Heart of Darkness

FIRST REFORMED (B) - Ethan Hawke is solid as a depressed alcoholic priest in Paul Schrader's latest journey into the darkness of the heart. Hawke's Rev. Toller is haunted by personal demons from his past and in despair over the viability of the quaint, historic church he oversees in upstate New York.

Amanda Seyfried has a deft touch with the role of Mary (major symbolism flying around here), a woman who goes to the Reverend concerned that her husband is planning to carry out eco-terrorism. Meantime, fossil-fuel bigwigs donate blood money to the little church on the eve of a major anniversary. Cedric (the Entertainer) Kyles is perfect as the head of a nearby megachurch, a man with good intentions who sees no need to crush its dying rival, which has more tourists than parishioners.

The mood is puritanically grim. Toller scrawls rants in a diary while keeping a steady pour from the hard stuff. Things bog down about halfway through, and a 20-minute trim would have been helpful. But the final 15 minutes are harrowing, as Schrader knits together subtle horror/suspense elements and visual shocks that might haunt you for days afterward.

THE PARTY (C) - A decent ensemble case fumbles around with a wisp of a story in Sally Potters arch art film in which the slaughter rule should be invoked as style wins over substance. Potter ("Orlando," the galling "Yes") shoots in crisp black-and-white for this expanded ensemble ripoff of "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"

Kristin Scott-Thomas draws a blank as an ambitious British politician seemingly weighed down by her sickly pathetic husband (Timothy Spall). Patricia Clarkson is annoying as her annoying, sycophantic, stuck-up friend who spars constantly with her German lover (Bruno Ganz). Cherry Jones and Emily Mortimer have a spark as a bickering lesbian couple. But soon Cillian Murphy shows up as a coked-up businessman whining about his missing lover, the Godot of the story that everyone seems to be waiting for.

There is little chemistry among all of the permutations here. Rarely has so much talent gone to waste. Even at a slim 71 minutes you'll be tempted to fast-forward through the pretentious dialogue and the theatrical buffoonery.