MOVIE REVIEW: THE RITE (15)

"I'VE SEEN SCARIER FILMS"

The Rite is a supernatural horror film Directed by Mikael Hafstrom (same guy that brought us 1408, 2007). This film is about an american seminary student who travels to Rome to take an exorcism course. Whilst there he goes in search to find his true calling. Its starring Anthony Hopkins, Colin Donoghue, Marta Gastini, Maria Grazia Cucinotta, Alice Braga, Ciara Hinds, Toby Jones & Chris Marquette.

This movie is based on a book by Matt Baglio called The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exorcism. 

SLIDER'S REVIEW:

The promises of the trailer did not dissapoint me its just not as raw as i thought it would be. it confused me early on because it starts off as this serious film about beliefs, exorcism, & the devil but then there were a scene that was clearly a Laugh Out Loud moment in the middle of an Exorcism 
(what a way to add to the suspense... not). 

This is meant to be a Horror movie (its even classed as that) but then theres not much of that going on, i found it to be more a Thriller (would have been better the other way round). I think the Writer/Director concentrated mainly on telling a good story and less on actually trying to scare its audience. For this film to get the recognition it deserves it would have to be more gritty and more suspenseful. Fans of this type of movie will enjoy it but others might switch off before it has a chance to engage. This film doesn't take it self too serious (but maybe it should have). I was not surprised that the last 30 minutes was when the storyline really got going but did like how it all turned out.

On a better note i thought The Cinematography was displayed beautifully. The camera made general things more interesting than they actually were. The shots of Rome & the Vatican also look great on screen.

After all these years Anthony Hopkins at his age (73) is still delivering great performances on the big screen as he does in this role as Father Lucas. He carries this film from the moment he's on screen to the end. The presence he gives on screen is very interesting to watch. Colin Donoghue's plays his Michael Kovak character well. He brings his own feel but does not connect as much as he should have. if only he didn't have a heavyweight like Hopkins alongside he would have shone more as his character developed. Strong cast.

#Overall: its a Decent film about Exorcism.

MY STAR RATINGS OUT OF 5:  2.5

ONE FAVORITE MOMENT IN THE FILM:

When Father Lucas (Hopkins) says: 

"Choosing not to believe in the devil wont protect you from him"

(if you loved another moment in the film, please feel free to tell us in the comments)

TRAILER;