With his feature debut, 2007’s Frontier(s), Xavier Gens became an instrumental figure in kicking off the celebrated New French Extremity movement. Since then he’s only released two further features – 2007’s Hitman and The Divide in 2011 – but will be firmly back on our radars soon, with two more films set for release this year. The first is the long-delayed adaptation of Albert Sánchez Piñol’s best-seller Cold Skin, and the second is a true-life tale of an exorcism gone wrong, entitled The Crucifixion. The latter now has a poster and trailer, which you can see below.
The Crucifixion – which looks to be far from your average possession flick – was scripted by The Conjuring writers Chad and Carey Hayes, and produced by Peter Safran (The Conjuring, Annabelle), alongside Leon Clarance (The Titan) and Ara Keshishian (Maggie).
Synopsis:
When a priest is jailed for the murder of a nun on whom he was performing an exorcism, an investigative journalist strives to determine whether he in fact murdered a mentally ill person or if he lost the battle with a demonic presence.
The film stars Sophie Cookson (Kingsman: The Secret Service), Corneliu Ulici (The Devil Inside), Brittany Ashworth (Exhibit A) and Matthew Zajac (A Lonely Place to Die), with ‘creature performer’ Javier Botet ([Rec], Mama) as the Faceless Man.
Keep an eye out for The Crucifixion (and indeed, Cold Skin) later this year.
Words: Kevan Farrow (@KevanX)
