The Exorcism of Emily Rose
With several A-grade stars donning roles in horror flicks, Hollywood seems to be riding a wave of horror these days. Bruce Willis in ’’6th Sense’’ and Nicole Kidman in ’’The Others’’ were the ones who began the trend that lent credibility to the horror genre which had been abused seemingly beyond repair by Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead stereotypes.
The latest A-listers to join the Horror bandwagon in Hollywood are Kate Hudson in ’’Skeleton Key’’ and Laura Linney in ’’The Exorcism of Emily Rose’’. Incidentally, both these movies made great business at the Box Office.
’’The Exorcism of Emily Rose’’ is based on a true story from the 1970s, although the names have been changed. The story begins with the courtroom trial of Father Moore, accused of homicide for denying medical treatment to Emily Rose leading to her death. Laura Linney plays the role of the defense attorney Erin Bruner, an agnostic who takes on the case purely for the sake of a promised promotion at her law firm. As the movie progresses, Father Moore narrates the story of Emily Rose, and the exorcism that went wrong, eventually leading to her death.
Emily, played by Jennifer carpenter, is a devout catholic who starts experiencing seizures at her school. Despite several medical treatments, Emily’s condition worsens, and she has visions of dark forces all around her. When medical treatment fails to cure her, Emily’s family takes refuge in the church. Father Moore, after assessing Emily’s condition, is convinced that she is possessed by the evil forces. With the Church’s permission, he performs the exorcism ritual on Emily. However, the ritual goes wrong, and Emily succumbs to the demons.
The courtroom scenes and the arguments between the defense and the prosecution are very gripping, and well researched. The clever mix of Biblical beliefs and scientific explanations during the trial ensure the movie does not end up as just another biblical movie. Although Erin experiences several strange incidents during the trial, there is no obvious inclination towards branding her as a believer. The movie also consciously avoids being branded as a ’’Horror’’ movie by propounding scientific and medical explanations for the seemingly paranormal events.
The performances are decent, although there wasn’t much scope for anything extraordinary. The movie has a very dark, documentary feel to it, and has a certain rawness about it that distinguishes it from the rest of the thoroughfare that Hollywood has been churning out.
A good effort based on a true story. Definitely worth a watch, although not necessarily on a big screen.