Hilary Swank plays a former Christian missionary who lost her faith after her family was tragically killed, and has since become a world-renowned expert in disproving religious phenomena. But when she investigates a small Louisiana town that is suffering from what appear to be the Biblical plagues, she realises that science cannot explain what is happening and she must regain her faith to combat dark forces threatening the community.

"The Reaping" sees Hilary Swank as Katherine Winter, a former minister-turned-university professor who does not believe in miracles after losing her young daughter and husband while doing missionary work in Sudan. As she believes in scientifically explanations rather than prayers, she becomes the researcher of miracles, called to sites to investigate such supernatural phenomena as weeping statues and palms that bleed.

One day she is called to the town of Haven where a child has died and the river has turned to blood. This is followed by what appears to be a revisiting of the 10 Biblical plagues upon the town.

The townspeople believe an enigmatic child named Loren McConnell (AnnaSophia Robb) has brought God's wrath onto their doorstep, but what they see as evil, Winter sees as a lost child who needs help. The more she is drawn into the mystery, the more Winter discovers her role in a conspiracy that threatens to shroud the world in darkness.

AnnaSophia Robb as Loren McConnell plays the little girl who has no friends. She is very quiet, shy and scared to befriend others because the townspeople have tried to kill her. Previously, Robb was seen in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and the recent "Bridge To Terabithia". Although she appears only as a co-actress in this movie, her talent can be seen as her facial expressions say so much.

Winter's partner, Ben (Idris Elba), is also a professor at the university. He helps Winter before and during their visit to Haven, but when schoolteacher Doug Blackwell (David Morrissey) seeks their help with a series of happenings the townspeople believe to be sent by God, they come to learn that sometimes miracles can be dishonest, and the line between faith and superstition is dangerously thin.

This is an interesting story but the problem with "The Reaping" is that the director does not offer anything new. In "Omen" (1976), for example, when Gregory Peck (Robert Thorn) replaces his stillborn child, his child's nanny hangs herself and a priest is speared to death in an accident. It turns out that the child is the son of Satan and can only be killed with the seven daggers.

In "The Reaping", the second child in the family is Satan, thus he or she must be killed. This means McConnell has to be killed too because she is the second child in her family. Does she escape her fate, especially when the villagers are making an all-out attempt to stop her from changing it?

The computerised effects used in the movie have made the visuals really amazing. McConnell, for example, can return attack on her would-be 'killers' by just staring her antagonist, rousing swarms of locusts to eat the person alive. If you think we are talking about 100 mild-mannered grasshoppers, just wait until you see this scene. I was so overwhelmed it gave me goosebumps. However, there are two scenes where I think CGI has exceeded the line. One is when the entire river was turned red, which I don't think made any sense to the audience and another was when flames burst from the sky just as Doug was about to use Katherine to kill Loren.

If "The Reaping" were to be compared to the "Omen", I would say that "The Reaping" is a better story since it is more complex and layered than the "Omen". This is an above average horror thriller and I would recommend it, if not for the plot than for the rich imageries and the hair-raising visuals.