"Highly Entertaining EXORCIST rip off-style hokum"
It's got Franco Nero as the Pope and Ralph Ineson as a demon trying to possess Man of God Russell Crowe. What's not to love about Julius OVERLORD Avery's new trashsploitation shocker, out now on digital from Sony?
Based on the 'true' accounts of the Pope's actual exorcist Gabriel Amorth who, before he shuffled off to meet his maker (one hopes), wrote a number of books about his experiences, THE POPE'S EXORCIST kicks off with Father Gabriel (Russell Crowe doing everything right that Anthony Hopkins in THE RITE got wrong) performing one of the rituals attributed to Christ by casting a demon into a totally underserving pig that then gets its head blown off.
Meanwhile in Spain, widowed Julia (Alex Essoe, always watchable but underused in this) has brought her two children to the abbey owned by her late husband and left to them in his will. Before you can say THE BEYOND the film stays true to its EuroHorror origins by having two workman uncover Something Nasty in the basement which quickly takes possession of son Henry (Peter DeSouza-Feighoney). Pretty soon Father Gabriel is called in to solve the problem. This involves all the usual EXORCIST-style jibber jabber plus a little bit of EVIL DEAD influence as well. Things build to an appropriately hysterical climax before a bit that feels it was shot much later 'in case there's a sequel' and the final fadeout includes a caption that insists the real Father Gabriel's books 'are good'.
THE POPE'S EXORCIST is trash but it's highly entertaining trash and hearkens back to the days of 1970s Italian EXORCIST ripoffs. The photography and production design are lovely, Jed Kurzel's score is appropriately atmospheric, and director Avery keeps everything moving along at a clip. It's a shame that older audience members will have seen it all before, but even so the appealing presences of both Crowe and Nero (and Ineson) make this one definitely worth a watch. Here's the trailer:
Julius Avery's THE POPE'S EXORCIST is out on Digital from Sony now
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