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Review of The Covenant By Alex Conde Rating: 1.5 out of 5 stars I'll be honest, I broke my normal rule and I went to go see this based on the trailer. I normally never do that, because trailers often spoil a movie, but I did it this time. The Covenant is a movie about 4 teenage boys who are descended from old witch families.
The boys are themselves witches and have access to magical powers. However, we learn that these powers are addictive when used, and overuse of them ages a person prematurely, eventually resulting in death. The focus of the story is Caleb Danvers (played by Steven Strait) who is the leader of the group of four boys and the eldest. He is on the brink of his "ascension" which occurs on his 18th birthday when he gets full access to his powers. His rival is Chase Collins (played by Sebastian Stan) who is a long distant relative of the witch families and has come back to seek vengeance for the abandonment of his relatives, and to steal more power from the boys in Ipswich as he is truly addicted to the use of his power. While the special effects of this movie are excellent, and the costumes and settings really put you in the right frame of mind (I love the music too), the plotline just doesn't hold up to the expectations I had from the trailer. In essence, this is a teen movie. If you're going with that expectation in mind, you might find it more palatable. I suspect that The Covenant is a nod to older, teenage Harry Potter fans that still enjoy the fantasy of having magical powers with which to influence their way in the world. In fact, the movie goes as far as stating a comparison in the dialogue. While there was no one scene with which I was unhappy, the choppy storyline left me without a scene I could really say I enjoyed. The movie tries to be too many things at once. What could be a fantastic movie about secrets and lies becomes a watered down attempt at looking edgy while still pleasing everyone. There's action for the boys, buff boys for the girls (on a swim team of all places), and magic for lost fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This movie is like the hollow chocolate eggs in Easter season. It looks good, but lacks any substance on the inside. I would much have preferred a more polarized film in which people could walk out with some passion after viewing it, even if it was passionate hatred. I wanted to like this movie. The care taken in scenery and special effects suggested to me that it would be a great movie experience, but sadly, I was left unsatisfied. |
