(2014)***1/2
Michael King is a family man who decides to shoot a documentary type film to debunk the myth of demonic possession. He subjects himself to a demonic summoning ritual and is left with something extra going on in his head. He then visits a priest who performs exorcism on the sly without the consent of the church, however the exorcism is interrupted by the authorities before it has been completed. He begins hearing voices in his head and the noise gets louder and louder until it becomes maddening. His transgression is documented on film, we not only witness his coming apart but it also tears apart his family.
Michael King is a family man who decides to shoot a documentary type film to debunk the myth of demonic possession. He subjects himself to a demonic summoning ritual and is left with something extra going on in his head. He then visits a priest who performs exorcism on the sly without the consent of the church, however the exorcism is interrupted by the authorities before it has been completed. He begins hearing voices in his head and the noise gets louder and louder until it becomes maddening. His transgression is documented on film, we not only witness his coming apart but it also tears apart his family.
As possession movies go I think we all know that it's going to be quite impossible to top The Exorcist. I try to go into them with an open mind and enjoy the film for what it is. I was quite pleasantly surprised with a good portion of this film. I was anticipating oodles of blurred shots and shaky camera but that isn't the case, we get to see it all. Also the effects are done well and some of them actually had me thinking, how did they do that? The character of Michael king himself isn't a very likable fellow as far as I'm concerned and frankly his arrogance got him into this mess so I didn't feel bad for him one iota. I did feel bad for his daughter who was totally sketched out by the way her dad was acting. Didn't help that the demon kept urging him to kill his family. One of the major flaws in possession films is too much talking not enough action. Again this is where this film surprised me, it's far more action than talking. If you're into demonic possession then try giving this one a whirl.
6 comments:
Nice review! This one sounds pretty good aside from the fact that the main character is a dick. I think it's difficult to find a fresh take on the whole "possession" thing. This one sounds worth checking out.
It's not so much that he's a dick, he just has an arrogant aire about him.
Sounds good! I don't believe in demonic possession but you still couldn't get me to be the subject of that kind of ritual. Is that biddy-hood or just appropriate caution/common sense?
I'm voting for common sense.
Nice review! Not sure if it's my cup of tea, but still interesting.
I'm quite tempted by this review. I'm also curious to see why the authorities would break up a stealth exorcism. Maybe the priest didn't have a permit?
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