Exorcist: The Beginning (2004)

Exorcist: The Beginning tells the story of Father Lankester Merrin, (played with stoic intensity by Stellen Skarsgard of Good Will Hunting fame) a disillusioned former priest and professional archeologist. It's a few years after WWII, and Merrin is summoned to a dig site in Nairobi, the excavation of a mysterious church. There he promptly encounters Brits with bad teeth, a tribe of African stereotypes, a sexy lady-doctor and an unspeakable evil.

Is it scary? The film succeeds in making the viewer jump, but the reaction has little to do with an effective script, and is largely achieved through the use of frequent visual misdirection and abrasive, cochlea-grating sounds that are fired off in sudden bursts. The scariest moments are accomplished through good old-fashioned suspense, when the viewer, like the character, feels himself vulnerable and surrounded by the unknown. Sadly the genuine tension of such moments is soon abandoned in favor of gore and second-rate computer graphics.

But Exorcist fails even beyond its piecemeal scare-factor, with a central message that rings hollow. In the most compelling line from the film, Merrin observes that "Evil is a uniquely human condition", and it's of little surprise that the entire remainder of the film is dedicated to contradicting this very excellent and very blasphemous point. Exorcist is, of course, by tradition and definition a religious film, but somehow I dared to expect a modicum of nuance. No such luck.

The film is intercut with flashbacks to the moment when Merrin's faith was shattered - the execution of captives by a Nazi guard. The history and symbolism invoked are naturally grim, but the scene is so heavy-handed, the Nazi figure so cartoonishly one-dimensional, that it becomes insultingly melodramatic despite its serious subject matter.

In the world of Exorcist, evil wears red horns and cackles a lot. There’s no subtlety here. Human misfortunes aren’t the result of fear, ignorance, and manipulation. It’s all wonderfully uncomplicated. And since all the world’s problems have a common, apple-hawking source, there’s really no point in trying to understand them is there?

That said, the cinematography is excellent, and Skarsgard's restraint often makes scenes work that shouldn't. Exorcist: The Beginning is undeniably a B-movie, but is still a movie and its merits therefore a matter of opinion. Personally, it left a vinegary taste in my mouth, but to others it's sure to taste like sweet, sweet communion wine.