Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
The angel Gabriel comes to Earth to collect a soul which will end the stalemated war in Heaven. However, it is hidden inside of a Native American girl and only a former priest and a schoolteacher can stop him.
The Prophecy earns its reputation largely through a wildly original premise — a civil war in Heaven with angels as menacing, jealous beings — and Christopher Walken's magnetic, darkly comic turn as Gabriel, which elevates the material well above average. The supporting cast (Viggo Mortensen as Lucifer, Elias Koteas as the lapsed priest) adds further texture. The plot is imaginative but somewhat unevenly paced and loses momentum in its third act, leading to a rushed, underwhelming conclusion. Cinematography is functional at best — competent but unremarkable low-budget work. Novelty is genuinely high: this theological horror-thriller had a truly distinctive voice and conception that stood apart from anything else in mid-90s genre cinema.