A film of impeccable craft, engrossing storytelling, and powerful performances, Deliver Us is a high-grade example of religious horror done right.

The stunningly horrific opening scene of Deliver Us sets the tone for the film to follow; a film of flesh, blood, ritual, faith, and prophecy that takes its themes seriously and its filmmaking even more so.

Filmed on a limited budget in the Northern European country of Estonia, Deliver Us certainly does not feel like an independent feature, with director Lee Roy Kunz and Cru Ennis delivering an incredibly crafted horror feature that more than equals most major studio fare. Cinematographer Isaac Bauman (Haunting of the Queen Mary) especially deserves praise for his rich visuals that capture a world descending into darkness.

Set in Russia, Deliver Us tells the story of Sister Yulina (Maria Vera Ratti), a nun who claims immaculate conception when she gives birth to twin boys: one alleged to be the new coming of the Messiah, and the other the Anti-Christ. Ordered to investigate by the Vatican is Father Fox (Lee Roy Kunz) who uncovers a sinister conspiracy.

While certain plot points in Deliver Us have previously been explored in The Omen and Prince of Darkness, there is a stern seriousness to the philosophical and theological supernatural worldbuilding of Deliver Us that increases the stakes of good versus evil to William Peter Blatty (The Exorcist) levels of Catholic influenced religious horror.

While Kunz and Ellis certainly do not skimp on traditional horror aspects of its sub-genre with religious iconography sharing screen time with all matter of gory bloodshed, there is a depth to the films’ themes and indeed its characters that elevates Deliver Us above the run of the mil Cathsploitation of, say, The Conjuring universe.

Performances are terrific across the board: Kunz (who co-wrote Deliver Us with his brother Kane Kunz) brings that right amount of inner-conflict to a man grounded in his faith yet lost in a swirl of prophecy that announces itself in dreams and visions both horrific and eerily beautiful; Ratti delivers a turn both maternal and sensual as a divinely chosen bearer for the conduits of light and dark, while also displaying a strong physicality during moments of bodily distress; and Thomas Kretschmann is viciously sinister as a one-eyed killer priest.

It all results in a religious horror that is grizzly yet profound, with Deliver Us an engrossing tale of faith, sacrifice, free will, and the duality of good and evil within creation that is sure to stir the souls of those who watch.