Exorcism of Emily Rose

[Taom]

I watched this movies shortly before it came out on dvd(yes i know, I'm an evil, evil pirate. but i'm poor and I love horror films. that justification is good enough for me. :cool: )

I actually liked it. Yes, it was mostly courtroom scenes, but it was a breath of fresh air from the countless exorcist knockoffs I've seen over the years. It was interesting enough, and the scenes of what happened to emily were creepy enough for my tastes. The movie does allow for the viewer to make up their own mind as to what really happened to emily, which was also a plus. Most movies push their point of view down your throat, this one doesn't.

As a side note, I've heard that in the actual case, the parents were the ones brought before the court, but I haven't had the time to research that to see if it is true. I do know that it is based of real events that happened to a russian girl named Anastasia.

[sabersword]

Saw it on DVD. More realistic than the Exorsiest as far as phanomina goes. But, I am not a fan of courtroom drama(having spent my share of time in courtrooms) So, I would have liked to see a little more character development. One interseting thing,it was said in the film, that the Holy Mother showed up and told Emely Rose not why she was undergoing possession but that through her suffering that it would help people the belive in the things of the spirit. Well, I am not a thealogien so I can not answer to the legitimatesy of that statment, but, it is somthing to ponder.

[AmericanManiac]

I hated it lol the parts with all the demons was sweet, but i was falling asleep in the court. After I watched it though I did have a kick ass dream where I myself was possessed by demons !

[majorbludd]

its okay.....its definitely not a bullshit teen millenium horror movie....best scene is when shes all contorted and her teeth chatter.

[Juicy Jon]

Originally posted by Prelude95Si

But overall it was good better than The Exorcist.

Whoooaaaaa hold on a second. I know you're entitled to your opinion, but I must say your opinion is HORRIBLY WRONG

Emily Rose was a great movie. The 1,2,3,4,5,6 scene gave me goosebumps. But it will never compare with the exorcist.

[Zero]

better than i expected - although the demonic force was quite polite and kindly refrained from any filthy language . . . who knew satan was pg-13

I recently watched this film, and my thoughts are mixed.

I'm all for exorcism. Heck, it's a great theme for a film. However, I found Emily a bit ... shall we say ... schizophrenic? Ha-ha.

What we have are two potentially decent films crammed into one. I realize this is based upon "actual" events, though I've not read any about the original case to know how closely it tracks allegedly genuine events.

But the filmmakers realized that they needed to tow a very distinct line -- make a movie that will appeal to fans of The Exorcist, while attracting the CSI/Law & Order crowd with the forensic/medical/legal portions of the film.

The film largely succeeds in being compelling for the first hour, but I found myself increasingly less enthralled as the filmmakers attempted to throw in just enough potential supernaturalism to make the viewer wonder if it might be all true. Again, I don't know what happened in the actual case, but in the film incarnation it all felt fairly forced, at least to me.

Spoilers follow, so please skip the next bit if you have not seen the film.

SPOILERS:

I knew, for example, that the physician would die. Even if that didn't actually happen in real life, it had to happen cinematically to prove that there were, indeed, Dark Forces of ... er ... Darkness at work. The 3 a.m. thing is an old trope, and again even if it happened Just That Way in the actual case, felt like too much of a knowing nod to be scary in any manner.

Most disturbing to me, from both a theological and story-based perspective, was the attempted justification by those involved in Emily's side of things to somehow sanctify the torment she received, whether through mental illness or actual demonic possession. Mother Mary appears to her and , instead of crooning Beatlesesque words o' comfort, says that she can have the torment stop by dying. Aaaw. But if she REALLY loves Jesus, she can stick around, be possessed, die horribly and be an inspiration for the world.

Ick.

I'm supposed to be comforted that the-girl-upon-whom-Emily-was-based's grave is now some sort of Shrine Unto the Faithful. This is, to me, not comforting. Horror films are by definition not comforting, but somehow this one is trying to be. Again, I know -- based on real events, and if it's what happened, it's what happened. But I felt somehow wrong about the whole thing once the film was at its end.

It' s a good movie, far better than what is typically released in the genre. The characters are good, the courtroom drama feels fairly realistic, and the exorcism scenes, being ripped right out of typical examples of the genre, will appeal to fans of such. But overall, I found myself disquieted by the film, although perhaps for not the reasons the directors intended.

Brian

[The_Return]

*aplause*

That was a great review man, you should write more!

[gorefreak]

Yeah, that movie was pretty good, even with the PG-13 rating. Would've been so much better with an "R" rating. But yeah, with that aside, it was quite the story. Good acting, good storyline, and some really creepy scenes like Emily chanting the "123456" line, scrunching her face with those ghastly, rapsy moans, and the cool 'storm cloud effects' with the demon face. :)