The Vatican Tapes

"For 2,000 years the Vatican has recorded evidence of evil. May God have mercy on their souls."

2015 1h 31m EN

😐

5.4

MID

★5.4TMDB · 843

ThrillerHorror

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In a highly secured vault deep within the walls of Vatican City, the Catholic Church holds thousands of old films and video footage documenting exorcisms/supposed exorcisms and other unexplained religious phenomena they feel the world is not ready to see. This is the first tape - Case 83-G - stolen from these archives and exposed to the public by an anonymous source.

“For 2,000 years the Vatican has recorded evidence of evil. May God have mercy on their souls.”

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Cast

Olivia Taylor Dudley
Angela Holmes
Michael Peña
Père Lozano
Peter Andersson
Cardinal Bruun
Djimon Hounsou
Vicar Imani
Kathleen Robertson
Docteur Richards
Montanna Gillis
Jackie
Noemi Gonzalez
Maria
Alison Lohman
Psych Patient

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Mark Neveldine
Writers: Christopher Borrelli, Michael C. Martin, Chris Morgan
Languages: English, German
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 14% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 11 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, German.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Directed by Mark Neveldine, shot by Gerardo Madrazo. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Joseph Bishara. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Eric Potter shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Olivia Taylor Dudley and Michael Peña and Peter Andersson carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "For 2,000 years the Vatican has recorded evidence of evil. May God have mercy on their souls.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Mark Neveldine directs. Gerardo Madrazo behind the camera. Joseph Bishara scores. Eric Potter cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English, German.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 14% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
2Released 11 years ago.
3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, German.
4Directed by Mark Neveldine, shot by Gerardo Madrazo. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Joseph Bishara. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Eric Potter shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Olivia Taylor Dudley and Michael Peña and Peter Andersson carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "For 2,000 years the Vatican has recorded evidence of evil. May God have mercy on their souls.".
9IMDB entry: tt1524575 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Gerardo Madrazo
Original score: Joseph Bishara
Editing: Eric Potter
Production design: Jerry Fleming
Costume design: Lindsay McKay
Makeup / hair: Deborah Rutherford
Runtime: 91 min · 1h 31m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $13,000,000
Box office: $1,784,763
Return: 14% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: The Vatican Tapes (2015)

Also by

Mark Neveldine

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Dan_Tebasco2017-05-19
★ 5/10
A bit nice with the rating perhaps. I mean it has alot of issues, Michael Pena (whom I usually like alot) is very stiff in this one (no not in his pants, it's not that kind of a movie) feels like he phoned it in as they say. Djimoun Hinsou being in it was something that interested me to see it as well but he was only in it for a couple minutes. Nicely shot but the editing is a bit wonky, whoever edited it doesn't get it to flow very well and it seems like they were deliberatly trying to make it as short as possible cutting from one scene to the next leaving as little dead time as possible. Clocking in at less than 90 minutes (the credits start rolling at around the 83 mark). Not a whole lot of surprises to be found, the idea of the ending was alright but again very rushed. Should be added that despite what the plotsummario suggests this is not found footage.
Tomas Tom2021-02-08
★ 7/10
A relatively successful horror film with an interesting story that depicts the arrival and birth of the antichrist. Of course, this one definitely doesn't belong to the top horror movies, but even so an interesting spectacle that I wasn't bored after a long time. For those who like various films about exorcism, this film is definitely worth watching. Don't expect any miracles from this film, but for a good average it will be enough.
Filipe Manuel Neto2023-04-03
★ 3/10
Another horror film for teenagers that will not please anyone looking for something serious. It looks like the teen horror movie fad has really taken root. I'm not a fan, not least because, for me, either horror movies really scare, bother, or they don't deserve to be called horror. However, if the producers' idea was to create a film capable of convincing the 15-year-old couples to go to the cinema in the hope of some naughty hugs when she gets scared, or with the intention of seeing who will be more scared in the group, maybe they got what they wanted. For someone like me, who is part of the backstage of the Catholic Church, and who lived for years with all sorts of priests, it is a little difficult to understand all the “hype” around exorcism. I recognize that it is one of those Catholic rituals that is unknown to even the most unfailing Catholics, but this is due to the strict secrecy with which everything is done, and which aims above all to protect the person targeted by the ritual. Informed Catholics know that it is a special kind of ritual, that it is only done in specific circumstances and with caution, but it does not have the cinema's “show off”! It is effective in its own way, and the exorcist is not a conspicuous or strange priest. He is, above all, a priest trained to the highest level for what he has at hand (I mean the real Catholic exorcists, not any cheap imitations). The film, as always happens in cinema, transforms a religious ritual into a garish show that has nothing to do with reality, but which entertains the audience quite well. Mark Neveldine is not a director to be taken seriously. So far, he's only directed terribly dubious films. The cast has several good actors – Djimon Hounsou, Dougray Scott, Michael Peña – but none of them are used properly. The material given is poor, the characters are very bad, and the constructed narrative is a mere excuse for exorcism. The use of VCRs is also an old horror cliché, which will remind us of several films that are frankly better than this one.