STIGMATA (1999) Directed by Rupert Wainright Review ©1999 Scott J. Promish
If nothing else, STIGMATA stands as the first Frank Mancuso, Jr. production I've seen that wasn't just plain awful. His previous record includes the SPECIES films, BODY PARTS, COOL WORLD, and several FRIDAY THE 13TH sequels which I haven't seen but could probably make an educated guess at.
This film at least has an air of quality about it: good actors (well, Gabriel Byrne *was* also in COOL WORLD -- probably not something he's very proud of), polished direction, and nothing in the script that caused me to groan. Its flaws only become apparent when you try to make sense of the thing.
Hairdresser, clubrat and atheist Frankie Paige (Patricia Arquette) is relaxing in her bath when she is suddenly gripped by a violent attack. She is rushed to the hospital, gushing blood from wounds that go all the way through her wrists. After an later incident on a subway during which her back is lashed by an unseen force, the church becomes involved and sends a scientist-priest named Andrew Kiernan (Gabriel Byrne) to investigate the phenomena. The plot thickens when Father Kiernan discovers a conspiracy involving the Catholic church and an ancient, lost scripture.
Like most stories whose premise revolves around religious phenomena, STIGMATA falls apart under even the most casual examination. It's hard to discuss without spoiling the ending but I can say that what we finally learn is the cause of Frankie's experiences does not explain them at all. Why the wounds, why the visions, why the violent outbursts? Said ending is a disappointment, and the `revelation' is a bit of gospel that even someone with minimal knowledge of Christianity will find familiar, especially since it is recited more than once previously in the course of the film. The conspiracy theme was handled much better -- albeit without the supernatural element -- in THE NAME OF THE ROSE (1986).
The modern, techno soundtrack (composed by Smashing Pumpkin Billy Corgan and which also features songs by Massive Attack, David Bowie and Afro Celt Sound System) is an interesting contrast to a film in which one would expect to hear symphonics.
It's a shame that a film that comes off so nicely otherwise is brought down by careless storytelling. In the end, STIGMATA is mildly enjoyable; just take in the sights and sound and don't think about it.
[Review written 10/3/99]
The review above was posted to the
rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the
review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright
belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due
to ASCII to HTML conversion.
Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews