I always watch a horror/thriller with the obvious, preconceived notion that the film will stink. You expect that there will be no substance to the movie, to the plot, the characters, etc. In the Reaping, you will find that lacking substance in some parts, but the movie is not as hard to follow as expected, plus the pace of the film is surprisingly good, considering you have to go through ten biblical "miracles" in a certain amount of time. Hillary Swank is always consistent and I was impressed by Idris Elba and AnnaSophia Robb. The flaws in The Reaping are glaring but they do not override the clever editing and acting that help pull the murky screenplay out from the swamp.
Without a shadow of a doubt, the largest weakness in The Reaping is the direction. You know the shaky camera that skips five scenes a second in a flashback? The Reaping is full of that nonsense. Also, aside from the climax and a nice eye-wandering view towards the fit backside in Hillary's pants, the cameras cannot capture an ideal scene or angle to save themselves from losing the interest of the viewer. I find this vulnerability interesting because the story is structured well enough to survive on its own. If you've seen The Omen or Rosemary's Baby, you can expect more of the same if you are interested in this film. The Reaping retreads on a familiar, unoriginal path in the genre, but it's not all that bad and worth a glimpse if you are a fan of horror.
Without a shadow of a doubt, the largest weakness in The Reaping is the direction. You know the shaky camera that skips five scenes a second in a flashback? The Reaping is full of that nonsense. Also, aside from the climax and a nice eye-wandering view towards the fit backside in Hillary's pants, the cameras cannot capture an ideal scene or angle to save themselves from losing the interest of the viewer. I find this vulnerability interesting because the story is structured well enough to survive on its own. If you've seen The Omen or Rosemary's Baby, you can expect more of the same if you are interested in this film. The Reaping retreads on a familiar, unoriginal path in the genre, but it's not all that bad and worth a glimpse if you are a fan of horror.