I'm not going to try to dazzle everybody with my huge vocabulary or my expansive expertise on films, but I do know what I like, and I liked this movie. It takes an unorthodox approach to exorcism, not by treating it with priests, crucifixes, and holy water, but by treating the demon as a parasite that attaches itself to its host. Once the demon (parasite) attaches itself to the host, it invades their mind and creates an elaborate illusion (or dream state) based on what the host desires most. In turn, that keeps the host compliant while the demon consumes the soul.
Dr. Seth Ember (Aaron Eckhart) is a scientist with the gift of going into the possessed person's mind and performing what he calls "evictions" instead of exorcisms. In this movie, it is not a matter of faith or lack thereof. There is no God or specific religion tied to this, it involves pure science. He invades their minds bringing the truth with him in an effort dismantle the illusion. If he successfully tears down the walls and exposes the lie before his own body gives out within 8 minutes, he releases the power the demon has over the host. In essence, he goes in and kicks the demon out, or "evicts" them if you will. The demon must evacuate immediately by either entering another host through physical contact (touch), or the demon dies.
In his last case, a familiar she-demon has inhabited the body of an 11- year-old boy and Seth and his research team are called in by the Vatican to help the child because exorcisms have already failed and he doesn't have much time left. Of course, Seth already knows this demon very well. I'll just leave it at that...
I would be lying if I said that this concept has not already been explored. I know plenty people would like to give credit to Inception, but the truth is, this idea was explored way before Inception. For me, thrillers like The Cell (2000) with Jennifer Lopez and Vincent D'onofrio, as well as Fallen (1998) with Denzel Washington, and The First Power (1990) with Lou Diamond Phillips all came to mind. There are also certain themes and elements of this movie that is reminiscent of Insidious (2010) and The Exorcist (1973). While these movies are not entirely the same, the overall premise is still very similar. However, I think what sets this apart from those films is the "eviction" concept. This is a new angle for exorcising demons that hasn't been explored, and for that, I thank Brad Peyton. I'm always looking for some kind of originality which is extremely hard to find in movies these days, so I like to give credit where it's due.
Don't get me wrong, the film is not perfect by any means, but I do appreciate what the Director was trying to do. I would recommend giving this a chance. The year is coming to a close, so it's definitely not the worst movie this year has had to offer that's for sure. Trust me, there have been worse, and I've probably seen most of them.
Either way, I've prepared myself to be down voted by the "experts."
Dr. Seth Ember (Aaron Eckhart) is a scientist with the gift of going into the possessed person's mind and performing what he calls "evictions" instead of exorcisms. In this movie, it is not a matter of faith or lack thereof. There is no God or specific religion tied to this, it involves pure science. He invades their minds bringing the truth with him in an effort dismantle the illusion. If he successfully tears down the walls and exposes the lie before his own body gives out within 8 minutes, he releases the power the demon has over the host. In essence, he goes in and kicks the demon out, or "evicts" them if you will. The demon must evacuate immediately by either entering another host through physical contact (touch), or the demon dies.
In his last case, a familiar she-demon has inhabited the body of an 11- year-old boy and Seth and his research team are called in by the Vatican to help the child because exorcisms have already failed and he doesn't have much time left. Of course, Seth already knows this demon very well. I'll just leave it at that...
I would be lying if I said that this concept has not already been explored. I know plenty people would like to give credit to Inception, but the truth is, this idea was explored way before Inception. For me, thrillers like The Cell (2000) with Jennifer Lopez and Vincent D'onofrio, as well as Fallen (1998) with Denzel Washington, and The First Power (1990) with Lou Diamond Phillips all came to mind. There are also certain themes and elements of this movie that is reminiscent of Insidious (2010) and The Exorcist (1973). While these movies are not entirely the same, the overall premise is still very similar. However, I think what sets this apart from those films is the "eviction" concept. This is a new angle for exorcising demons that hasn't been explored, and for that, I thank Brad Peyton. I'm always looking for some kind of originality which is extremely hard to find in movies these days, so I like to give credit where it's due.
Don't get me wrong, the film is not perfect by any means, but I do appreciate what the Director was trying to do. I would recommend giving this a chance. The year is coming to a close, so it's definitely not the worst movie this year has had to offer that's for sure. Trust me, there have been worse, and I've probably seen most of them.
Either way, I've prepared myself to be down voted by the "experts."