Yesterday I watched Devil in the Flesh (a.k.a. Dearly Devoted) (1998) for the first time. This was a random DVD watch for me. I love Rose McGowan, so I only wanted to check this movie out for her. I went in low expectations and the result is a decent psychological thriller that often feels like it rather wants to be an erotic thriller. I truly enjoyed Rose McGowan’s performance and she’s honestly the saving grace here as I most likely would’ve hated this movie had she not starred in it. Her role is nowhere near as good as in Scream, but she pulled it off with the type of character she played. Alex McArthur did provide for some appealing eye candy.
The storyline is predictable and has been done countless times before. This movie does have some cool kills and I liked seeing the typical 90’s style in fashion choices. The directing is weird and even amateuristic at times. I was expecting more straightforward horror aspects, but it was fun seeing Rose chew the scenery and she had some witty one-liners. I do admit that Devil in the Flesh is one of those “leave your brains at the door” movies where you can only hope you’ll be entertained by what you see. At some point I couldn’t take the whole thing seriously anymore to be frank. Devil in the Flash is a slightly above average thriller, but that’s mostly due to Rose’s presence and likeability. The rest is standard stuff for a Direct to Video movie. I’d say it is worth a rental, but if you’re a Rose McGowan fan it’s a must see. I’m not sure if I’ll watch this movie again anytime soon.
FYI: My DVD disc kept glitching throughout the last 30 minutes and at some point it freeze framed and I had to watch the rest of the movie online. There’s also a sequel starring Jodi Lyn O’Keefe (Halloween H2O), but I’m not likely gonna bother watching that.
–Ferdi Akkulak