The Rite

The Rite is a new film this year, starring Colin O'Donoghue and Sir Anthony Hopkins. It’s an adaptation developed from the book "The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exorcist" a somewhat-autobiography by Matt Baglio, which was published in 2009. It was directed by Mikael Hafstrom, who has done other work in the horror/thriller genre, including 1408, in 2007. The rights to the movie were purchased from Baglio by producers Tripp Vinson and Beau Flynn (who also directed The Exorcism of Emily Rose in 2005) before Baglio had even finished the research for his book, in Rome. Needless to say, they were excited about the possibilities the film held, and the thought of exorcism- like serial killers- has become an American favorite.

The Rite is a suspenseful horror movie set mostly in Rome, about the possibility- or lack thereof- of human possession by demons. The story revolves around a man, Michael Kovac, who has a narrow set of choices in his family: become a mortician or a priest. He chooses to be a priest simply to get away from his hometown, but his viewpoints tend to side with logic over faith, which often sends his thoughts on Theology into question. A professor who admires his potential decides to send him to Rome to attend a special class on Demonic Possesion held at the Vatican, to see if it can help to strengthen his faith. When Kovac gets to Rome, however, his findings are only met with more skeptisism. This is when his teacher overseas in Rome decides that he needs to meet someone who can show him the proof he requires. He introduces him to an exorcist with the church, Father Lucas Trevant, who performs daily exorcisms of civialians, at their request- no matter how potentially life-threatening they may be.

The film has an almost-Noir feel to in the visual department. There are lots of blacks contrasting with the bright whites shown, and shadows are aplenty. The cinematography is altogether well-done, with great shots of Rome, and an inside-look into the staying rooms and livelihoods of priests, deacons, and nuns. The dialogue is occasionally funny- especially some one-liners by Father Lucas- but overall, it's a very dark movie, yearning to find the light.

The most notable feature about this film is the portrayal of demonic posessions. Most of us have seen such films as The Exorcist, or The Exorcism of Emily Rose, or even an online, streamed video of a claimed exorcism as it takes place. We are not unfamiliar with many of the visuals and sounds associated with demons, the devil, or exorcisms. But, I think we would all agree, that in a narrative film, the exorcism is only as good as its actors/actresses. In this film, the posessed are particularly potent. Marta Gastini, playing Rosaria in the film, a pregnant 16-year-old girl believedly raped by her own father, is posessed by a demon who will not tell its name. As the posession in this story comes in waves, sometimes the true face of the victim comes back to the surface. Gastini plays this very well, in what is arguably the best role in the movie- sorry, Hopkins. I love you, but she was chilling. I won't spoil the special effects or techniques used to show posession in this particular film, but Rosaria is as much a reason to see the film as would be an interest in exorcism itself, or genre.

 

The film came out January 28, 2011 (last night) and has currently made 5.3million at the box office. It took the lead on a quiet night for films, last night, and has gotten moderate to good reviews. I would definitely recommend this film, and will most likely purchase it when it comes out on DVD.