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Rating:
As far as monster movies go, The Relic has become its own forgotten token of how to entertainingly present yet another B-movie special-effects monstrosity that gobbles up everything in sight during the course of 110 thrill-a-second minutes. Director Peter Hyams paints a slick picture of gory museum mayhem that has enough scares, wit, and truly claustrophobic settings to elevate it past its initial chilly theatrical reception. Highlighted by Hyams' own masterful cinematography, the tension stays taut even when the ghastly beast isn't on the screen thanks to his plays of light and extreme shadow. Detractors knock the film for its conventional underpinnings, but they don't seem to get the fun that the film has within its genre's own confines, none of which would be possible without the truly likable characters that populate the picture. Tom Sizemore has rarely been as charming, while Clayton Rohner steals the show as Hollingsworth, the sidekick cop who not only saves the lives of most of the trapped museum benefactors, but shockingly lives to see another day. And despite some early stumbling with the script's tongue-tied scientific lingo, Penelope Ann Miller makes for a competent scream queen who is both intelligent and sexy as she battles the deadly creature by using her smarts while also wearing a miniskirt. Casting for the rest of the picture couldn't be better, with all roles big and small filled perfectly with character actors who make the most of their screen time. And the monster? While early on in the development of CG animation, Stan Winston takes much of his Jurassic Park knowledge of practical vs. artificial effects to a new level with this gooey creature. With a wholly original design (despite its Predator-like mandibles), Winston and company present a formidable villain that takes down more than its share of SWAT team members, the rich elite, and even a marijuana-smoking security guard (remember kids -- drugs kill!). Though the flick suffers from certainly one of the slowest "running from the fireball" finales, The Relic still delivers the scares as only a solid monster movie can, which is all that should be asked of it during any late-night viewings. Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide

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