This quickly made but compelling Canadian horror-mystery presents Karen Black as a hooker who is murdered after participating in a Black Mass, her body found clutching a pyx--the container used to hold the host. Henderson (Christopher Plummer), the tough detective sent to investigate, soon

unravels a conspiracy of Satanists, many in high places. Although the plot is sometimes convoluted, and somewhat confusing (lots of flashbacks), the film does have a palpable sense of unease and foreboding. The acting, especially by Plummer and supporting cast members Yvette Brind'Amour and

Jean-Louis Roux, is terrific and the dialog is sharp and witty. Black wrote and sang three songs for this film, which she would do again in Robert Altman's NASHVILLE.