A mysterious stranger is jailed in a small town police station where
he manipulates the police and the criminals into losing their minds.

​HORROR

Let Us Prey ​(2014)

Directed by Brian O'Malley

Written by Fiona Watson and David Cairns

Starring Liam Cunningham, Pollyanna McIntosh, Bryan Larkin, Hanna Stanbridge, Douglas Russell, ​Brian Vernel,
​Niall Greig Fulton, Jonathan Watson

---

Connor Eyzaguirre

​June 5, 2016

5/10

Let Us Prey was kinda like a paranormal Assault on Precinct 13, complete with a nearly identical musical score but without any of the substance. The film has very little story and is held together almost entirely by its shock value and epic climax. Liam Cunningham does a decent job as a character who I guess is either supposed to be the Angel of Death or the Devil himself. That's just one of the many things about this low-budget Scottish endeavor that isn't made too clear. The characters are insufferable, which is to be expected. After all, everyone is there to die because of their sinful ways. It wouldn't work very well if we liked them.

The film doesn't start to get enjoyable until the third act, where all hell breaks loose. The kill scenes are done well, even if they are a bit much at times. This film desperately needed some sort of an introduction, as well as some backstory or even a brief dialogue explaining just what the hell is going on. It's never made clear if Cunningham's character is controlling everything or if he's just there to collect what's left after they tear themselves apart. With the proper script, Let Us Prey really could've been something.

There's a serious lack of explanation in this film, which is why it failed. All of the characters are evil bastards, but we never know why or, in some cases, exactly what they've done. It's hard to like a film that seems to try so very hard to confuse the hell out of the viewer. Let Us Prey might be an entertaining watch for an insomniac with their finger stuck on the left directional button on Netflix's horror/thriller section, but for casual film fans, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed.