#REVIEW Ouija: Origin of Evil – IN OF EVIL – Vintage Horror at its Finest

We’ve most likely all dabbled with the Ouija board; a board with the alphabet and other symbols printed on it, and a planchette to aid in finding answers from the “other side”. And while it’s mostly an innocent game you might play with friends (because who really believes in spirits and demons?) The film OUIJA: ORIGINAL OF EVIL, paints a slightly different picture of the consequences which can arise when messing around with the game.

Set in 1967, a mother and her two daughters are involved in a shady fortune telling business, one which helps them survive after the sudden death of the girls’ father. The scam entails of inviting desperate clients into the home and summoning deceased loved ones in order to seek closure once and for all. The séance performed by Alice Zander(Elizabeth Reaser), uses tricks and gimmicks in order to gain trust from her guests with her daughters Lina(Annalise Basso)and Doris(Lulu Wilson)assisting their mother in creating the effects to convince the clients that spirits are in fact among them.

But when Alice realizes that her business as a fortuneteller is not enough to support her family and late husband’s home, she discovers the Ouija board and adds it to her latest collection of tools to make her craft more believable. What she doesn’t realize however, is that her youngest daughter Doris becomes the ideal vessel of a demonic possession after innocently conjuring up an evil spirit while using the board.

You can only imagine the on slaught of events that transpire thereafter, which of course results in an outpour of screams from the audience, and a question commonly present during virtually any horror movie; will they or won’t they die at the end? I won’t divulge those secrets, you will have to see the film for yourself. But with Halloween just around the corner, its hard to decide what is worth seeing and what isn’t. The genre in itself has become inundated with tired story lines and cheesy effects, and as time goes by, audiences have become more immune to these types of movies.

While Ouija isn’t the epitome of classic horror – it does bring a certain nostalgic feeling, with moments reminiscent of the Exorcist, or the Omen. Luke Wilson does a fantastic job portraying the creepy Doris, and delivers the shivers even after having seen the movie only a few days ago.

Ouija: Origin of Evil may not be the most memorable film of all time, and it isn’t exactly original, but it does do a good job of making sense which many horror movies nowadays fail to do, containing a surplus of plot loop holes,with generally no logic attached whatsoever –as far as logic can be applied to the horror film). If you are interested in seeing something decent however this spooky Halloween season, Ouija is for you. Just don’t forget to say Goodbye, (see the board rules for more info).

Universal Pictures Canada releases Ouija: Origin of Evil on Friday, Oct 21, 2016

[Review by Alessia Youkhanna]