On a New Mexico desert road, a drifter named Frank Brayker is in a chase with a pursuer called the Collector. The vehicles crash and Brayker flees and meets the local drunk, Uncle Willy. Willy takes him to a decommissioned church that now serves as a boarding house for most of the townsfolk. He rents a room and observes the residents: owner Irene, prostitute Cordelia, postal clerk Wally, and an itinerant convict on work release named Jeryline. A misogynistic cook named Roach arrives and informs the group about a theft attempt on his employer's car, unaware it was Brayker, and a suspicious Irene calls the sheriff. Sheriff Tupper and his deputy Bob encounter the Collector, who convinces them that Brayker is a dangerous thief and they set out after him following Irene's call. At the boarding house, Tupper and Bob learn that both cars were stolen and arrest Brayker and the Collector, but the Collector kills Tupper by punching through his skull. Driven outside by a key-like artifact Brayker possesses, the Collector draws his own blood on the sand, and produces an army of demonic creatures. Brayker uses blood from the artifact to create seals on the doors and windows, keeping the creatures out, and tells the group they must wait out the night. Unable to get in, the Collector uses psychic powers to seduce Cordelia and possess her. Cordelia kills Wally and cripples Irene before Brayker kills her. The group attempts to escape through old mine tunnels under the building, but the other townsfolk, under demonic possession, drive them back into the church and upstairs until the seal on the landing stops them. The residents demand an explanation and Brayker reluctantly tells them the history of the key. Following the creation of Earth by God, there were demons in the darkness who used seven keys for focus the power of the cosmos into their hands. When discovered, God created light that scattered the demons and the keys across the universe. The artifact that Brayker holds is the last key they need to reclaim power, and to protect it God had a thief named Sirach fill the artifact with the blood of Jesus Christ at the crucifixion, which is what creates the seals that repel the demons and prevents them from touching it. The guardians of the key, immortal while holding it, have since been passing it on, refilling it with their own blood when they die; Brayker received the key from his superior officer during World War I. Danny disappears and Jeryline rallies everyone to look for him, during which Roach sneaks the key out of Brayker's satchel. In the attic, Irene and Bob discover that Wally was planning to attack the post office with a trunk full of weapons that includes a suicide grenade vest. The Collector possesses Uncle Willy, who attacks the others. While battling Willy, Roach breaks a deal with the Collector to trade his life for the key, but the Collector betrays him and kills him after Roach removes the seal. Brayker retrieves the key in the battle and Irene and Bob sacrifice themselves with the grenade vest, killing all the remaining minions. In the attic, the Collector possesses Danny who mortally wounds Brayker before Jeryline dispatches him. With his last strength, Brayker initiates Jeryline as a guardian of the key and then dies, deactivating all blood seals. The Collector and Jeryline engage in a confrontation at the climax of which Jeryline spits blood from the key in his face, causing the Collector to transform into a large demon before being destroyed. At dawn, Jeryline refills the key with Brayker's blood and boards a bus, sealing the door behind her. Down the road the bus stops to pick up a stranger who declines to get on. Dressed identically to his predecessor and carrying the same suitcase, Jeryline realizes that he is the next Collector. After exchanging a glance in passing, the new Collector begins following on foot, whistling the theme song to the Tales From the Crypt television series.

• published: 10 Jan 2013
• views: 44831