The Last Exorcism
Directed By: Daniel Stamm
Written By: Huck Botko and Andrew Gurland
Starring: Patrick Fabian, Ashley Bell and Caleb Landry Jones
The Last Exorcism is not the first film based around exorcism and it certainly wont be the last, it is however the scariest film to be released this year and a pleasant unexpected surprise. The story centers on Cotton Marcus an arrogant priest who has been preaching since the age of 10. He also is an “exorcist” in reality he is a con man who fakes all his exorcisms, however he maintains he is still helping the people involved. After losing his faith he decides to take a documentary crew with him on his last exorcism to expose them for what they really are. As you can imagine not everything goes to plan…
For its first act it would be easy to forget that The Last Exorcism is a “horror” film. The reason for this is that it works equally well, if not better as a character drama. As we are introduced to Cotton Marcus we are introduced to a man who has lost his faith, a man who is questioning his entire life’s work. The main reason that this story and character are so gripping however, are down to two elements. One is the performance from Patrick Fabian who is fantastic and charismatic as Cotton Marcus. His performance, story and character are engaging, interesting and well written enough to keep you gripped and attentive. It is a testament to the writing and directing that such a plot strand in a horror movie works so well, in most horror films the character and story come second to the scares while in this film it is actually the characters and the story that stand up more than the scares. The film is shot in a Blair Witch Project esque documentary, first person style. Unlike other films that use this technique however the camera is not shaking out of control all the time like you are on a simulator. In some moments towards the latter half of the film this is slightly the case however the style of the films presentation perfectly compliments the story, characters and tension making the whole film more real and believable.
When Cotton Marcus arrives at the Sweetzer farm for his last exorcism that is when perhaps the films best performance comes to light. Ashley Bell is nothing short of brilliant as the possibly possessed Nell. It is easily in my eyes the best leading actress performance I have seen so far this year. Caleb Landry Jones is also incredibly creepy and unsettling in his screen time as the brother of the possibly possessed girl, with his character being more than meets the eye. The film has a certain degree of mystery and intrigue to it, throughout the film we are unsure whether this girl is possessed or merely psychologically damaged, a plot strand about her father becomes incredibly captivating and it is the characters and story that ramp up the tension. As the film reaches its final half an hour it moves more into the territory that is expressed through the films misleading trailer and works effectively as a creepy horror film. One scene involving a cat is considerably disturbing while two scenes in particular really made me jump and the very final segment of the film did have me on the edge of my seat.
Speaking of the films conclusion, this film has a very divisive and polarizing ending. It is without a doubt out of place with the rest of the film and is incredibly rushed however in my mind it offers a perfect end to the character arc of Cotton Marcus and leads to one of the films more intense scenes.
Overall The Last Exorcism is much smarter and deeper than the films trailer might suggest, it isn’t the most original film out there and the ending is out of place and rushed. However the films performances, direction and story are of enough quality that this is easily 2010s best horror so far and contains one of the performances of the year.
One Sentence Summary: Great performances and a surprising degree of gripping death make this horror film the best horror of 2010 despite its unoriginality and divisive ending.
Rating: 7+/10
For its first act it would be easy to forget that The Last Exorcism is a “horror” film. The reason for this is that it works equally well, if not better as a character drama. As we are introduced to Cotton Marcus we are introduced to a man who has lost his faith, a man who is questioning his entire life’s work. The main reason that this story and character are so gripping however, are down to two elements. One is the performance from Patrick Fabian who is fantastic and charismatic as Cotton Marcus. His performance, story and character are engaging, interesting and well written enough to keep you gripped and attentive. It is a testament to the writing and directing that such a plot strand in a horror movie works so well, in most horror films the character and story come second to the scares while in this film it is actually the characters and the story that stand up more than the scares. The film is shot in a Blair Witch Project esque documentary, first person style. Unlike other films that use this technique however the camera is not shaking out of control all the time like you are on a simulator. In some moments towards the latter half of the film this is slightly the case however the style of the films presentation perfectly compliments the story, characters and tension making the whole film more real and believable.
When Cotton Marcus arrives at the Sweetzer farm for his last exorcism that is when perhaps the films best performance comes to light. Ashley Bell is nothing short of brilliant as the possibly possessed Nell. It is easily in my eyes the best leading actress performance I have seen so far this year. Caleb Landry Jones is also incredibly creepy and unsettling in his screen time as the brother of the possibly possessed girl, with his character being more than meets the eye. The film has a certain degree of mystery and intrigue to it, throughout the film we are unsure whether this girl is possessed or merely psychologically damaged, a plot strand about her father becomes incredibly captivating and it is the characters and story that ramp up the tension. As the film reaches its final half an hour it moves more into the territory that is expressed through the films misleading trailer and works effectively as a creepy horror film. One scene involving a cat is considerably disturbing while two scenes in particular really made me jump and the very final segment of the film did have me on the edge of my seat.
Speaking of the films conclusion, this film has a very divisive and polarizing ending. It is without a doubt out of place with the rest of the film and is incredibly rushed however in my mind it offers a perfect end to the character arc of Cotton Marcus and leads to one of the films more intense scenes.
Overall The Last Exorcism is much smarter and deeper than the films trailer might suggest, it isn’t the most original film out there and the ending is out of place and rushed. However the films performances, direction and story are of enough quality that this is easily 2010s best horror so far and contains one of the performances of the year.
One Sentence Summary: Great performances and a surprising degree of gripping death make this horror film the best horror of 2010 despite its unoriginality and divisive ending.
Rating: 7+/10
