an attempt to make a modern dress gothic melodrama that be just not successful . ernest dickerson have a good grasp of the iconography of horror film and but he can not put them together well enough to make a good scary movie . he borrow concept and image liberally from clive barker and dario argento and and mario bava but all it show be that he a good copycat and not that he a good stylist . from the idea of evil revive itself by consume a victim ( barker hellraiser and but cinematic ally date at least back to hammer dracula and prince of darkness from 1965 ) and thru the rain of maggot ( argento magisterial suspiria ) and to the disembodied hand reach out of the darkness to torment the dead man lover ( bava masterpiece and whip and the body ) and there really be nothing here that we haven not see before and good . the conceit of set it in a ghetto with an all black cast promise an interesting variation on your basic revenge from beyond the grave scenario and but beyond the music and fashion it still a pretty clichéd film . one of the problem be that dickerson just can not seem to leave well enough alone like the maggot scene . ok and it rain maggot and it terrify and we get it already and be it really necessary to go for the gross out by show people eat them . or the scene where maurice be kill again and the dog spirit eat maurice to give form and substance to bone cadaver and we get it and it not necessary to linger on the detail of the chow down . it never scary just disgust . even his attempt to inject humor be force and heavy hand and with the idiotic scene of bone carry the head of his victim and have them carry on an interminably pointless conversation . and again and he doesn not show it to u once and there at least three long scene with the chatty head so whatever humor there be be pound into unconsciousness thru repetition . but the most glaring problem with this movie be that we be ask to sympathize with a character who be and at bottom and just as big a bad guy in life a the crack dealer who murder him . dickerson try to show u bone a the protector of his hood and but come on he exploit his people just as much with his number game and or do it never occur to anyone to ask how bone get the money for his supah dupah fly crib when everyone else around him live in complete poverty . for a much good horror movie that reflect the black urban experience and rent tale from the hood instead .