"The Prophecy: Forsaken" is a decent and entirely unspectacular conclusion to the series.
**SPOILERS**
Sent out on a job, Dylan, (Jason Scott Lee) can't bear to murder Allison, (Kari Wuhrer) who still holds the fabled book, and decides to shield her from his employer, Stark, (Tony Todd) a jealous angel, and his minions. While on the run, she again meets up with John Reigart, (John Light) to figure out who's after her, but offers no help. Hiding out until he can rejoin her, she is soon captured by Stark's minions and told of his job to eliminate Allison. Thinking this will allow Stark, who wants to stop the Antichrist from arriving, to find the Lexicon without her getting in the way, and that she may herself have a more prominent role in both parties than she realized, she fights off both to protect herself and the fate of humanity.
The Good News: This was a mildly decent entry in the series. As a continuation of the one before it, there's a sense of continuity that is nice to see. With the same themes being brought up and several of the same people and places, it doesn't offer much and being a straight sequel, that's a really pleasing factor to have. It's one really impressive sequence is a short scene where one character is chased into a small church, and as night falls, the spirit of a deceased victim appears to them, only hidden by the shadows of the dark. While delivering a really creepy message, they light shines only briefly on the figure, making it apparent for several quick flashes that it's an otherworldly force and turns out to be quite creepy. This alone makes the film watchable. The last main positive point is that terrifically gloomy Romanian locale in the film. It adds a Gothic flavor that just can't be matched anywhere else, with it's Medieval-style houses, dark atmosphere and just it's wasteland feel to it. Most of the atmosphere and feel in the film comes from this. Otherwise, this was a really lackluster film.
The Bad News: This was a really weak and uneven entry. Most of the problem is primarily due to the repetitive nature of what's going on. Far too much time is spent explaining everything that happened in the last movie, and this can really make it seem like there's really not much we haven't already seen. The almost airy and aimless half-bag of religious psycho-babble delivered here also feels like the exact same "mystical book" mumbo-jumbo that populated the last entry. Some of the rules get explained a little further, but it takes it's cues from the one before it, and really doesn't feel like it's own sequel. Rather, there's an air about it being the exact same as before, and this is a really irritating and tiring concept, since it was a boring and excruciating point in that one as well. These non-stop talking scenes go on forever, don't really end on anything useful rather than confusing the viewer, and no attempt is made to work them into the film naturally beyond the explanations. The last major problem is the short running time. With most of the time taken up with the dialog and explanations, there isn't any time for any action or anything else. It's still watchable, but there's a sense that it feels like this could've had some more action and chasing thrown in to make it more exciting. Beyond the one church scene and a half-way decent roof-top encounter near the end, that's it in terms of exciting action in the film. This can seem boring in some ways, and really could've been fixed quite easily. With a few small, simple problems, this could've been a slightly better entry.
The Final Verdict: While still keeping the entertainment factor high, this is a just about fully-talkative film that offers a few action sequences to lighten the mood. It's fine and watchable, but the only real reason to see this one is to either finish off the series or because you've seen part four. Otherwise, you can skip it without missing anything at all.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Full Nudity and Language
