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| Release Date: | August 20th, 2004 (US) - October 29th, 2004 (UK) |
| Runtime: | 114 minutes |
| Rated: | R |
| Genres: | Horror |
| Directed by: | Renny Harlin |
| Written by: | William Peter Blatty (novel & screenplay The Exorcist), William Wisher Jr. (story), Caleb Carr (story), Alexi Hawley (screenplay) |
| Starring: | Stellan Skarsg�rd, Izabella Scorupco, James D'Arcy, Remy Sweeney, Julian Wadham, Andrew French, Ralph Brown, Ben Cross, David Bradley, Alan Ford, Antonie Kamerling, Eddie Osei, Israel Aduramo, Patrick O'Kane, James Bellamy |
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 The fact that Hollywood is all out of fresh ideas is about as obvious as the fact that Paris Hilton is a dirty slut. That being said, it was only a matter of time before they filmed a prequel (a word that has become synonymous with mediocrity - ask George Lucas) to the seminal horror classic The Exorcist: Exorcist: The Beginning. What's surprising about The Beginning isn't that it was produced, but that it isn't an entirely bad picture.
The Beginning takes place in 1949, a point in time that finds professional archaeologist Father Lancaster Merrin (Skarsgård) suffering from a serious bout of lost faith. And it couldn't come at a worse time: evil is stirring in Africa and it appears that only Merrin and Vatican appointee Father Francis (D'Arcy) can solve the mystery, which it seems is linked to the uncovering of an extremely misplaced Christian church. Along the way, Merrin and Francis receive aid from nurse Sarah (Scorupco), guidance from native Chuma (French), hindrance from dig leader Jeffries (Ford), and trouble from a seemingly possessed Joseph (Sweeney).
The worst part about this film is also the least forgivable aspect: the computer animation. For one, it wasn't entirely necessary. I almost laughed out loud whenever the "evil" hyenas were shown - they were quite possibly the worst-rendered animals I've ever seen in a movie. And the effects used to represent distant landscape shots were absolutely horrendous; the effects department would've been better served to produce matte paintings than attempting to animate the shots digitally, which they obviously haven't got a grasp on yet. Even such a simple effects shot as Merrin walking towards the Vatican was completely unrealistic and botched beyond repair. In other words, my local TV news station implements better blue-screen effects in their weathercast.
What saves this film from eternal damnation (pun alert!) is the absolutely brilliant performance of Stellan Skarsgård - his turn as Merrin showcases one of the most nuanced and "deep" performances I have ever seen in a movie of this type. Skarsgård channels Max von Sydow so meticulously that you genuinely cannot tell the difference between the two. It also helps matters that Skarsgård is supported by extremely competent co-stars, especially French and Sweeney as Chuma and Joseph.
The one other thing that redeems this film is the engaging story. I stayed interested in the goings-on throughout the picture (except, of course, whenever the laughable effects were employed). The best part about the plot was that it took the most interesting and mysterious character of the original and expanded on his back-story - how and why he was who he was later in his life.
Overall, Exorcist: The Beginning overcame production woes, unoriginality factor, and horrendous un-special effects to become quite an entertaining horror romp that both fans and non-fans of the original Exorcist can enjoy; while those familiar with the original will find it interesting to see what Father Merrin was up to before Regan became possessed, the uninitiated will receive an above-average introduction to the series that will hopefully inspire them to pick up the absolutely classic original. |
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Chris Gaskey
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