There is one thing everyone should agree on, though. All of the cast deliver well rounded, dynamic performances. From the leads to the supporting characters, everyone puts in a believable, down to earth performance. Which is rare in a horror film, believe me.
One thing that will make this film so divisive is its use of the first person, cinéma vérité technique. This film is found footage, styled after the Blair Witch Project, Quarantine, Cloverfield and the like. The characters are aware of the camera, they reference and speak to it, and the movie is shot from the perspective of a film crew documenting the exorcism, specifically a cameraman named Daniel.
Me and K-Reel often call these handy-cam films. And The Last Exorcism does the handy-cam school of horror film making proud. Because the performances are so grounded and natural, the way the story unfolds seems natural too.
But some people just don’t like this style of film making. Maybe they don’t like experiencing the story so directly. Maybe, they don’t like the way the camera shakes and wobbles. Maybe they have bad memories of the Blair Witch Project giving them motion sickness. As a fan of this style, I couldn’t tell you.
I think shooting this way really brings the viewer in on the tension and allows for a kind of carnage and fear to play out across the screen that can’t be replicated in any other style. See the last fifteen minutes of Quarantine for the prime example of this.
The Last Exorcism uses the tension allowed by this medium wonderfully. There are several breathless moments in the film that stem from the cameraman trying to orient himself to possible threats around him. Because we see what he sees, we’re just as vulnerable and unsure of what will happen next as he is.
Obviously, this is the aim of any good horror film, to make the audience feel the fear the characters are experiencing. I really do think the handy-cam, when done as well as it is here, is the ultimate way of achieving this. Though this film lacks any of the full out chaos of films like Cloverfield and Quarantine, the action it does boast unfolds quite well.
Why so many handy-cam film makers feel the need to beat something with the camera is beyond me. I mean, isn't that going to break it? Qaurantine did it, 28 Weeks Later did it in their handy-cam scene, and now we have another example to add in The Last Exorcism. Somebody should make a Youtube montage.
So we come to the performances.
The Last Exorcism is actually a rather new title for the film, getting tacked on only after it was acquired for its North American wide release. It was originally called Cotton, named for its main character, preacher and exorcist Cotton Marcus. And in a lot of ways, it really is Cotton’s story. There’s a story arc at play for him here, one just as important as the one centered on the exorcism, but ultimately much more subtle. Without giving too much away, the movie is framed just as much around Cotton’s story as it is the possession, and any finality the viewer is able to glean from this film ultimately resides in the journey Cotton takes.
I know this all sounds pretty vague but this is definitely a film you want to know as little about going in as possible.
So, there’s a lot of weight on Patrick Fabian’s shoulders. And he really brings the role of Cotton to life. Even when he comes across as a douchebag, which he does for a good chunk of the film, he always seems earnest, relatable and ultimately real. I wouldn’t want anything more from an actor.
Ashley Bell is also quite good as Nell Sweetzer, this film’s Regan MacNeil, it’s Emily Rose. The one who may or may not have a demon in her. Bell plays the extremes outstandingly, going from sweet, seemingly naive and innocent to enraged, menacing and dangerous as if on command. This role requires a certain physicality from her and she delivers that too. As a relative newcomer to the industry, I’d say she’s one to watch out for.
Again, from Nell’s brother to a woman from the local church, the supporting cast really does shine. As do the rest of the actors.
Now, as to why some people will hate this movie. Ultimately, this is not a film for North American audiences. It makes the viewer have to think a little too hard, leaves a few too many questions unanswered and boasts an ending possessing a certain ambiguity that many will be uncomfortable with.
Things aren’t wrapped up neatly in a nice little package. There are various interpretations one could come up with about the truth of what was happening to Nell and about the ending. I have some of my own, but just as I decide that yes, that is indeed what I think was going, I remember another detail that takes away from that certainty.
Maybe it’s telling that director Daniel Stamm is German. Perhaps he’s not as apt to play to the tastes of the average, lazy North American movie goer. I don’t know really, but a lot of cutting edge horror cinema certainly comes from Europe.
This whole film is a bold move on his part, especially with regard to the ending, but one that I think really pays off. Again, without spoiling anything for you, it’s difficult to say that much. I will say there is a twist, which I thought was quite interesting, and one hell of a last five minutes, which I thought was just grand. Others will surely disagree. Let them.
And don't be thrown off the PG-13 rating. I was, PG-13 horror usually sucks. Though this film isn't exactly gory, you can express a lot of nastiness with the handy-cam style without actually fully showing it. I went into it with no expectations, and I was pleasantly surprised.
Because this is really a refreshing take on an exorcism story that actually manages to break some new ground and not just rely on old, dried up clichés. Its tense, quaint and simple in the way it tries to scare you. The whole thing just works. Including the ending, if you ask me.
I give this film 4/5 stuck, gangrenous thumbs up for breathing some new life into the exorcism genre, delivering solid performances and being bold and uncompromising in the way the story unfolds.
The Last Exorcism opens in theatres this Friday, August 27.
Just for fun, here’s a little bit of viral marketing that has come along with the film that makes use of chatroulette.
XOXO
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