PROPHECY (1979)

Director: John Frankenheimer

Writer: David Seltzer

Producer: Robert L. Rosen

Cast: Robert Foxworth, Talia Shire, Armand Assante, Richard Dysart, Victoria Racimo, George Clutesi, Tom McFadden, Kevin Peter Hall (uncredited), Charles H. Gray, Everett Creach, Burke Byrnes, Johnny Timko, Mia Bendixsen, Graham Jarvis, Evan Evans, Lyvingston Holms, James H. Burk, Lon Katzman, Bob Terhune

Washington, D.C. Government Health Inspector Dr. Robert Verne (Robert Foxworth) brings his pregnant wife, Maggie (Talia Shire), along with him into the woods of Maine to assess the environmental impact of the Pitney Lumber Company paper mill. It is hoped that this assessment can help settle the conflict between the paper mill and members of the local Native American tribe who feel that their ancestral forests are being despoiled. The lumber company is blaming the tribe for recent disappearances of loggers in the forest. An elder of the tribe believes that Katahdin, a legendary forest spirit, has risen to protect his people and the environment.

The Flashback Fanatic movie review

The filmmaker who delivered the classic, dark-humored, political thriller The Manchurian Candidate (1963) might seem like the last guy in the world who was itching to make a monster movie. Apparently, director John Frankenheimer and his writer had some things to say, whether there was a receptive audience or not. The screenplay was by none other than David Seltzer, who had written the huge horror hit The Omen (1976).

Chasing the 1970s pack of animals-attack flicks, Prophecy is the eco-horror alternative to the radiation-spawned-monster movies of the 1950s. It has often been derided over the years, yet I have always liked it. Much of the negativity about this film is because it is loaded with issues. I suppose some people want to take offense at anything that raises concerns they are apathetic to or in denial about. There are also many moviegoers who don’t want anything too heavy when all they are looking for are thrills and chills. Others may argue that this film is being heavy-handed in the way it addresses its concerns.

There is no denying that there is a lot to ponder here beyond how to survive the big, bad monster. In addition to the main issue of industrial pollution that can poison people and the environment, there are also the conflicts of industry with Native American culture, concerns about overpopulation, business corruption, inadequate urban housing, and abortion. For many viewers this movie may have just seemed like a checklist of contemporary issues striving for some sort of relevance.

I never seek out a film or judge it worthy because it is trying to be relevant. I am hoping to be involved and entertained. In the case of Prophecy, I don’t have an issue with its issues-heavy approach. Who says horror can’t be thoughtful? I think the pollution angle is a good one providing a topical basis for the menace here. It also provides the basis for most of the cultural and character conflict in the film.

The four main characters articulate all of this film’s issues. Health Inspector Dr. Robert Verne is concerned about the pollutants the paper mill may be discharging into the environment. Maggie Verne is reluctant to tell her parenting-averse husband about her pregnancy. Paper mill supervisor Bethel Isely (Richard Dyshart) contends that his mill is ecologically safe and simply meeting society’s demand for paper. Native American John Hawks (Armand Assante) defends his tribe’s concerns for their land being ruined by the paper mill.

Despite these oppressive themes, Robert Foworth and Talia Shire give nice performances as the Verne couple. Although he is idealistic, EPA appointed investigator Dr. Robert Verne does not immediately take a side in the local dispute. Maggie Verne is looking for the right moment to tell Robert that she is pregnant knowing that he does not want to bring a child into a troubled and overcrowded world. We get to share one quiet moment of romantic relief with them in their rustic cabin on the lake deep in the idyllic Maine forest just before the film’s main concern literally shows up on their doorstep.

Perhaps the weight of all these issues would have been easier for the film to carry if there were a bit of humor to be found with some of these characters. They are all delivering exposition or debating. I am not about to suggest we need a comic relief sidekick bumbling about or that characters should be delivering sitcom-styled wisecracks, but despite most of this film taking place in the great outdoors, emotionally we could use a breath of fresh air. It may have alleviated Prophecy’s preachy atmosphere.

Prophecy gets off to a great start with an opening scene that does what the best horror films do. It establishes a sense of dread and intrigue; we wonder just what the hell the nasty thing is that makes mincemeat out of the first characters we meet. That immediately catches this horror hound’s interest and keeps me eagerly sniffing along the trail this story leads me on.

Many don’t like the monster. I do. It’s big, brutal, and ugly. While no one in the film gives us an exact definition of the beast, it is generally understood to be a mutant bear. This creature seems like a reasonable extrapolation based on the environmental pollution hazard that is this movie’s main concern. We are shown other forms of life in the area that have also been altered in size or temperament. As a supporter of exposition in films when it is needed to get our heads around challenging concepts, I appreciate the effort made to explain an industrial waste’s monster-making potential. I am sure some self-styled scientists out there won’t accept that such a mutation could occur. I say that toxic waste is just as believable a justification for a monster as radiation was back in the good old ’50s. In more recent decades, it seemed that all any filmmaker needed to do was throw around the term “genetic engineering” to get the audience to accept the creation of any monster or superhero.

There are also special effects nitpickers wanting to find fault with the monster that I have never really understood. Prophecy is using many techniques of the time to realize its menace and to tell its story. I think that it accomplishes this, even if we think we know many of the tricks that were used. Nowadays, people will accept any absurdity presented with CGI and yet are so jaded that they are not impressed. About the only notice now given to CGI is when it is poorly done. While some back in 1979 were obviously not making a practical effects-to-CGI comparison, they seemed to be unwilling to engage with this issues-heavy film. Hence, they criticized everything from its characters, to its plot, to its issues, to its special effects.

With Prophecy this horror junkie gets a little extra kick beyond the high I will usually settle for. This is a horror movie with a thoughtful consideration of the environmental factors that justify its menace. We also have characters strongly motivated and impacted by those factors beyond just the most imminent threat of the bloodthirsty monster. Perhaps best of all, we get the innovative sleeping bag kill. Eat your heart out, Jason Voorhees.