Don’t let any media you see about Soul Survivors fool you. It comes from the producers of I Know What You Did Last Summer and Urban Legend. It’s even rated PG-13 for terror/violence, sexuality, and substance abuse. So, this film has got to be about some sort of slasher, right? Wrong! Here’s the plot, as summarized by IMDB:
“College freshman Cassandra “Cassie” steps into a nightmare of otherworldly visitations after surviving a devastating car accident. Haunted by a grim reaper of a far different kind, her only hope is to cling to chance encounters with her lost love Sean and the aid of a mysterious young priest named Father Jude. It is the spirit of Sean, her soul mate, who guides her to love, but it is her friends Matt, Annabel and Annabel’s morose friend Raven who try to draw her to the dark side.”
Yeah, despite being marketed as a slasher for the most part – Soul Survivors is nothing more than a psychological love story with a supernatural element added in. I had to watch it, thus you will read a review of it, but trust me I won’t feel insulted if you click the back button. The only real saving grace of this film is that Eliza Dushku stars as the main character’s best friend, Annabel. You will recognize Eliza Dushku as having played “Faith” on Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Angel. She was also the title character in True Calling and the lead in Dollhouse. She’s also appeared in a couple horror films such as Wrong Turn, Open Graves, and The Alphabet Killer.
Other noteworthy cast members include Casey Affleck, Ben Affleck’s brother. Luke Wilson is also a main character in Soul Survivors, but here’s a problem with that. He plays a priest and is pretty much “Cassie’s” only friend by the end of the film. When the guy from Charlie’s Angels, Legally Blonde, and My Super Ex Girlfriend is your best friend – you should realize this is a problem.
Anyway, I mentioned above that Soul Survivors came from the same guys who did Urban Legend and it shows. Not that this is a bad thing, but the films are stylized almost the same. It made me think, “This reeks of late 90s horror.” Urban Legends came out in 1998, Soul Survivors in 2001. Once you know this is what you will be seeing quality-wise, and some of the actors in the picture, the only thing left to talk about is the plot. The plot is…confusing as best. I’m never really sure if the events in Soul Survivors are happening or if “Cassie” is in Hell.
But, since the reason things start to take a turn for the worse in Soul Survivors is because of a car crash on the way home from a rave, I’ll end the review like this. Don’t drink and drive, people. Or you will end up in a low budget film with Luke Wilson where you may or may not be in Hell.
