Mother of Tears

A pagan talisman is accidentally uncovered, restoring the strength and power to the most evil of all the ancient witches. As the second age of black magic begins to dawn in Rome, social order disintegrates and the daughter of the last white witch must discover her destiny. Are you scared yet? Writer and director Argento is considered a master of the horror genre because, y'know, he’s old and has made loads of stuff, but his creaky 'classics' have a grudgingly endearing quality to them precisely because they've aged quite badly. Sadly, nothing much has changed in terms of his style, meaning the same tired formulas in a contemporary market just don't cut it, and Mother of Tears seems hopelessly dated and out of place on most levels. Fans of gory money shots and half-dressed women will not be disappointed but everybody else would do well to consign it to that mental list of films to be given the body swerve. [Jack McFarlane]