Bless the Child (2000)
Average Rating: 2.9/10
Reviews Counted: 103
Fresh: 3 | Rotten: 100
Bless the Child squanders its talented cast on a plot that's more likely to inspire unintentional laughs than shivers.
Average Rating: 2.4/10
Critic Reviews: 32
Fresh: 0 | Rotten: 32
Bless the Child squanders its talented cast on a plot that's more likely to inspire unintentional laughs than shivers.
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Average Rating: 2.8/5
User Ratings: 35,030
Movie Info
In this supernatural horror story, Jenna (Angela Bettis), an unstable young woman, gives birth to a girl named Cody who proves to be autistic; unable to care for her properly, she turns Cody over to her sister, psychiatric nurse Maggie O'Connell (Kim Basinger). Maggie raises Cody as her own, but when the child (now played by Holliston Coleman) turns six, Jenna and her new husband Eric (Rufus Sewell) forcibly take back the child. Maggie believes Jenna and Eric are not fit parents, but when she
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Cast
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Kim Basinger
Maggie O'Connor -
Jimmy Smits
John Travis -
Holliston Coleman
Cody -
Rufus Sewell
Eric Stark -
Angela Bettis
Jenna -
Christina Ricci
Cheri -
Michael Gaston
Bugatti -
Lumi Cavazos
Sister Rosa -
Dimitra Arliss
Dahnya -
Eugene Lipinski
Stuart -
Anne Betancourt
Maria -
Ian Holm
Reverend Grissom -
-
-
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All Critics (103) | Top Critics (32) | Fresh (3) | Rotten (100) | DVD (14)
If you're so inclined, pray that the responsible parties crawl back into whatever hole they emerged from.
Top CriticShould have sold its soul for a little help in the script department.
Director Chuck Russell also made the infinitely better comedy The Mask. After this, he may want to wear a mask.
It reps another disappointing outing from Kim Basinger, who's clearly uninspired by the hack material.
Horrendous dialogue and horrific directing dominate this thriller, in which Coleman's performance shines by default.
The use of child jeopardy as a cheap suspense mechanism is somewhat dubious, but one's unease is slightly mollified by the fact that much of this is far too silly to take seriously.
This adaptation of Cathy Cash Spellman's novel is pulp fiction with airs, and director Chuck Russell builds absolutely no suspense.
A pox on the house of all involved.
By turns lurid, risible and offensive.
A supernatural thriller that does for its genre what Battlefield Earth did for science fiction.
Often trite and predictable but grudgingly likable in the end.
Winning an Oscar has changed Kim Basinger, and not in a good way.
The special effects are impressive, but the dialogue is an unintentional hoot.
Shamelessly silly, Bless The Child notches up the clichés as the daft story meanders towards a suitably hammy conclusion.
Mostly derivative junk, but its few novel touches are worth noting.
Any movie where the villain is a combination of Danny Bonaduce and L. Ron Hubbard has at least has one thing going for it.
Watching, I felt that the script wasn't taking full advantage of the genre.
Forgive them, Lord; Russell et al know not what they do.
If this film were just written badly, or just acted badly, it might have some value. But here we have a double negative.
I kept thinking Jay and Silent Bob would pop out and make a Star Wars joke.
Audience Reviews for Bless the Child
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Top Headlines
Kim Basinger makes an outstanding performance in this supernatural film about a woman's battle to save her beloved niece from an unspeakable evil. There is some very good suspense here, especially at the end and some shocking horror scenes of violence. Good vs Evil, and it's done well for me. And I thought Rufus Sewell's performance as Stark is well acted and convincingly evil. I see Christina Ricci appeared a very small part in this movie.
Director Chuck Russell makes a good attempt to throw in horror and chills at the right moments and even throws in some great effects such as the Devil's manifestation in to a throne and even a rolling head for fans of a little gore.