The Exorcism of Emily Rose

Unless you're familiar with the real life story of Emily Rose, namely the trial concerning the events surrounding her death, then The Exorcism of Emily Rose would appear to be clone, a copy or simply a cheap-man's version of The Exorcist - it's material that's been done well before so why try again? We've had attempts to remake the magic with those abominable Exorcist prequels, so isn't this area now best left alone? Fortunately, there's an independent story to be told with The Exorcism of Emily Rose and it turns out to be quite a solid one, one worthy of its own big screen presence.

The film is told on two distinct levels. The first set in the courtrooms, where Father Moore, played by Tom Wilkinson, has been accused of exacerbating the circumstances leading up to Emily's death and charged with negligent homicide. It was to Father Moore which Emily chose to entrust her care before she died. As a reborn star at her law firm, Erin Burner, played by Laura Linney, has been assigned as his representation on behalf of the Catholic diocese, while the prosecution fronts Ethan Thomas, a successful state attorney, played by Campbell Scott.

Despite its setting, this first half (first half in description only, the narrative of the film flips between the two throughout the movies) of the film is just as strong as any of the events and chills that describe Emily's exorcism. The prosecution is fronted by a deeply religious man whilst Erin's faith was put on hold long ago. Ideally they'd be on opposite sides of the courtroom, but as the trial progresses one of the most interesting parts of it is to watch the atmosphere of the courtroom shift, and it changes remarkably. From their attitudes, to the range of arguments and counter arguments used, to the array of witnesses put on the stand to prove them. There's also a subplot between Father Moore and Erin that takes place outside of the courtroom that becomes quite chilling.

Told in flashback mode is Emily's story. Played by Jennifer Carpenter, Emily is delighted to receive a scholarship to college, and although she gets her wish, it's creepy to watch how her deeply religious mother strikes fear into her and her sisters in this first flashback scene, although that theme is something touched only one or two times further in the film. What was her family like? Her upbringing in real life before she left home? Perhaps, Emily Rose's life and death would have been very different had her belief structure been not so deep, one could almost assume, not so brutally devout. There are some quite nasty depictions of possession in these flashback sequences, some of them arrive before you'd expect, before Father Moore arrives on the scene.

Each of the performances are top-notch. Laura Linney lends a weight of credibility to her role. Her character wants the win and she such tries a few unconventional approaches. She stays objectionable despite the theme of her defense, even moreso than god-boy prosecution, who delightfully loses footing several times in the face of her addresses. Tom Wilkinson portrays the religious man who's stared hell in the face and survived with a conflicting ease. We're not to sure what to make of him at the beginning, what he did at Emily's house, what his motives were - plainly, did he cause Emily's death? He cared for nothing more than to have Emily's story told. Had he accepted the plea, this review perhaps wouldn't have been written. Father Moore is depicted with enough conviction that at least, we accept that he believed what happened.

The Exorcism of Emily Rose stands alone as its own legitimate entry in the exorcism sub-genre. It's not trying to piggyback of the success of any other film, it's not a remake and it's not an adaptation - at least not from a book, comic or video game. Were the events that inspired the film real? It might matter to some, but the movie's story can ultimately be taken on mere entertainment value, just as the 'supposedly partially inspired by' stories that gave rise to The Amityville Horror or The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. If The Exorcism of Emily Rose doesn't get you thinking about any higher purpose, at least it'll provide you with a smart and well executed night at movies. It might even scare the shit out of you a few times too.


out of ten

Reviewed by Paul Boschen

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