It’s taken 11 years, but the day has finally come for the scheduled execution of serial killer Edward Wayne Brady (Sean Patrick Flanery), and Dr. James Martin (Jordan Belfi) has been called in at the last minute to do a psychiatric evaluation. He has just a few hours to determine if the prisoner is sane enough to be executed. Warden Moss (Tom Ohmer) warns James that Brady is a master manipulator, and offers him the chance to just sign off on the execution, and finally give the grieving families some relief. However Dr. Martin takes his job seriously and asks to speak with Brady.

As James sits down at a table with Brady, he discovers that the prisoner already seems to know a lot about him. Brady tells James that he made the previous doctor commit suicide so that he would have to do his evaluation, and that he also specifically chose James to write his story. The prisoner says that death doesn’t scare him because he can’t die—he’s actually a demon named Nefarious possessing the body of Edward Wayne Brady, and that he wants Brady to be executed and sent to hell. Nefarious tells James that before he leaves the prison, he will have committed three murders. James is an atheist, so all this talk of demons is nonsense to him. If anything, he believes that Brady may be suffering from some sort of dissociative identity disorder. However, Nefarious seems to know things about James’ past, present and future that no one could possibly know, causing James to question his stance on angels and demons. He starts to wonder if Brady is indeed possessed, but if so, should he be held responsible for his actions, or would the world just be better off if this man/demon were just executed?!

Nefarious is based on author Steve Deace’s novel A Nefarious Plot, and is a heavily dialogue-driven film, following one man’s conversation with the devil. Even though the film primarily consists of these two men sitting across from one another arguing about angels, demons, and what James will or won’t do, I still found it quite engaging and tense at times, and never really grew tired of the debate between these two. Sean Patrick Flanery gives a stellar performance, not only in the way he delivers his lines, but also in the physicality he brings to this character. It really feels like a weaker Edward Wayne Brady is trapped inside, twitching and trying to regain control of his body, while the more menacing Nefarious tests and tries to manipulate James. At times it feels like Flanery is channeling Heath Ledger’s Joker. Nefarious is a heartless and vindictive being, and loves to make people miserable. At one point we see a guard ask Brady what he wants for his last meal, but a few seconds later Nefarious takes over and cancels the order, not wanting to even give his host one final kindness or joy.

Jordan Belfi also gives a strong performance as the devil’s adversary, the more straight-laced atheist physician James, who at first treats their encounter very clinically, and is determined to ignore all of Brady’s nonsense. He is simply there to determine if Brady is putting on an act to get himself spared from the electric chair—he doesn’t believe any of the stuff that “Nefarious” is spewing, and even brings in a priest to quickly squash it. However, Nefarious isn’t going to make things that simple, and as their conversation gets more and more personal, and things come out about James’ past, James starts to question his beliefs (or lack there-of), while still matching wits with this devilish man.

The film becomes a battle of wits between these two men, each trying to prove the other wrong, or themselves right.

Mill Creek has released Nefarious on both Blu-ray and DVD, and I was sent the Blu-ray version for review. The video presentation looks fantastic, with a clean, pristine picture in both the brighter exterior shots as well as the darker scenes inside the prison. There is a rich color palette that really helps to set the creepy mood during the interrogation, and a solid level of detail in faces and textures. The audio track provides a nice haunting score, clear dialogue throughout, and a generally immersive ambiance—which is especially noticeable in the way the dialogue slightly reverberates in the large empty room, or the sound of the rain hitting the rooftop of the prison. The Blu-ray disc comes packed in a standard HD keepcase, which is placed inside a cardboard slipcover. The disc is loaded with bonus material, including 2 audio commentaries as well as over 70 minutes of featurettes with the cast and crew.

What’s Included:

Film: (1:37:31)

• 1080p / Widescreen 2.39:1
• Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
• Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish

Extras:

• The Making Of Nefarious (32:42)
  The cast and crew discus the themes of film, the inspiration for the book the movie was based on, adapting the book into a story with multiple characters and not just the devil in one man’s head, the writing process, casting the film, filming in a real prison, the importance of having a ministry department and how demons attacked the production, their personal beliefs about demons, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with writers/producers/directors Cary Solomon & Chuck Konzelman, author/commentator Steve Deace, ministry team priest Father Merlino, producers Chris Jones & Sheila Hart, ministry team pastor Gabriel Varela, still photographer Lorraine Varela, and stars Sean Patrick Flanery (“Nefarious”), Jordan Belfi (“Dr. James Martin”), Cameron Arnett (“Styles”) & Tom Ohmer (“Warden Moss”).
• Filmmaker Commentary (1:37:31)
  Directors Cary Solomon & Chuck Konzelman and producer Chris Jones provide commentary throughout the film, sharing lots of behind-the-scenes stories about the production, and talking about the story and motivations of the characters. Some of this is a bit repetitive if you’ve watched the other featurettes on the disc.
• Cast Commentary (1:37:31)
  Stars Sean Patrick Flanery and Jordan Belfi provide a second commentary, discussing how they got involved with the film, what it was like making the movie and working with one another, the story and their characters, shooting the film chronologically, and more.
• Interview With An Exorcist With Father Carlos Martins (15:50)
  Father Carlos Martins discusses being sent to get rid of a possessed music box in a woman’s home, the process and purpose of performing an exorcism, his thoughts on the film and its depiction of the devil, the three signs of a real possession, and more.
• Speak Of The Devil: Demonic Manifestations And Attacks In Making The Film (24:57)
  The filmmakers discuss some of the freaky things that happened on set, the spiritual warfare surrounding the film, the demonic interferences that provided many challenges for the production, and how warding off these evils brought the team together. Some of the things they mention are the spread of COVID among the crew just as production was about to begin, a strike ordered 3 days into filming, the on-set exorcist getting an emergency appendectomy, strong winds, a demonic squirrel, trouble with car accidents/transportation issues, flooded offices, technical issues at the premiere, and more. Includes interviews with writers/producers/directors Cary Solomon & Chuck Konzelman, author/commentator Steve Deace, producers Chris Jones & Sheila Hart, ministry team pastor Gabriel Varela, still photographer Lorraine Varela, director of photography Jason Head, and ministry team priest Father Merlino.
• Nefarious Easter Eggs (14:36)
  Writers/producers/directors Cary Solomon & Chuck Konzelman and author/commentator Steve Deace discuss 15 of the Easter eggs hidden in the film.

Final Thoughts:

Nefarious is a tense and engaging film, despite primarily being a conversation between two characters. The story/conversation takes some interesting twists and turns, and the two lead performances are really strong. Mill Creek’s Blu-ray release looks and sounds great and is loaded with bonus material that is sure to please fans. The release is definitely worth checking out for horror/possession fans, and a must own for fans of the movie.

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Nefarious (Blu-Ray)

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On the day of his scheduled execution, a convicted serial killer gets a psychiatric evaluation during which he claims he is a demon, and further claims that before their time is over, the psychiatrist will commit three murders of his own.

Nefarious [DVD]

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On the day of his scheduled execution, a convicted serial killer gets a psychiatric evaluation during which he claims he is a demon, and further claims that before their time is over, the psychiatrist will commit three murders of his own.

Nefarious

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