a bit disturbing to "true believers" is not just this assumed "heresy" (i.e., a "mere" woman deigning to have exorcising power), but some kind of patently odd seeming flirtation between Sister Ann and young, handsome (and just to prove he's hip, equipped with a neck tattoo) Father Dante (Christian Navarro). Virginia Madsen is also on hand as the veritable "Scully" to all these "Mulders", in that she's not having any (or at least not much) of this "exorcism babble", and instead tends to hew more toward psychoanalytic approaches.

The film also has a supposed "twist" which may again offend those who want their nuns pure as the driven snow, but the film never really makes anything very ambiguous as to whether Sister Ann is unbalanced and therefore prone to imagining things, as Prey for the Devil makes it patently clear that several people in this story certainly have all the "exorcism movie signs" of being possessed.

Prey for the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Prey for the Devil is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. I haven't been able to track down much technical data on the shoot, and as of the writing of this review the IMDb is largely silent, and so I'm frankly guessing about the resolution of the DI (as always with my reviews, if anyone has authoritative and verifiable information, private message me and I'll happily update things here). As I mention in our Prey for the Devil 4K Blu-ray review, I'm assuming a 2K DI because I really didn't notice a huge uptick in fine detail in the 4K version vs. this 1080 version, though, again, if someone has information to the contrary, let me know. This is a generally sharp digital capture that does encounter a few passing issues with detail levels due to frequency of low light scenes. There are any number of rather nicely lit scenes that nonetheless don't offer a ton of brightness, and occasional murk can attend otherwise kind of nicely burnished and often buttery yellow grading. In normal lighting, detail is generally excellent, though some may have occasional quibbles with the CGI, which is used to up the "exorcism movie set pieces" ante with any number of things you've seen before ("broken back" levitating) along with maybe a couple of exciting new phenomena (like "killer hair"). The palette is rather interestingly bleak a lot of the time, so that things like some of the pops of color of priestly vestments actually probably resonate even more strongly since they're so often the only really colorful thing in the frame. Several flashbacks are in a kind of quasi-sepia tone, which also offers secure detail levels.

Prey for the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Prey for the Devil features a nicely immersive Dolby Atmos track, one which admittedly exploits all sorts of audio tropes horror movie fans in general and exorcism movie fans in particular will no doubt have heard before, but which are handled here with both appealing surround activity as well as clear Atmos engagement. Ambient environmental effects like the rainfall that is featured early in the film can provide some midair moments, but really more of the impressive aspects of the sound design tend to understandably take place during the "big possession" scenes. A whirlwind of sound effects attends a couple of these moments, with some smart prioritization and discrete channelization. Nathan Barr's score also fills the side and rear channels invitingly. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English, French and Spanish subtitles are available.

Prey for the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with Director Daniel Stamm and Actress Jacqueline Byers


• Possessed: Creating Prey for the Devil (HD; 41:52) is a rather in depth featurette which includes interviews with some of the principal cast and crew.


• A Lullaby of Terror (HD; 8:41) features composer Nathan Barr discussing his score for the film.


• The Devil's Tricks: Visual Effects (HD; 3:52) offers some looks at the rendering processes for various effects sequences.


• Prey for the Devil Cast Read: The Original First Draft Screenplay (HD; 1:59:52) is a kind of odd Zoom affair featuring some members of the actual cast and other fill ins.


• Speak No Evil: A Real Exorcist and Church Psychologist Discuss Possession (HD; 1:01:12) features screenwriter Robert Zappia moderating some interesting comments from Richard Gallagher and Vincent Lampert.

Lionsgate sent the 4K UHD package for purposes of this review, but it looks like this 1080 release features a digital copy and a slipcover.

Prey for the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If Prey for the Devil had been just a bit more ambiguous as to whether possessions are real or simply the manifestation of mental illness, that may have made Sister Ann's predicament(s) more viscerally involving. The film has a lot of polish, and some decent performances, but it can't help but feel derivative a lot of the time. Supplements are very appealing, and technical merits solid, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.