The Relic is a 1997 movie directed by Peter Hyams, based on a book by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Childs. However, much to the disappointment of fans, a well known and liked character, Special Agent Pendergast, does not play a major role in this movie. The Relic (1997) movie review
The movie follows an anthropologist and a homicide detective on a hunt for a god-like creature in a Chicago museum. In the book, it takes place at the New York Museum of Natural History, but the museum didn’t want the filmmakers to film there because the book paints them in a bad light in terms of acting on the events in the book. They also felt monster movies would scare off kids. After some research, the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago decided to allow the producers to film the movie there because they loved the premise of it. The museum resembled the one in New York so the director thought it was a great alternative.
As for the movie, it is very dark. It is not dark in tone but it is hard to see everything happening in it. This is due to movie transfers that degraded the lightning in a way that made it appear dark. However, there are quite a few scenes in the movie that are actually dark with only small amounts of light appearing around the characters, usually from flashlight.
This works in the movie’s favor as well as hurt it. Yes it is hard to see at times, but it also creates a great atmosphere where the creature (called Kothoga) could jump out at any moment and chomp up a few people before disappearing again. It also helps to hide any flaws in creature design and movement. For of close ups, the creature is done with practical effects done by the legendary Stan Winston and his team. They look fantastic.
Penelope Ann Miller (Dr. Margo Green, museum evolutionary biologist) and Tom Sizemore (Lt. Vincent D’Agosta, Chicago police detective) carry the show. They have a great back and forth with each other and they are quite resourceful in the time of need. In fact, most of the people in this movie did a great job and are likable. You don’t get this a lot, especially in a horror movie where people are just there to be killed. This makes the movie stand out and is the reason why this movie is so memorable to me.
If you haven’t read the book, please do so. Just remember that the movie does deviate from it in more ways than one.
Thanks for reading my The Relic (1997) movie review
