In a 21st century American metropolis, young painter John Jaspers (Mark Frost) is attacked by a gang of criminals who kill his girlfriend.
As John, in despair, is about to commit suicide, a dark and sinister man, named M (Andrew Divoff, interpreter of the Djinn protagonist of the first two episodes of the saga of Whishmaster), leader of a sect known as "The Hand," offers to give him her soul ("M" in fact stands for Mephistopheles) in exchange for the chance to take revenge on the murderers of his fiancée.
But Jespers soon finds that he begins to enjoy committing murders a little too much and, as a "side effect," whenever he goes into action he turns into a red demon.
And, as if that were not enough, he will discover that "M" is preparing, partly through his unwitting help, the awakening of a huge demon with snake-like features, the Homunculus.
He will decide to scuttle his plans.
Bryan Yuzna (Society, The Horror, Re-Animator, Necronomicon) disappoints in this his film inspired by David Quinn's comic strip in turn inspired by Goethe's famous Faust.
It is, perhaps even, the Filipino-born director's worst film, in that if the comic book already was not a masterpiece, Yuzna adds nothing to his film adaptation.
The splatter scenes, which are quite effective, are saved, and this still makes the film worth viewing.
Of course, Yuzna's "must-see" titles are quite different, but this one Faust is, albeit with all its flaws, an honest film that is worth watching.
Review of The Creature
