Malevolence: The Beginning
As a 6 year old child two things happend to Martin Bristol (Chase Pechacek/Spencer List); he was diagnosed as having congenital analgesia, which means he can't feel pain, he was also kidnapped by Graham Sutter (Brett Rickaby) who took him to an abandoned farm house and over the years made him watch as he tortured and killed a succession of teenage girls. 5 years after the kidnapping Allison Miller (Alexandra Daddario) moves to the area to live with her uncle Jonathan (Michael Biehn) and she not only notices Martin peering out from the broken windows of the farm house but meets local boy William (Nolan Gerard Funk) who she starts getting close to much to Jonathan's ire. When Alison ends up kidnapped it leads to first Jonathan and then William going to the farmhouse.
Do you want to know what the problem is with "Bereavement", it is a prequel to Stevan Mena's "Malevolence" and focuses on the back story of Martin Bristol. Now you may say what is wrong with that and if you have watched "Malevolence" first then I doubt there is much wrong with it as we witness his kidnap and then his indoctrination in to the world of the psycho thanks to Graham Sutter. But for those who watch oblivious to its prequel status it is just another horror movie with the character of Allison bordering on the same level of annoying as Kristen Stewart's Bella was in the "Twilight" movies with that moodiness which makes you wonder if she ever has any friends.
The ironic thing is that even if you don't know that "Bereavement" is prequel you can predict 95% of it with Allison ending up kidnapped by Sutter then of course her boyfriend and uncle ending up involved as they try to find her. We get to see various moments of psycho behaviour with teen girls strung up by their wrists as well some generically creepy behaviour from Sutter around young Martin. But all this does is make the movie about whether or not Martin will be a psycho to which of course if you watch "Bereavement" having watched "Malevolence" you already know the answer.
And that is in truth is it with there nothing really standing out be it the effects, the horror or the action. Thankfully it isn't really a case that the acting is bad it is just the characters are for the most cliche and forgettable.
What this all boils down to is that "Bereavement" probably is a far more entertaining movie for those who watch having already seen "Malevolence" and know that it is a prequel as for those who just watch because of a fondness for horror movies will find nothing about it to be special or memorable.
