I've always been a fan of films like The Exorcist and The Omen because they scared the hell out of me as a kid. Hell! They still scare me. Maybe it's because of their unpredictability or their underlying sense of realism. Whatever the case may be, they are effective films. Enter the dumb thriller Bless the Child, a film that aspires to be a grand throwback to the previously mentioned masterpieces, but comes up way short.

Kim Basinger suddenly finds herself the guardian of her strung-out sister's newborn baby. As the next few years pass, it seems that the young girl is stricken with some form of autism. Actually, it isn't autism at all, but a gift that will protect mankind from the clutches of Satan. How 'bout that? Before too long, a group of Satan worshippers are after the child and what follows is a boring series of chases, grisly killings, and cheesy supernatural hokum.

Basinger (who won a Oscar for L.A. Confidential just a couple of years ago) has been on a down swing lately with mediocre films like I Dreamed of Africa. She doesn't fare much better here. Rufus Sewell (Dark City) plays a stock villain while talented veterans like Ian Holm (Alien) and Lumi Cavasos (Like Water for Chocolate) are completely wasted. Christina Ricci shows up in a completely thankless and irrelevant role, and even an energetic Jimmy Smits stumbles around trying to save this doomed demonfest.

Bless the Child was directed by Chuck Russell (Nightmare on Elm Street 3, The Mask, Eraser) and he's a wizard with scenes involving special effects. This is a film with moments, and Russell does manage to create some eerie images, but that feeling of impending doom that you should get while your watching this film never surfaces. Bless the Child ends up being a predictable supernatural thriller that manages to surpass End of Days and Stigmata by a hair. A very thin hair.