DVD Release Date:  October 16, 2007
Theatrical Release Date:  April 5, 2007
Rating:  R (for violence, disturbing images and some sexuality)
Genre:  Supernatural Thriller
Run Time:  98 min.
Director:  Stephen Hopkins
Actors:  Hilary Swank, David Morrissey, Idris Elba, AnnaSophia Robb, Stephen Rea

There are 10 biblical plagues. The Reaping makes a strong case as number 11. Who sent it upon us, and of what sins do we need to repent to make it go away?

An outlandish thriller that uses the 10 plagues of “Exodus” as a modern-day gimmick to serve its own wacky ideas about God, the devil and the fate of humanity, The Reaping struggles to build any sense of suspense before delivering up a whopper of an ending that will generate more chuckles than chills.

Hilary Swank stars as Katherine Winter, a debunker of religious miracles. A former missionary who suffered a grievous loss on the mission field that destroyed her faith, Katherine is forced to confront her past when a priest (Stephen Rea) calls to say he’s witnessed supernatural phenomena that indicate she’s in great danger.

Unbowed, Katherine heads to the town of Haven with her partner, Ben (Idris Elba), to investigate reports from a Haven resident, Doug (David Morrissey), of a river that’s turned red. Has water turned to blood or is there a scientific explanation for a change in the water’s color? Soon frogs are falling from the sky, flies appear en masse and livestock begin to die mysteriously.

Ben, a man of faith, is open to the possibilities of miraculous claims, but Katherine explains how each of the 10 plagues recorded in the book of “Exodus” has a scientific basis. If those plagues were simply manifestations of natural processes, why should Haven’s incidents be thought of as supernatural?

The town’s residents believe the source of their affliction is a young girl (AnnaSophia Robb) who lives in the woods with her mother. “A single welfare mom letting her kids run wild don’t fit the town profile,” a town official tells Katherine. It seems the girl’s brother was found dead earlier, and the younger sister is the chief suspect in his death. Will God keep raining destruction upon Haven until the young girl is brought to “justice”?

The increasingly agitated townsfolk decide to take matters into their own hands and dispatch the young girl to the next world, but Katherine plays protector after the priest informs her of a startling prophecy from 1,500 B.C., in which Katherine and the young girl appear to have starring roles. The rushed finale and “big twist” ending are laughable.