Oh, Mr. Roth! Even when you do not get personally involved with your projects, somehow, someway, something makes your films bend over backwards farther than one of your characters in your movies. The Last Exorcism, the latest project from the sea urchin-addled mind of of Eli Roth, was recently #1 at the Box Office, pulling in over twenty-one million dollars. Now, compare that to it's budget, One point six million, and you have a guaranteed investment by Strike Films. It tries to be innovative, charming, and downright fun at times, but with some muddled concepts, an underwhelming second act, and quite frankly, the most disappointing ending I've seen in years, what could have been the best original horror or even suspense film in years falls far more than Lucifer fell from Heaven.
Undoubtedly, you've seen the trailer by now. Rev. Cotton Marcus, a Man of Faith since he was a boy, has grown more and more wary over the fact that people are starting to rely more on exorcisms than actual scientific help. In fact, the story of a boy killed by suffocation from a plastic bag during an exorcism, and the miracle of his own son's birth around the same time, has lead him to question whether his Faith has misguided him. In fact, more often than not, when he performs exorcisms, he views it as a public service, relying on parlor tricks to convince people of malicious presence so they will let him perform, and eventually pay him. In fact, the film is his last exorcism before leaving the Services of God. Checking his mail, he picks a letter from worried believers at random, and proceeds to offer his services. It's only after "performing" that Cotton realizes there may be more sinister things afoot, so he resolves to help the family he's chosen, because deep down inside, he's still the righteous man he is supposed to be.
Undoubtedly, the single strongest part of this film is the cast. There is absolutely no miscasting whatsoever in this film. The ultimate example of this is Patrick Fabian as Rev. Cotton Marcus. From the moment he is on screen, Fabian makes Cotton likable, and going into his story, makes Cotton amazingly sympathetic. With his relation of his faith to his family, it's something every father must deal with, no matter what his occupation. He's funny, he charming, and dog gone it, you'll like him. I'd say, if this film didn't ruin what it had, he would have gone down as one of the most iconic protagonists in horror history.
The other standout was Ashley Bell, who played Nell Sweetzer, the girl Cotton comes to "rescue". She really brings the innocent charm to this film, and the fact that she is able to convincingly bring some underlying menace to scenes that should otherwise be still is a certifiable credit to her skill. And the fact that she's double jointed, thus reducing the amount of CGI in this film is a plus. And when it comes to this reviewer, a "blowing job" is not necessarily something that's threatening, but it serves as a perfect foil to it's scene.
For what it was, the Last Exorcism was filmed well. A mockumentary that exposes the last exorcism of an exorcist for hire, Daniel Stamm really wanted to capture what an individual would see if they were caught up in a situation like this film presents. There is much of the film that is kept in the dark, not because of poor equipment, but because they are out in the middle of nowhere, with no structures to give off any extra lighting. It goes from close quarters to wide fields with the movement of every scene, and you can't help but be a little immersed in the environment alone.
When it comes to music and special effects, there was very little, and that was by obvious design. Besides the very minimal orchestration, a single folksy tune was used continuously. It's not on par with Deliverance and Duel for Guitar and Banjo, but it was extremely effective, keeping the tension high as the film went on. Special effects were also very rare to see. In fact, except for one scene involving CGI, the rest of the film relied on prostheses and practical effects. There was one scene in particular that was both extremely brutal and rather disturbing. The theater was quiet when it went down. It was good, and sticks with you for at least an hour.
NOW FROM HERE ON OUT, SPOILERS SHALL BE REVEALED. SO IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED, GET OFF THE INTERNET ENTIRELY. Have all the children left? Good. Now, to the part the ruined the entire film: the ending. Remember how I said that Rev. Marcus viewed exorcisms as a sham to keep people pacified? Well, initially, the audience is lea to believe that his rationale is the right choice. We go through the entire movie discovering that Nell, if not her whole family, was traumatized by the death of her mother. Leading to an emotional breakthrough after animals are slaughtered, she attacks her brother, Caleb, tries to seduce Marcus, and reveals that she was knowingly impregnated by a local boy, but her shame forced her psyche to split, leading to her "possession".
Well, Rev. Marcus follows on what she told him, and finds the boy that "seduced her". It's there that Marcus learns that not only did he meet her once over a year ago, but that he is actually gay. With that knowledge, Marcus heads back, and comes across a startling scene: a demonic birth, lead by the local Minister of the Baptist church that Nell and her family went to for years. Nell gives birth, and it's here the film completely falls apart. For she gives birth to the demon that has been in possession of her the entire time. The Minister throws the demon in the fire, growing to full form. As Marcus finds his faith and charges to stop it, the boom girl and camera man are attacked by cultists. The boom girl is chopped to pieces by an axe, and the camera man's throat is slit by Caleb as he flees. Then the credits roll.
Great ending, huh? Yeah, I thought so too.
I know what you're thinking: "But GL! I didn't want to read spoilers of a film I might have liked!" Quick question: Are you a horror movie fan that likes their film to be scary and actually make up it's mind what it's tone and message are? If you do, then this film is DEFINITELY not for you. It presents an effective psychological dilemma to it's audience, "What is the line between faith and gullibility?" and then laughs as you sit confused in the theater. It's like asking if someone wants an Hot Fudge Sundae, and then putting tuna, juice and all, on top of it. This film knows what it wants, and then throws something that it spent arguing against the entire time as the end. To the common movie goer, it's a pretty big middle finger at our expense.
Now, as both a fan and a writer, I have thought of four alternate endings that would have worked far better than what movie goers saw. If you like them, good. If you don't, then you don't. But as soon as the film was over, I immediately thought of these. And unlike most of my friends who just complained that it sucked, I like being constructive.
Ending #1: Eliminate any and all demonic related material, and instead focus on the family being incestuous psychopaths. It's more in vein with the drive-in material Roth was obviously inspired by, and plays more to tropes than other endings. But damn it all if it isn't a good twist for a film like this. A good old fashioned run and hide, jump kill slasher ending would have worked well with it's themes, and also served as a foil for Cotton's good intentions.
Ending #2: Keep the demon birth, but don't reveal it. As Cotton goes off to confront the cult as Nell is in labor, the documentary filmmakers run, with the boom girl getting killed. We don't know what happens to Cotton, but we hear Nell scream, then a baby cries, and as he turns, Caleb slits the cameraman's throat. Then roll to credits. That way, we know what happens, but we, like the crew, are unable to stop it from happening.
Ending #3: Since they showed the demon being thrown into the bonfire and growing huge, we go for the bigger ending. As the cult leaves, Cotton fights the demon. Casting prayers and keeping it a bay with his cross in hand, the camera man captures the boom girl being struck down from behind, and then is killed by Caleb. As we finally see the camera operator's face, it also captures a little more of Cotton's fight, which he begins losing. Just as he is about to die, the power supply for the camera dies. It's somewhat more ambiguous for an ending, but the message becomes very clear.
Ending #4: As like Ending #3, the camera man and boom girl are struck down near the scene. But we never get to see the camera man's face. Instead the camera is solidly on Cotton, marching to confront the cult. As the leader stops Cotton, Cotton raises his cross. The Minister/Cult leader knocks it aside, and stabs Cotton. As he pulls out, the rest of the cult pulls their daggers and stabs Cotton. And as Cotton falls kneeling, Nell, the one he came to save, gingerly walks before him. And as he looks up at her, she slits his throat. After they walk away, Cotton falls, dead. And the camera cuts off.
It's only four endings, but it's more work than was put into the ending. I really wanted to like this film. I really, TRULY did. But it preferred to go for the cop out, and completely knocked whatever air it had out of the film. An effective horror film works with it's message to the end. Not present the message and go, "On second thought? No, we want the cheap scare." As it is, it's not good enough for the big screen. Everything it wanted to do works much better at home, which is a more personable environment. It's a shame really. It could have been the next defining movie for the Horror genre. Instead, it betrayed it's message for ambiguity, and left the audience more confused for it. I say it's worth a rental, but it's wasted on the big screen. Damn shame, too.
Knight! OUT!
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