Hey there, horror fans. Frizzy J here with a modern throwback: The Exorcism of Emily Rose. A 2005 Horror story/ legal drama, this movie delves into the consequences of exorcism, faith, and doubt while providing surface level terror and focusing on the legal aspects of murder and manslaughter. This is an old one, considering that many of you were probably born the year this movie came out (I would have been a freshman in high school in 2005), and yet it is relatively new compared to many of the horror stories we've looked into here on this blog. Stephen King's heyday, for instance, came in the 70s through the 90s, and the granddaddy of religious/supernatural horror, The Exorcist, was written in 1971 with its film adaptation of the same name hitting theatres in 1973.
The story opens with a medical examiner coming to a farm in the aftermath of an exorcism at a rural American farm. The priest is then arrested, and defense and prosecution are established. The exorcism is delivered to us visually as flashbacks during witness testimony, and new fear comes in the form of spiritual attack upon the defense attorney, Erin Bruner.
The movie lacks a lot of blood and violence, utilizing more body horror and uncanny visuals. For example, there is a scene in which the possessed is forced to slam from standing to kneeling violently and rapidly, with loud impacts on the knees. What I find more interesting about the movie, however, is the message. The exorcism failed, and Emily Rose perished, the powers of evil flock to impact the outcome of the court case, as if commanded to shed doubt upon the matter. I feel I can't delve further into the outcome, for fear of spoiling it, but it makes you think.
I recommend this more for the faithful, particularly those that may be wondering "why" the world is the way it is. It is my firm belief that the forces of darkness are also bent before the force of creation, for it takes light to cast a shadow. Check it out if you have the time. I couldn't find it on any streaming sites for free, but I had it on DVD.
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