THE LAST EXORCISM (2010)
(Directed by Daniel Stamm)
"Considering all exorcism movies tend to be the same, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this."- Signed by MartialHorror.
Plot: An Exorcist, who has become disillusioned with his profession, sets out to prove that exorcism is a sham through a documentary that he’s filming. But perhaps his ‘last’ exorcism might end up having to be the real deal after all.
Review:
Despite my drive to see all things ‘horror’ in theaters, I gave this one a miss by the time it came out. Why? Well, for one, that weekend had me going to the movies with my Father and he wanted to see “Takers” instead. I could’ve went ahead and watched it myself, but I reluctantly decided not too. The reviews were mostly lukewarm and honestly, I was kind of tired of “found footage” films by that point. I’ve yet to really see a ‘found footage’ film that I’ve really disliked, but the trend has become tired. So I patiently waited until “The Last Exorcism” came out on DVD. Sometimes, expectations will make or break a movie for you, and perhaps it was my low expectations that made “The Last Exorcism” highly enjoyable for me.
Cotton Marcus (Patrick Fabian) is not just a popular Reverend, he’s also a respected exorcist. He’s making a documentary about his profession, except he actually wants to debunk it. It turns out that possessions and exorcisms don’t really exist and all he’s doing is psychological therapy. However, some people die from exorcisms, and he wishes to prove that it’s a sham to save these lives. So he’s filming a documentary and he goes to assist Louis (Louis Herthum), whose daughter Nell (Ashley Bell) is supposed to be possessed. However, there’s clearly something wrong with her and Cotton must accept the possibility that he might have come across the real deal.
“The Last Exorcism” feels much more like a documentary compared to other 'found footage' films (“The Blair Witch Project”, etc.). There is a score and some obvious post-production editing. This can be distracting and confusing, but the films greatest strength is the feeling that it is a real documentary. Almost all of the success here goes to the actors. They don't act like actors, but come across as real people. Patrick Fabian (Cotton) is the best example. The man is just captivating to watch. He’s funny, charismatic and yet his expressions are realistic. Because it seemed genuinely real, it heightened the intensity. The suspense, which is very low key, hit harder whereas if this was a more traditional film, it probably would’ve underwhelmed. It’s ironic that horror films are most notorious for their bad acting, when good acting often single-handedly generates its own brand of terror within the genre. The characters are also well written, not being total stereotypes nor overly nuanced. I was interested in how they would respond and what they would do and if you care about the characters, then the movie has you. "The Last Exorcism" had me.
Because make no mistake, this is a very low key movie. Whereas most ‘found footage’ horror films do have more high octane scares, this one is far more subtle. The ironic thing is that found footage films tend to already be subtle in its scare tactics- relying on ominous noises and obscure figures in the darkness- so the scares here might underwhelm you. They might be too low key. While the trailer includes footage of the girl clearly being possessed, there is none of that here. The film is incredibly ambiguous as to whether she’s possessed throughout most of the movie. So when she does something scary, it’s her spooky glances at the camera or her…..just….well, being spooky. I’m a guy who finds the most effective kind of fear to be generated from the actors facial expressions. If you’re not, you’ll find this boring incredibly boring. This is in contrast to "Paranormal Activity", where the film will rely on its slow burn suspense until some loud noise will startle you. "The Last Exorcism" isn't about sudden loud noises, it's both about the possibility that it might be 'real' as well as the creepy looks the girl gives the camera.
Then we have the ending.
Some people love the ending, more people tend to hate it. Honestly, in itself, I’m okay with the ending. It has some stand-out moments (love Cotton’s facial expression, you can tell exactly what he’s thinking) and I did appreciate some of the ambiguity. However, I didn’t think it gelled well with the rest of the movie. Whereas the first two thirds of the film are doing it’s best to convince us that it’s “real”, the finale makes it feel too……cinematic. It brings too much attention to the fact that it IS a movie, and a conventional one at that. This often seems to be a major issue with films Eli Roth is involved in. "Cabin Fever" ends as a goofball comedy, "Hostel" ends as a conventional chase-splatter film(although that was the entire third act, not the finale) and........honestly, I don't even remember "Hostel 2"....I'm not sure if Roth had anything to do with the writing of this film, but it certainly shares one of his faults.
“The Last Exorcism” is a subdued, low key horror film that might’ve imploded from its finale, but I liked it anyway. I was fascinated by the ambiguity of the mystery, the characters, the situations, etc. I found it to fairly creepy and always interesting. Granted, exorcism movies are hard to watch without automatically comparing them to “The Exorcist”, but I still thought this was a successful 'found footage' film. It just comes down to what creeps you out and how you react to the ending. Personally, I don’t think it’s as good as “Paranormal Activity”, but it might be as good as “Paranormal Activity 2”.
Violence: PG-13 worthy.
Nudity: None, but there is some implied sexuality.
Overall: “The Last Exorcism” is worth watching if you’re into exorcism films or especially found footage films. I found it to be pretty creepy, but that doesn’t mean you will.
3/4 Stars