Before he can be executed in the late 17th century, an unnamed warlock (Julian Sands) is propelled through time by Satan. He ends up in 20th-century Los Angeles, where he seeks the three pieces of the Grand Grimoire, a legendary spellbook that, when reassembled, can undo creation. The Warlock is pursued by Giles Redferne (Richard E. Grant), a witch hunter whose wife was previously killed by the Warlock and who manages to make it through the Warlock’s time portal. Helping Giles navigate the modern world is Kassandra (Lori Singer), a woman who made the mistake of taking the Warlock in and got hit by an aging spell for her trouble. Giles and Kassandra pursue Warlock across the the country as he searches from the three pieces of the book. It’s a quest that takes them from Los Angeles to a Mennonite community and finally to modern-day Massachusetts where the final piece of the Grimoire turns out to be in a very unexpected location.
Warlock definitely benefits from David Twohy’s clever script and Steve Miner’s no-nonsense, energetic direction, but the real secret of its success was the performance of Julian Sands as the Warlock. If you were of a certain age in 1991, Julian Sands will always primarily be the Warlock to you. With his coldly self-amused manner and his unapologetic cruelty, Sands was the epitome of cool evil. The first time I saw Warlock, I was surprised at just how far the film’s villain was willing to go in his quest. Warlock is one of those films where the characters who usually survive do not. No one is safe from the warlock.
The film also benefits from Richard E. Grant taking his role seriously. As for Lori Singer, she’s stuck with a lot of bad old-age makeup and delivers her lines with a lack of enthusiasm. Her performance, though, still doesn’t distract from this surprisingly entertaining film. When I recently rewatched, I recognized Mary Woronov in the role of a psychic. As always when it comes to Mary Woronov, I wished her role had been larger.
Warlock was released in Europe and Australia in 1989 but, because of the financial difficulties of New World Pictures, it didn’t get an American release until 1991. The film did moderately well at the box office and went on to become, for a while, a mainstay on HBO and Cinemax. Julian Sands, who had mostly played young romantic up until that point, was subsequently typecast as a cool, Continental villain. It was followed by two sequels.
