Summary
The 1997 horror movieThe Relicfeatures a terrifying creature and was adapted from Lincoln Child and Douglas Preston’s bookRelic, which was published in 1995. Peter Hyams, who is a familiar name for sci-fi fans, directed the movie. Hyams also known for being behind the camera of2010: The Year We Make Contact, the sequel to Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey.
From the engaging setting to the smart main characters, and of course the scary monster at the heart of the story, there are a lot of reasons why horror fans should revisit this underrated 1990s movie. It will definitely give fans of the genre a new appreciation for creature features.
What Is The Relic About?
In the 1997 horror movieThe Relic, Lieutenant Vincent D’Agosta (Tom Sizemore) and evolutionary biologist Margo Green (Penelope Ann Miller) are shocked to find a creature in New York City’s American Museum of Natural History. It all begins with John Whitney (Lewis Van Bergen), an anthropologist who travels to South America and has a strange experience on a ship. After he disappears and the other people on board are found killed, the other characters wonder if something sinister has happened.
When Frederick Ford (Jophery Brown), the security guard at the museum, is murdered, everyone thinks that a killer is at large in the museum. But as it turns out, it’s a dangerous and terrifying creature that is linked to a statue in the museum of a creature called the Kothoga. While there are someoverrated ’90s horror movies,The Relichas a lot of positive aspects: smart characters, a creature that genuinely looks terrifying, and a fun setting. It’s also fascinating to learn more about the creature as the movie does a good job of giving proper explanations and leaving no stone unturned.
There are many creature features that are successful at featuring truly horrifying villains, frommonsters based on mythologyto original creations. According to a post on the website of the Stan Winston School of Character Arts, Brian Steele and Vincent Hammond worked with John Alexander, an expert in animal behavior, for a period of three months to make sure that they could wear the creature suits and act like animals. While there are several examples of TV and movie creatures that aren’t engaging or scary at all, likethe CGI monster inWednesday, the Kothoga in the ’90s horror movieReliclooks real.
What Is The Relic’s Rotten Tomatoes Score?
WhileThe Relicis an entertaining ’90s horror movie, it has a low score on Rotten Tomatoes. It has a 37% on the Tomatometer based on 35 reviews and a 34% Audience Score. Sometimes, even a fun and entertaining movie will receive a low score on the website. For example, thefourth Jaws movie has a low rating onRotten Tomatoes.
Critics definitely had mixed reviews ofThe Relic. Roger Ebert wrote in January 2001, “All of this is actually a lot of fun, if you like special effects and gore.” Dennis Schwartz said, “A derivative and predictable post-Aliensci-fi horror film.”
How Does The Relic End?
At the end ofThe Relic, Margo and her scientist mentor Albert Frock (James Whitmore) spend time in their lab and realize that the Kothoga begins looking for humans when it doesn’t have leaves to feed on. Margo is a smart horror movie character and knows that the Kothoga is part of the reptile species. She tries to kill him with liquid nitrogen, but nothing happens, and Frock dies. This is the most emotional moment inThe Relic, which has one ofthe best horror movie settings.
The fact that the story takes place at a museum makes it more compelling since the main characters are used to researching historical artifacts, and this allows Margo to make some smart discoveries. In a stunning reveal, which is one ofthe best plot twists in a movie, Margo looks at the DNA of the Kothoga. She learns that John Whitney consumed some soup made by the tribe in South America, and after that, he turned into the Kothoga.
The ending ofThe Relic, a'90s horror movie that is underappreciated, is action-packed. After Margo tries to run away from the Kothoga, which has broken the ceiling of the lab, Margo lights it on fire. D’Agosta and other police officers save Margo, as she has been sitting in a tank, and realize that the creature has been killed. While sometimes, horror movies that focus on creatures can seem unrealistic, the ending ofThe Relicis satisfying and makes sense. Margo is great at her job, and she uses her gut instincts and intelligence to save herself and get rid of the threat.
