It’s a feeling we all know well—when the silence in the house gets a little too thick. When the silence gets so thick that every creak of the floorboard sounds like a step. But if we’re honest, it’s a talent we all possess, telling ourselves it’s just the house settling. I mean, come on, we’re rational, modern beings, aren’t we? Right! We have the fastest internet, the best therapy apps, and an explanation for every scientific phenomenon in our lives. But the reality of a film such as “Diabolic,” though, is a reminder that not all closets are chock-full of old shirts…. and not all memories are the anchor that holds us grounded in the darkness. If you haven’t caught the trailer for the film, be warned. The trailer for the new religious horror film has just been released, and it’s the sensation of a cold finger trailing down your neck. It taps into the primal fear of all of us—when the reality of our own past, buried though it may be, never truly dies.
The story is about Elise (Elizabeth Cullen), a woman tormented by a weight that she just can’t quite explain. Unfortunately, a part of her exists in each of us. Elise has blackout episodes and times in her life where she just “disappears” for parts of it. In a moment of absolute despair, she goes to the only place that she thinks has a solution for her. The oppressive walls of a compound that she had taken a long time to forget. Each of us has been there in some form or another. Slipping back into a bad habit or a relationship or a belief system that we had in our childhood because being lost in a future that we don’t know is worse than being lost in a past that we know. Elise is a woman seeking a miracle. But, as we see in the trailer.what some people consider to be a “healing” process looks a whole lot like a living nightmare.
What makes Diabolic so heavy is the fact that it doesn’t feature Hollywood themes. It has a sense of reality to it. This is most likely because co-writer Ticia Madsen has some experience with religious extremism in real life. Instead of capes and ancient ruins. We get dresses and tables and the crushing “kindness” of a society in which everyone is trapped in a cage made out of “love” and “divine” rules.
Movies like “Diabolic” appeal to an audience because they give a face to the invisible monsters that we fight every day. These monsters take the shape of trauma, guilt, and the fear of being “broken.” When Elise looks into the mirror and doesn’t see herself, you feel like you’ve been punched in the gut. We’ve all been there, caught up in an identity crisis. Moments when we wonder if we are the masters of our own destinies or if we are simply playing out our roles according to the script written for us by our parents, our church, or our past errors. “Diabolic” simply turns up the sound on this experience to a scream.
In this horror film, the line between the witch and the trauma is skilfully blurred by the director, Daniel J. Phillips. This film shows how religious extremism can also be a form of possession that regulates your voice, your decisions, and your thoughts. Diabolic represents a universal human experience, one that is faced when we confront our fear of our own history.
We all have things that we have pushed back on our journey. Mistakes, broken hearts, or parts of ourselves that “did not fit” with the plan. That struggle is stretched out before us on the screen. When Elise’s reflection changes or her body twists, it is a reflection of the struggle we all have between who we are and who we were told to be. So, if you’re the type that enjoys horror that lingers long after the credits have rolled. Horror that puts your mind back to your own childhood and the ‘ghosts’ that haunt your family tree. Then this is definitely something that you cannot miss.
Diabolic will land on February 20, 2026. It is a good reminder of the fact that while faith can move mountains, it can also be the cause of people being buried under them.
