After the Rapture, the folks who have been left behind (see what I did there) have all become mute. One woman (Samara Weaving) is kidnapped by a cult who tie her up and try to sacrifice her to a crispy looking monster. She narrowly escapes and takes off into the woods where she is pursued by not only the monster, but the vengeful cult members as well.
Written by Simon (You’re Next) Barrett and directed by E.L. (Cheap Thrills) Katz, Azrael has its moments but is a bit underwhelming overall. Despite the religious implications (and all the Bible verses that act as chapter breaks), this is less a Christian horror flick and more of a rip-off of A Quiet Place since no one in the movie talks. The odd thing is that the filmmakers never take advantage of the gimmick. There is one scene where Weaving meets a guy who speaks gibberish and neither she nor the audience can understand him. However, there’s no real payoff or purpose for everyone to be mute, so why even bother?
Weaving is one of my favorite actresses working today but giving her a role that requires her to be mute does her a great disservice. Because she can’t speak, it forces her to do a lot of acting with her eyes and to her credit, she does just about everything you could ask from her. It’s just that the thin script and drab visuals of the film let her down. Also, the monsters, who just look like a bunch of guys who got burnt up in a fire, are weak. The human villains are even worse as they basically look like a tribe of homeless people and lack any true menace.
On the plus side, the gore is decent. The scenes of the monsters drinking people’s blood are juicy, and there is not one but two gnarly decapitations. I give props to Katz and Barrett for the ballsy ending, but honestly, it’s a long time coming. Weaving is striking while covered in blood and brandishing a machine gun though. It’s just a shame the filmmakers couldn’t build a film around her that was worthy of that image.
AKA: Azrael: Angel of Death.
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