The Exorcism of Emily Rose Review by Joe (5 Stars)

The Exorcism of Emily Rose Review by Joe (5 Stars) | MatchFlick

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Movie Details

All Movie Info

Directed By
Scott Derrickson

Written By:
Scott Derrickson, Paul Harris Boardman

Cast:
Laura Linney, Tom Wilkinson, Campbell Scott, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Jennifer Carpenter, Colm Feore, Aaron Douglas, Mary Black

The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005)

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Movie Review by Joe
June 6th, 2006

When I went to see The Exorcism of Emily Rose, I was expecting nothing more than what I've come to expect from current PG-13 'horror' movies (jump scenes, pointless CGI, dull story).

Thankfully this movie had nothing of the sort.

The Exorcism of Emily Rose was "based on the true story of Anneliese Michel, a young German woman who suffered the same fate as the fictional Emily Rose in the 1970s though was epileptic and not possessed though she believed herself to be" (imdb.com).

Wonderfully directed by Scott Derrickson, The Exorcism of Emily Rose is more of a court drama than a horror movie. The movie centers around corporate lawyer Erin Bruner (Laura Linney), who just got her last client released from prison. She's going after a lucritive job at a law firm, and is assigned to defend Father Richard Moore (Tom Wilkinson), who was accused of murder.

Father Moore believed that young Emily Rose (Jennifer Carpenter) was possessed by the devil, and performed an exorcism to rid him from the poor girl. The exorcism didn't take, and Emily Rose died. Now he's in jail awaiting trial for murder, and it's up to Bruner to defend him and his faith against a seemingly faithless society.

There is three things I really enjoyed about this movie:
1) Social commentary. There is more to this movie than meets the eye. It isn't merely a cinematic masterpiece, but it discusses an important issue: is demonic possession real, or is it simply a medical issue? I enjoyed after watching the movie at different times with different friends to discuss whether or not Emily Rose really was possessed, because it isn't mentioned in the movie if she conclusively was or wasn't.

2) The acting was amazing. Laura Linney did a great job bringing Bruner's struggle with her own faith to light. Tom Wilkinson did exceptional as a Father on trial for a murder that he felt he could have prevented if things were done differently. Jennifer Carpenter did an EXCEPTIONAL job as Emily Rose, even though she didn't have many speaking parts, how she was able to contort her body and speak in Aramaic was amazing for such a young actress. She's got a lot in store for her future!

3) I enjoyed that this wasn't the typical 'horror' movie. Sure, there were some scary scenes, but overall it was more of a contemplative movie. As the trial was going on we would be given flashbacks to Emily Rose and what she saw through her own eyes, and the eyes of others around her, and there wasn't any cheap BO! scenes that jumped out at you. It was very tastefully done.

Father Moore: Once you've looked into the darkness I think you carry it with you for the rest of your life.

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