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The Exorcism of Emily Rose isn't as scary as one may think it might be, but still manages to be a very disturbing film. When you walk into the film, you may be expecting something similar to "The Exorcist," but it it's really quite different. During the late 70s, Erin Bruner (Laura Linney), is a lawyer seeking a partnership in her law firm, which represents the Catholic archdiocese. The case she is assigned to is People v. Father Richard Moore. Father Moore (Tom Wilkinson) has been accused of negligent homicide, in the death of Emily Rose (Jennifer Carpenter), a religious girl who had just started her freshman year in college. Representing the People is Ethan Thomas (Campbell Scott), a character meant to look like a jerk but who claims to be a man of faith. Father Moore was given permission to perform an exorcism on Emily Rose and the issue is whether the girl was possessed by some horrific demon or she was suffering from an epileptic disorder, as well as some possible mental health issues. Father Moore had Emily stop taking the drugs she was given, for fear that they would interfere with the exorcism, and this may have lead to her death. Disregarding the impact his testimony could have, all Father Moore is interested in is taking the stand so that he can tell Emily's story. I really enjoyed this film, because it was scary but in a whole new way. Unlike The Exorcist in which it's made clear that Regan, played by Linda Blair, was possessed, in this film you are not forced to reach that conclusion. Here, each member of the audience has to make up his or her own mind, but no matter how you look at it, this film will shock you. Something that sent a chill down my spine, was the fact that the trailers for the movie say, "Based on A True Story". I did a little investigation into this claim and learned that while there was never an Emily Rose, the film is based on a 1976 case in Germany involving a girl named Anneliese Michel. The Catholic Church officially recognized her case as one of demonic possession and authorized an exorcism by a group of priests. As in this film, she died, and the priests (as well as her parents) were put on trial for negligent manslaughter. Some significant changes have been made to the story, such as relocating the action from Germany to America. I actually think that the story might have been even more powerful if these changes had not been made.. The acting in this film is outstanding, especially Jennifer Carpenter who doesn't have a lot of dialogue, except for some scenes in which she speaks demonically in Aramaic. I thought the most amazing part of her performance, were the horrible positions she had to twist herself into, as if she was being controlled like a puppet. This was especially true in a scene in a church in which she tries but is unable to touch a cross as her upper body is pulled backward. According to the filmmakers, no special effects were used to enhance her physical performance. I might add, there are no scenes involving three hundred sixty-degree head spinning. The scares in the film are not created in the usual way (where things pop out to scare you), but instead the director lets you see regular things through Emily's eyes that become horrible hallucinations like growling demons and moaning zombie-like faces. These limited special effects certainly serve their purpose. Something else that I thought was particularly powerful about the film, was Father Moore's line that, "Demons exist, whether you believe in them or not". The statement is very true, because no matter what you do, there are always going to be bad people out there. The Exorcism of Emily Rose is haunting in many ways, the strongest having to do with the viewer's faith. Campbell Scott's character perfectly defines the whole film. Though he is scared of what he is up against, he turns away from his own beliefs to define whether or not he will accept this. No matter what you do believe, there was something possessing Emily, either an evil that had taken over, or some extreme health problems, or perhaps the flourish of the demon in all of us. Rated PG-13 for thematic material, including intense frightening sequences and disturbing images. Running time 120 minutes email this review to a friend
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