LORD OF ILLUSIONS is the third film directed by Clive Barker based on his own writing. I'm a fan of HELLRAISER so I was hoping for something of the same power and I got it: this is surprisingly similar to the writer's 1980s breakout and I'm saddened that it didn't do so well on release. It has all of the elements to make a good pulp horror story, from Scott Bakula's weary, private detective lead, to the sinister subject matter of black magic and real-world supernatural powers. Things kick off with an outstanding back story set-piece inside a crazy pastor's cult complex, before moving into mystery story territory. The likes of Bakula, Kevin J. O'Connor and Famke Janssen all deliver effective turns, but it's Barker who is the real star here. The film is filled with gruesome special effects work and ideas and there's a great deal of bodily horror, destruction, and dismemberment in the HELLRAISER style. CGI is used sparingly and, although dated, not too distracting. LORD OF ILLUSIONS is something of an underrated effort, icky and outrageous enough to work as a horror film, and with a chilly, chilling atmosphere from beginning to end.

Now I've been a Clive Barker fan for years. Whether its his writing, directing, or painting I think he is quite brilliant."Lord Of Illusions" is an example of his brilliance. Great enriched storytelling about the ideologies within the story about death and the difference between magic and illusion.Bakula surprisingly is able to carry this film on his back but its the cult favorite Kevin J O Connor that pulled me in most of the time.Famke jansen of xmen fame is stunning to look at has a real film noir quality. Very erotic.Clive Barker is a true visionary in the field of horror, perhaps too much so for his own good. Studios meddling may have compromised his theatrical films, but thankfully all the necessary footage to restore his visions have beem saved. "Lord of Illusions" may be the most flawed of the three pictures he made, but it's still an unconventional film. It holds up very well upon repeat viewings.

There are quite a few things going for this movie that attracted me to it and should have added up to a movie that I loved. First, I'm a big fan of Clive Barker. I love his aesthetic. I love the mythology that he creates in his works. I feel like his vision pulls the curtain back on Hell's fiery gates, just a bit, and creates these wonderful, demonic fairy tales full of infernal imagery. The subject matter also intrigues me. Like all geeks with a penchant for the fantastic, I enjoy magic and illusion, but even more I like movies and books that explore that thin line between illusion and magic and the possibility that perhaps there is real magic. Of course, it's not a far stretch from that sort of magic into occult territory, either. As a horror movie lover, I have a natural affinity for things dealing with dark magic, as well. The combination of all of these could have created something that I would have put up there as an instant classic, but sadly this movie is completely forgettable.This is probably the least "Barker-ish" of any Barker adaptation I have seen. What I mean by that is that it is mostly devoid of any of that aesthetic that I was speaking of earlier. Movies like HELLRAISER, NIGHTBREED or CANDYMAN all feel like part of a large mythos, like all of them could have existed in the same world. There are very similar visual strands in those movies, even though one of them wasn't even directed by Barker. This movie is largely lacking any of that imagery. Except for the prologue and climax, we rarely get anything diabolical. It feels like it could have been the work of any old horror writer. While some may praise for deviating from his norm, this isn't what I come to the House of Barker for.Even the actual magic in the movie is somewhat of a letdown. I really enjoyed the centerpiece scene where Swann is killed during his magic show. I wanted to see more of that sort of thing. They spend a lot of time talking about how these characters had crossed the line from illusion to real magic, but they seemed to know two tricks, levitation and fire. I'd at least expect enough effects to give me a true sense of power. Hell, even Harry Potter had better tricks than this.Those were my expectations, though, so it's maybe not fair to judge this movie by how much it met those expectations. The real problem is that this movie just goes nowhere. It sets us up with a great opening scene, full of action and effects that seemed like this could turn into something memorable, but it dies quickly, mired down in a half-baked detective noir that is as predictable as it is uninteresting. Some part of that blame lies in Scott Bakula who's just not believable in this role, at all. He's supposed to be a hardened PI with one foot in the world of the occult, almost a John Constantine (comic books) type figure. Instead, Bakula just can't shake his wholesome image. Even when he swears it feels like elementary school kids trying out a word for the first time. Then, they inject a phony romance angle that just feels crammed in an insincere.There are some great effects shots that still work very well and then there are some real doozys, like the CGI polygons that look so very dated 20 years later. What I saw is the Director's cut, which was probably more of a mistake because it was just too long and in need of editing.If you've never seen anything by Barker before, do yourself a favor and go watch HELLRAISER. If you want a great movie about pushing magic to its' edge, watch Christopher Nolan's THE PRESTIGE.

Liverpool born Clive Barker is a well-known name in fiction, and especially in horror. His novels have sold millions of copies all over the World and many of his stories have been adapted to the screen over the last three decades, one of those films was Lord of Illusions, based on the short story "The Last Illusion" from Barker's "Books of Blood Vol. 6", a compilation of stories from 1985.Directed by Clive himself, Lord of Illusions is a fantasy horror starring Scott Bakula (Quantum Leap), Kevin J. O'Connor and Famke Janssen (X-Men). This was the last film that Barker directed after previously stepping behind the camera for Nightbreed and Hellraiser. The director's cut of "Lord…" is, in Barker's words, the "definitive version of the film" while the theatrical cut does not represent his true vision. This release from 101 Films features the theatrical cut on Blu- ray as well as the director's cut, complete with director commentary, on DVD. This alone makes it worth picking up this version.The plot is very Barker-eqsue. It tells the story of Private Detective Harry D'Amour (Bakula) who happens upon a cult that is awaiting the resurrection of their "leader" Nix. Nix trained Philip Swann (O'Connor) in the art of magic and illusion, and Swann went on to become a success much-like a David Copperfield. Philips wife, Dorothea (Janssen), hires D'Amour to protect her husband from the impending rise of his former master, Nix, and his demented cult members. An "accident" with Swann leads to D'Amour investigating and discovering a world of magic he didn't know existed. A twisting and turning story of magic, deception and evil, Lord of Illusions is an intriguing and unusual film that plays in the fields of horror, fantasy and sci-fi.There are few films that deal with magic and illusionists, and even fewer that deal with it in the way that Lord of Illusions does. The director's cut is much better viewing than the theatrical version, the version I had always been familiar with until seeing this release. An absorbing premise, the film offers something very different and while it isn't flawless, it is still a very palatable and enjoyable experience that I will return to once again in the futureThe acting is hit and miss. They often feel trite and border on lethargic at times, but Bakula is charming as D'Amour, and Janssen, though much improved since her work here, offers a polite performance that doesn't really offend. I found O'Connor to be a little puerile at times and it made for some scenes that bordered on cringe worthy, but it wasn't enough to put me off watching.The story isn't Barker's best, and as a reader of plenty of his novels and short tales, I am surprised that he didn't adapt something better to the screen than this. The Damnation Game, Pig Blood Blues and The Body Politic all come to mind and were released before or around the same time as "The Last Illusion". Still, Barker saw fit to make this, and it isn't a bad movie, just not on the same level as Nightbreed and Hellraiser. Barker was a fine director too and it would be nice to see him try his hand at it once more, perhaps adapting a newer novel such as Mister B. Gone to film.101 Films have done a commendable job with this release. It looks the part, and the picture quality and sound on the Blu-ray is of a high quality for a film of this type. The extra DVD featuring the director's cut of the film as well as a directors commentary is a lovely addition and should be a big reason to buy this release.It's not brilliant, and it doesn't feature an iconic antagonist like Pinhead, but Lord of Illusions is still worth a watch, and the director's cut is just dandy.