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Movies / On DVD / The Covenant
The Covenant

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The Covenant (2006)

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Reviews Counted:69

Fresh:2

Rotten:67

Average Rating:2.8/10

Consensus: The Covenant plays out like a teen soap opera, full of pretty faces, wooden acting, laughable dialogue, and little suspense.

Rated: 12A [See Full Rating] for intense sequences of violence and action, some disturbing images, sexual content, partial nudity and language

Runtime: 1 hr 37 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Theatrical Release:08-12-2006

Synopsis: Renny Harlin (DIE HARD 2, DEEP BLUE SEA) directs this supernatural thriller about descendants of powerful New England families. The sons of Ipswich are legendary at Spenser Academy, the local... Renny Harlin (DIE HARD 2, DEEP BLUE SEA) directs this supernatural thriller about descendants of powerful New England families. The sons of Ipswich are legendary at Spenser Academy, the local boarding school. Handsome and popular, these four teenage friends can trace their roots to the founding families of the Ipswich Colony, settled in the late 1600s. For years these Massachusetts families have harbored the secret that they possess supernatural powers. Their descendants--Caleb (Steven Strait), Reid (Toby Hemingway), Tyler (Chace Crawford), and Pogue (Taylor Kitsch)--have inherited magical powers that first manifested themselves when the boys turned 13 years old. In a nutshell, they can do anything. As they approach their 18th birthdays, they are preparing to "ascend," which means their powers will grow stronger. The downside? The magic is seductive and addictive, and causes premature aging with each use. Ringleader Caleb tries to keep his friends from using magic recklessly, but as the school year begins, strange events and a strong gut instinct convince Caleb that someone is using very powerful magic. Meanwhile, Caleb is exploring his newfound affection for transfer student Sarah (Laura Ramsey). To Caleb's dismay, Sarah becomes a pawn in a power struggle with a descendant of the fifth founding family of Ipswich, a line thought to be lost during Salem's witch trials. Is Caleb strong enough to maintain his power and keep his family and friends safe, or will he yield to this new threat and sacrifice himself? The film draws interesting parallels between the luring, addictive power of magic and the addictions real teenagers face. The sufficiently creepy setting echoes New England and sets the stage for supernatural phenomena. THE COVENANT also stars Sebastian Stan as Chase Collins, a wealthy newcomer to Spenser, and Jessica Lucas as Kate, Sarah's roommate and Pogue's girlfriend. [More]

Starring: Steven Strait, Sebastian Stan, Toby Hemingway, Chace Crawford

Starring: Steven Strait, Sebastian Stan, Toby Hemingway, Chace Crawford, Jessica Lucas, Laura Ramsey

Director: Renny Harlin

Director: Renny Harlin
Screenwriter: J.S. Cardone
Producer: Gary Lucchesi, Tom Rosenberg, Andre Lamal
Composer: Tomandandy

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Reviews for The Covenant

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 >> >|
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... this falls well short of the Buffy-level resonances at which [Harlin] was presumably aiming.

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
01/27/07
Andrew Pulver
Andrew Pulver
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The Covenant looks less like a movie and more like an extended boy band video -- and with about the same amount of depth.

Full Review Source: Daily Mirror [UK] | comment Comment
01/02/07
David Edwards
David Edwards
Daily Mirror [UK]

Flying scenes, frat-boy face-offs and pyrotechnic punch-ups are punctuated by excruciating expository dialogue.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
12/30/06
Nigel Floyd
Nigel Floyd
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A patently silly supernatural teen drama, in which a bunch of Young Hollywood types flex their abs and aim their perfectly-calibrated glances at each other.

Full Review Source: Observer [UK] | comment Comment
12/30/06
Philip French
Philip French
Observer [UK]

Daft but nonetheless enjoyable supernatural thriller, featuring some hilariously bad dialogue, impressive special effects and some genuinely creepy scenes.

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment 1 Comment
12/30/06
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon

Director Renny Harlin helms like a bat out of hell, and obviously doesn't know a pentagram from a mammogram.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
12/30/06
Jamie Russell
Jamie Russell
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Utterly stupid and full of lazy plotting and lazier dialogue, this is just idiotic enough to entertain on nights when you want to give your brain a rest.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment 2 Comments
12/30/06
Helen OHara
Helen OHara
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

[An] unbewitching brew of clichés.

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
04/23/09
Tom Meek
Tom Meek
Boston Phoenix

Director Renny Harlin ("The Long Kiss Goodnight") phones in this thoughtless teen horror flick from screenwriter J.S. Cardone ("The Forsaken").

Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | comment Comment
04/20/09
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
11/20/08
Brian Marder
Brian Marder
Hollywood.com

This forgettable supernatural-teen thriller is the kind of WB-style soap opera where the characters have names like Chase Collins and Reid Garwin.

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
08/07/08
Jim Lane
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review

It's a horror film for the MTV generation, a horror film for the audience of "Laguna Beach"...

Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed | comment Comment
07/10/07
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed

The inclusion of a romantic subplot that feels as though it'd be more at home in a Harlequin novel...

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
01/09/07
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

O máximo que este O Pacto consegue é transformar-se, em seus instantes finais, em uma espécie de Mortal Kombat para imbecis. E, ainda assim, com dificuldade.

Full Review Source: Cinema em Cena | comment Comment
11/23/06
Pablo Villaca
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena

It's not a work of originality and the handheld camerawork gets tedious, but let's hope the message that power corrupts gets through

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
11/10/06
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile

I think the men were cast more for their abs than their acting.

Full Review Source: KPBS.org | comment 1 Comment
10/28/06
Beth Accomando
Beth Accomando
KPBS.org

Terribly acted, shamelessly unoriginal and executed with little redeeming sense of humour.

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
10/13/06
George Palathingal
George Palathingal
Sydney Morning Herald

"A truly lacklustre direct-to-video teen thriller filled with corny effects, chiseled jaw stares and a lot of hokum about Salem witchcraft"

Full Review Source: Dark Horizons | comment Comment
10/10/06
Garth Franklin
Garth Franklin
Dark Horizons

More nonsensical than scary, THE COVENANT conjures a cautionary tale for prep school pretties.

Full Review Source: Common Sense Media | comment Comment
10/01/06
Cynthia Fuchs
Cynthia Fuchs
Common Sense Media

The film is not at all suspenseful or creepy, and the cast was apparently chosen for looks rather than acting ability.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
10/01/06
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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