THE LAST EXORCISM trailer is same-old horror style, no substance

Re-published from my article at Reel Thinker. I thought it would be relevant to include it here.

At first glance the poster for the Eli Roth-produced The Last Exorcism looks like it could be yet another instalment to The Exorcist franchise. Thankfully it’s not, but if you’ve seen the 1973 classic you won’t be able to help drawing comparisons while viewing The Last Exorcism trailer (below).

I’m personally rather familiar with The Exorcist. As owner and operator of The Exorcist Fansite since the late 90s I’ve written about, critiqued and discussed the film that remains arguably the greatest horror achievement of all time– definitely the greatest demonic possession film.  This also means I’ve been up-close to the making of some horrendous sequels in my time. Exorcist: The Beginning and Dominion: Prequel to The Exorcist were both so dreadful (not only did they bomb, they also got a hiding from critics) that studio Morgan Creek has all but shelved their Exorcist license until further notice. There have been spats of promise from other demonic possession efforts like The Exorcism of Emily Rose and even, to an extent, Constantine, but all have fallen drastically short to the substance found in The Exorcist.

Hoping to re-capture the success of horror films like The Blair Witch Project, [REC] and last year’s Paranormal Activity, The Last Exorcism plays out through the lens of an amateur handycam (or, in this case, a high-def cam with post production filter effects). The trailer reveals it to be a completely stylised piece of filmmaking which will definitely hold up in today’s horror market of special effects and cheap scares. What it will need and ultimately lack in the long run is some substance; some reasons to care and some food for thought. Substance left horror a long time ago and it’s going to take one Hell of a film (pardon the pun) to bring it back. I sincerely doubt The Last Exorcism will be it.

When he arrives on the rural Louisiana farm of Louis Sweetzer, the Reverend Cotton Marcus expects to perform just another routine “exorcism” on a disturbed religious fanatic. An earnest fundamentalist, Sweetzer has contacted the charismatic preacher as a last resort, certain his teenage daughter Nell is possessed by a demon who must be exorcized before their terrifying ordeal ends in unimaginable tragedy.

Buckling under the weight of his conscience after years of parting desperate believers with their money, Cotton and his crew plan to film a confessionary documentary of this, his last exorcism. But upon arriving at the already blood drenched family farm, it is soon clear that nothing could have prepared him for the true evil he encounters there. Now, too late to turn back, Reverend Marcus’ own beliefs are shaken to the core when he and his crew must find a way to save Nell – and themselves – before it is too late.