Plot: What’s it about?
Ah, the exorcism movie. In my (and many others’) there really is only one – The Exorcist. As of this writing, that film is now half a century old and its director, William Friedken, sadly passed away. I have to imagine if he were to see what a shambles the franchise has become, he turn over in his grave. First off, and not it really matters, but I’ll say that I don’t believe in exorcisms. I could be in the minority, but I tend to think that there’s a logical reason for everything and, well, a demon possessing a human being isn’t what I’d consider to be logical. My personal believes aside, we’re now faced with The Exorcist: Believer. The film was directed by David Gordon Green who has a few films in his resume that I really enjoy (Pineapple Express and the Halloween reboot). With the word “believer” in the title, the film already had one strike against it, but I’m all for wasting my time with what I envision will be a very poor film.
The hook with this one is that there are two teenage girls possessed by the devil. We’ve got Angela (Lidya Jewett) and Katherine (Olivia O’Neill). The duo go wandering in the woods after school only reemerge a few days later with no recollection as to what happened. Katherine’s mother (Jennifer Nettles), believes they’ve been possessed by the devil. This is cemented when Katherine loses it in church when the “body and blood” of Christ are mentioned. Angela’s father (Leslie Odom, Jr.) is an atheist, so he’ll need a little more convincing. There is a refreshing ray of hope with Ellen Burstyn as she reprises her role as Chris MacNeil (mother of the “victim” of the original). Sadly, her character is wasted.
The thing with movies about exorcisms is that, to me, they’re all the same. Putting aside if they’re real or not, there are only so many ways you can approach the topic. Person is (supposedly) possessed by the devil/demon, Priest comes along and tries to coax it out of the person and, maybe, they live happily ever after. That about it? That’s what I’ve gotten out of them. Bottom line, this was an opportunity wasted with the plot line and when you’ve got iconic characters and still manage to miss the mark, well…I don’t even have the words. I enjoy David Gordon Green’s comedies more so than his horror films. And this one was a miss, but we’ll always still have the 1973 classic.
Video: How’s it look?
I’m convinced that when filmmakers are doing a movie about an exorcism, they try and go for as much shock value as possible. I would, anyway. I mention this as they seemed to go to great lengths to drape the movie in darkness, but manage to mangle the faces of the films two teenage stars. The HEVC 4K 1.85:1 image fills nearly the entire screen and, to their credit, there are some pretty interesting shots. Contrast and black levels work very well here, this is a dark movie after all (then again, most films in this genre are). Detail is, you guessed it, excellent. If you want to see greenish skin, upside crosses carved into foreheads and so on, they’ll never look better than they do here.
Audio: How’s it sound?
Likewise when you hear people scream at the top of their lungs (demons be gone!), it’ll likely never sound better than it does in Dolby Atmos. Both the Blu-ray and 4K disc sport this track, so there’s no need to upgrade to the 4K for that. Vocals are, by and large, spot on. It’s a bit hard to describe when bible verses are being screamed out and demons are trying to take over bodies, but it goes with the territory. Surrounds are surprisingly active as well. The movie might have missed the mark, but the audio is spot on.
Supplements: What are the extras?
- Audio Commentary – with co-writer/director David Gordon Green, executive producer Ryan Turek, co-writer Peter Sattler, and special makeup FX designer Christopher Nelson.
- Making a Believer – Filmmakers and cast reveal their collective approach to bringing differing perspectives into this drama about synchronized possessions.
- Ellen and Linda: Reunited – The film expertly weaves the fates of Chris and Regan MacNeil into its story. Witness a moment of cinema history as these two Hollywood icons meet on-set for the first time in years.
- Stages of Possession – Hear from Lidya Jewett, Olivia O’Neill, and special makeup FX designer Christopher Nelson as they discuss the physical and mental changes the girls go through as they advance through the possession.
- The Opening – The first scene of the film takes place in Haiti, a location far from the rest of the story. Filmmakers and star Leslie Odom, Jr. discuss how this scene sets up the rest of the film.
- Editing an Exorcism – The movie culminates with a riveting exorcism scene featuring all the main characters. Director David Gordon Green and editor Tim Alverson explore the challenges of editing such a big scene.
- Matters of Faith – Experts in theology weigh in on how they consulted filmmakers to ensure depictions of the religious ceremonies in the film were as accurate as possible.
The Bottom Line
In the “they should have left it alone” department we’ve got this. Be it a prequel, sequel or reboot sometimes Hollywood just needs to leave well enough alone. Lesson not learned here. But if you are a fan of this film, the technical specs are nearly perfect with enough supplements to warrant a purchase.
