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  • Writer's pictureCorporate Gamer
    • Jun 13, 2018
    • 3 min read

B-Movies of our Youth: The First Power (1990)

Updated: Nov 21, 2022


Movie Name: The First Power

Directed by: Robert Resnikoff

Produced by: David Madden

Written by: Robert Resnikoff

Actors: Lou Diamond Phillips, Tracy Griffith, Jeff Kober, Mykel T. Williamson and Elizabeth Arlen

Release Date: April 6th, 1990

Box Office: $22,424, 195 (USA)

Introduction

This is a movie that we saw as a new release and we decided to rent it. I do not really remember its theatrical release. Then again I was only 10 years old at the time. However, we picked this movie to watch on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Let us see how this movie holds up.

Story

This is movie is weird to say the least. This is about a mentally disturbed serial killer (played by Jeff Kober). He is known as the Pentagram Killer as when he kills, he leaves a pentagram on his victims. HIs motivation was that these victims were for a sacrifice to satan.


So there is a detective named Russel Logan who is played by Lou Diamond Phillips (The Young Guns, Extreme Justice and Young Guns II... etc). He ends up catching the killer with the help of a psychic named Tess Seaton (Tracy Griffith). However, she warns him that he should not be executed or else bad things will happen.


After a struggle with the killer, Detective Russell hands him over to the death penalty authorities. This goes against the psychic's advice. After his death, this is where things get really weird.


Basically by dying, satan will grant The First Power to Channing. The First Power is resurrection. It is also mentioned that Jesus Christ also possessed this power long with 2 others which I cannot find or remember at this moment in time. Channing toys with Detective Russell by playing mind games with him by appearing and disappearing at will.


After some running around, Channing possesses a Nun and Logan stabs the possessed Nun with a special knife which is the only way that he could kill Channing.


This however does not seem to be the end. As I believe the end of the movie was open ended for sequels that never came. Essentially, Tess gets a vision that Channing will possess Logan. This is kind of like Nightmare on Elm Street movies, it seems the villain is never really dead or gone.


Trailer


Bottomline

The movie is not good by any means and it does not hold up very well. It is not one of Lou Diamond Phillips' finest work. He did what he could with the tools that were given to him.


I guess the movie was trying to go and have a different take on an old formula. Devil possesses people to kill. Seems it has been done numerous times, even in the early 90's.

When I first watched it, I did not find it that bad. However, I have looked at the movie recently and it is not good at all. The acting is poor. The script is weak at best. I would may be classify this as a C or D movie.

I cannot even say if it was a product of its own time as it was a random movie that did not do much at the box office. I just remembered this movie because it had the devil in it. Most people probably do not even know or care that this movie ever existed, but there is at least one poor soul (me) that remembers it.

Looking at the comments in the video below, it would seem that some people really love the movie. I am not really sure what they have seen that I did not, but to each their own I guess.

Rating: 1.75 pentagrams out of 5

Full Movie

What do you guys think? Have you ever watched this movie? Is it as good as I remembered it? Let me know below.

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