End of Days (1999)

 

Ah yes, who could forget the coming of a new millennium, when way too many people where panicking on way too many 'end of the world'-hypes? If you weren't born yet, believe me: the armageddon stories were abundant and when the year 2000 finally came... nothing happened, obviously. This time of course was a healthy base for a plethora of movies concerning the end of the world and even the great Schwarz made one of these movies. It didn't do extremely well, mainly because it was quite a different beast from what most people were used to. It wasn't pure action or a comedy, it was a dark tale of how the devil came to the world looking to impregnate a young woman and thus rule forever.

You know: the usual stuff.

Schwarzenegger plays Jericho Cane (ooh, that's clever. Those initials? Come on!), a private contractor for security detail who's also an alcoholic as his wife and child were brutally slain by gangsters. Don't worry about the booze, it is pretty much an afterthought here and they make Arnold look a bit dishevelled by leaving some beard stubble, but the man always looks like a powerful machine, alas. Anyway, it turns out the devil has inhabited the body of a Wall Street banker (a bit on the nose, isn't it?) and after an elderly priest attempts to kill this man, Jericho discovers that strange things are afoot. 

Evidence and intuition lead him to a young woman named Christine, who is the chosen one to bear the devil's fruit. So of course Jericho feels compelled to protect the girl and try to ward off the devil himself, which all culminates in a showdown in a church. 

So, there's a cult of devil worshippers (lead by some impressive character actors) and Arnold is basically a modern Jesus. Got it.

If his name wasn't a big enough hint, he even gets crucified. Yeah, subtlety isn't on the menu here.

Oh, and they are devil worshippers, not Satanists. In contrast to the name, Satanists don't believe in the devil, FYI.

Maybe it's the dark and gloomy photography that turned some people off, because this film is bathed in hues of dark brown and is dark on purpose. It adds to the mood, but sometimes it feels a bit too much. It doesn't help that the story is fairly mundane, in spite of its premisse. The actors do their best with the lines they are given, but the dialogue is fairly bland most of the time. 

But if you want to see someone having fun and chewing every inch of the scenery, pay special attention to Gabriel Byrne as the devil incarnate. The man is perfect for a role such as this and he can deliver cringeworthy lines with gusto. 

So all in all, a bit of a mixed bag. It's not a great movie, but it's decent enough to warrant a watching, especially if you like the theme, Schwarzenegger or both. Just don't expect too much, because the story starts off strong, but fizzles out near the end.