Strippoli and his collaborators undoubtedly have a premise and a visual style that brim with invention, but the liability is an over-crammed, over-extended narrative that doesn’t know when to pull back from febrile overkill.

Plot and character are knotted elegantly around a surprisingly melancholic core, that reminds us we need pain in our lives, even when our lives are made unlivable by that pain.

Although not flawless, 'The Holy Boy' is an intriguing chiller that is more interested in trying to disturb viewers than in simply grossing them out.

"The Holy Boy" is one of the most interesting takes on religious horror this year that will leave many viewers with their mouths on the floor by the end.