Love the unexplainable? Biblical plagues, paranormal events and a twist ending is what awaits those who go to see The Reaping, starring Hilary Swank, David Morrissey, and AnnaSophia Robb, which was released last month.
Plagued by numerous and unexplainable events, the movie takes place in a small town called Haven, Louisiana. Swank, who has won two Oscars for her performance in Million Dollar Baby (2004) and Boys Don’t Cry (1999), plays Katherine Winter, a former minister turned university professor, who is called to Haven when its local river supposedly turns into blood.
Katherine plays a key role in finding out why all the supernatural events are happening in this town; she also tries to uncover and understand the mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of a Haven youth. Katherine’s past comes to haunt her as she comes to the little town with her assistant (Idris Elba)and befriends a man named Doug (Morrissey), who help her along the way.
Throughout the movie, Katherine tries to explain the 10 plagues, which are linked to biblical events that are described in the Book of Revelations or also known as the Apocalypse, that are invading the once quiet town. She tries to link the plagues with scientific explanations in order to make the townspeople believe that there is a logical explanation to the events. While investigating, Katherine comes across Loren McConnell (Robb), who is blamed for all the events that are happening to the town and is being persecuted by all the inhabitants of Haven.
Robb, who starred in Bridge to Terabithia (2007) and co-stared in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), is a promising, young actress, who played an orphaned 10-year-old girl in the movie, Because of Winn-Dixie, and is now making another great appearance in The Reaping. She has demonstrated her abilities as a capable actress and appears to work with the most demanding characters, as well as with actors of a well known status, such as Swank.
Once again Swank plays a strong character, whose attitude towards what she believes in is tested, just like in the movie, Million Dollar Baby, in which she portrays a woman, whose passion is to learn boxing in order to get to the top and fulfill her dream.
While everyone blames Loren, Katherine tries to find out if it is Loren who is causing the plagues or if there is a reasonable explanation to it all. At the end, Katherine is torn between science and religion, as well as truth and mystery. She must decide where she stands and it will either help or destory the town of Haven and the people who inhabit it.
If you want to enjoy a movie filled with mysteries and secrets that’ll keep you on the edge of your seat and wondering what will happen next, you should watch The Reaping, a thriller that won’t disappoint you.