Watch The Devil's Doorway

In the year 1960, two Catholic priests were dispatched by the Vatican to conduct an investigation in the rural Magdalene laundries in Ireland, where supposedly, ungodly activities were taking place. These were places where in the past they kept women who had "sinned" and where they were forced to work in terrible conditions, with the nuns in charge, who often abused them both mentally and physically.

Father Thomas (played by Lalor Roddy) and Father John (played by Ciaran Flynn) soon became aware of an anomaly in one of the buildings, the Mary Magdalene Asylum, also known as the "Devil's Doorway". There were reports of supernatural disturbances within the old laundry facility and of a possessed young girl whose bizarre behavior indicated otherworldly involvement.

Upon investigation, Thomas and John were treated suspiciously by the nuns running the facility, Sister Claire (played by Helena Bereen) and Sister Colm (played by Lauren Coe), who were eager to keep them out of the area where the strange occurrences were happening. Despite these difficulties, the priests continued their work and began documenting the strange and eerie events happening in the building.

As they investigated the unexplainable situations, Thomas and John started experiencing strange and inexplicable things themselves. The found footage they captured revealed shocking secrets about the nuns and the true purpose of the Magdalene laundries, and of the grim reality behind the seemingly holy façade that the Catholic Church exhibited in their operations.

The film is shot entirely in found footage format, which portrays a seamless image of the time period in the 1960s. With an unsettling and claustrophobic atmosphere, the movie is a combination of eerie suspense and electric shocks of horror, leaving the audience on edge throughout the entire experience. The director, Aislinn Clarke, tells the story with a perfect horror movie sensibility, skillfully playing with our expectations and bait-and-switch tactics.

The performances by the actors in the film are spot-on, with Roddy and Flynn giving authentic portrayals of two priests dealing with the paranormal occurrences, while Bereen and Coe skillfully evoke the ominous presence of the nuns who have something sinister to hide.

Overall, The Devil's Doorway is an excellent horror movie that is not afraid of tackling difficult themes, as it explores the issues of social injustice, institutional abuse and the hypocrisy of the Catholic Church.

The film's strength is in its ability to pull the audience into the story and take them along for a terrifying ride. From the opening shot to the shocking conclusion, The Devil's Doorway delivers on all counts, skillfully combining classic elements from horror while telling a story that is both timely and relevant. It is a must-watch for any horror fanatic or for anyone looking for a well-made, emotionally charged, and thought-provoking horror film.

The Devil's Doorway is a 2018 horror movie with a runtime of 1 hour and 16 minutes. It has received mostly poor reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 5.3 and a MetaScore of 48.