The Pope’s Exorcist review.
The Pope’s Exorcist doesn’t break new ground in its exorcism story…but it does boast a great actor taking his role seriously in the face of some unfortunate silliness.
New movie reviews will not contain spoilers.
The Pope’s Exorcist
Directed by Julius Avery
Screenplay by Michael Petroni and Evan Spiliotopoulos
Starring Russell Crowe, Daniel Zovatto, Alex Essoe and Franco Nero
The Pope’s Exorcist Review
Russell Crowe is a great actor. I’m not breaking any news here. He’s an Oscar winner who has been great in any movie where he isn’t asked to sing. When an actor of his caliber takes on a horror movie, things can go a few different ways. They can phone it in for a paycheck…they can clown it up and not take the material seriously…or they can bring their A game. Crowe chooses the latter in The Pope’s Exorcist. Unfortunately, the movie around him isn’t up to his standard.
Gabriele Amorth (Russell Crowe) investigates the possession of a young boy in Spain. As the Pope’s trusted exorcist Amorth uncovers a secret that threatens to doom more than just the child. Amorth is long on faith and short on patience for the changing views of the church hierarchy. Confronted by true evil and seconded by a young priest (Daniel Zovatto), Amorth prepares for the battle of his life.
The good news about The Pope’s Exorcist is that it puts Crowe at the center of everything. The bad news is that the things he’s at the center of aren’t that interesting. If you’re a fan of possession movies…there isn’t anything here that you haven’t seen before. A child is possessed by a demon (in the mythology of The Pope’s Exorcist one of 200 fallen angels) and a man of faith comes calling to save him. It’s the same plot we’ve seen in most exorcism movies since The Exorcist hit the scene almost 50 years ago.
The bad news is almost everything else. There is nothing scary in The Pope’s Exorcist. Nothing unsettling or intense. Mileage may vary on that…but as someone who has seen many exorcism films…I’m beginning to suspect there are no new tricks to be had. In place of frights, the movie hopes that its story will be enough to pull you in.
The story of The Pope’s Exorcist does, at least, avoid the crisis of faith aspect of many of these types of movies. Amorth is resolute in his faith, an unshakable character. Instead, he’s given a quest for discovery. Learning about long buried secrets while dealing with his own, personal, regret. It’s not the most interesting or deep story…but it is something a little different at least.
The biggest issue with The Pope’s Exorcist is that so much of it feels kind of…silly. The possessed child with his distinct adult demon voice has moments that work…but the effect never feels quite right. The young actor is going for it…which is great…but the stuff he’s given to do confined to his bed is never as menacing as is intended. Crowe, himself, plays Amorth as a bit of an eccentric at times…which is delightful but doesn’t help to ground the story much.
In the end your enjoyment of The Pope’s Exorcist will me made or broken by how much you value a game Russell Crowe. He takes his role seriously…and by that I mean he knows when not to take it too seriously. Almost every good moment in the film stems from him. Whether it be his thick Italian accent, his funny quick asides, or the confidence with which he plays serious moments. Those looking for a great movie, however, will need to look elsewhere.
Scare Value
If you’re a Russell Crowe fan…you should go ahead and check out The Pope’s Exorcist. If you’re a fan of exorcism movies…there isn’t a whole lot here that will surprise. The movie lacks scares and makes some over-the-top choices that cross into silly territory. But Crowe is very good here. He salvages everything to a watchable level…which is the most anyone could do.
2.5/5
The Pope’s Exorcist Link
Buy tickets on Fandango
The Pope’s Exorcist Trailer
If you enjoyed this review of The Pope’s Exorcist, check out some other religious horror movies: Consecration, Attachment, The Offering, Prey for the Devil and The Last Exorcism
