The Pope's Exorcist: Russell Crowe Attempts to Lift Up a Banal Horror Outing (4K)

The Film:

More than 50 years after William Friedkin's masterpiece "The Exorcist" had people fainting in theaters, it's incredible to see how popular films about exorcisms remain, with many imitators hoping to scare up the same kind of results with projects like "The Last Exorcism," "Deliver Us from Evil," "The Exorcism of Emily Rose," and, of course, additional entries in the "Exorcist" series. Another recent addition to the group was Julius Avery's "The Pope's Exorcist" from 2023, which, like many others, relied on creepy scenes of demon possession & an exorcism to give the audience some thrills.

While the film wasn't well-received by critics, it still managed to bring in a relatively impressive $77 million at the worldwide box office, turning it into a modest success when compared to its $18 million production budget. It may have taken a few years, but the film is finally making its 4K debut this week, giving us the perfect excuse for a revisit in order to see if it's worth it for the audience to give it a second look (or even a first). Were the critics right in their rather stern dismissal of this familiar set-up, or does it perhaps have something unique to offer audiences who have been let down by so many films just like it?

Taking place in 1987, the film follows Father Gabriele Amorth (Russell Crowe), the Pope's exorcist, who finds himself before a tribunal after his latest case, in which he had challenged a demon to possess a pig, and subsequently killed the animal. The head of the tribunal seems to doubt that the devil even exists, but Amorth insists he does, though he claims that his recent case was merely mentally ill, not actually possessed.

Meanwhile, we also meet Julia Vasquez (Alex Essoe) and her two kids, young Henry (Peter DeSouza-Feighoney) and teenager Amy (Laurel Marsden), who are trying to get an old Spanish abbey fixed up, only to have the work get derailed when the workers hit a gas pocket, causing them to abandon the project. Shortly after, Henry starts acting strangely and appears to become possessed. The case comes to the attention of The Pope (Franco Nero), who sends Amorth to investigate. He quickly finds that they are indeed dealing with a real possession and, with the help of local priest Tomas (Daniel Zovatto), must discover the name of the demon in order to have a chance of saving the boy through the rite of exorcism. Will they be able to best this powerful entity, or will this be the case that finally defeats Amorth?

As is already well-known, it is remarkably difficult to do anything that can truly be called original in the realm of horror, but when you break it down to a specific sub-genre such as exorcism movies, it becomes even harder, especially when that specific area has been beaten to death over the last 50+ years. However, that clearly didn't deter screenwriters Michael Petroni & Evan Spiliotopoulos or director Julius Avery, all of whom must have felt that this project brought something new to the topic, or that it at least approached it in a new and/or exciting way.

The thing is, at the end of these 90-ish minutes, there really isn't anything particularly new here. In fact, its main elements are ones that we've seen countless times in other movies just like it. We've seen these movies from the viewpoint of the Vatican, as well as innocent families having to deal with the terror of having a loved one get possessed. We've even seen several that have what could be called a "rebel priest" dealing with the exorcism, who, of course, typically gets the intended results. Sure, the backstory of the family is a little different, and we do learn of a dark secret that the church covered up, but these don't change the fundamental nature of the film, which inevitably becomes rather ho-hum simply do to its over-familiarity.

That said, the one strong element that the film has going for it is Academy Award winner Russell Crowe as Father Amorth. He brings quite a lot of gravitas to the role, and even provides a few chuckles along the way to help prevent it from becoming drowned in seriousness. Even among all of the film's cliched aspects, he remains a delight to watch, providing a suitable driving force as it goes through the typical perfunctory scenes that eventually get us to the exact conclusion we know is coming. Without him, it's very likely that the film would've merely been left adrift in its banal material.

However, in the end, even someone of his talent can't overcome the blandness of a tale that we've seen time and time again. Again, this is one of those areas where it's exceedingly difficult to come up with anything new or original to do, but it should've been pretty clear to both the director & screenwriters that this was basically another retread of the same old story. If they wanted it to stand out and be noticed, then they really needed to do something bigger & bolder to shake loose from the usual fare. "The Pope's Exorcist" simply doesn't do that, remaining content to stay within the confines of what's come before, ultimately leaving us with another exorcism film that is rather quickly forgotten.

Video/Audio:

"The Pope's Exorcist" comes to 4K in a 2.39:1, 2160p Ultra High Definition transfer of outstanding quality, presenting a beautifully sharp image throughout its entire 103-minute runtime, even in the darkest of scenes. Likewise, the Dolby Atmos audio track is fantastic, giving you all of the dialogue, sound effects, and music in excellent quality. Overall, Sony Pictures has done a wonderful job in both departments for the film's 4K debut.

Special Features:

Introducing Father Amorth (6 Minutes): Russell Crowe and others discuss the real-life exorcist.

What Possessed You? (5 Minutes): A featurette that has director Julius Avery and others discussing the film.

Conclusion:

Julius Avery's "The Pope's Exorcist" boasts a strong lead performance from Academy Award winner Russell Crowe, who brings quite a lot of gravitas to the role of Father Armorth, as well as a fair amount of levity, but sadly it's not nearly enough to overcome the film's reliance on heavily-cliched material that merely gives us a bland story that we've seen many times before in films just like it, ultimately making it rather indistinctive and forgettable.

Score: 2.5/5

Available on 4K starting tomorrow.

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