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Thursday, May 12, 2011

[6.25/10] The Rite (2011)


The Rite (2011)

Brief review: Swedish visionary, Mikael Håfström, known for his stunningly-effective creepfest, "1408", delivers yet another well-crafted supernatural horror flick, that deals with exorcism - one of the most frequent and popular subject matters in the horror genre. Although the film suffers heavily from muddled pacing, and it certainly doesn't rank as one of the most effective exorcism-related movies ever made, "The Rite" is still watchable, thanks to its well-written script, Håfström's solid direction and some truly ominous settings that create a mysterious and often frightening atmosphere. In fact, if you try not to take the film too seriously, you might have a great time with it - it may be a slow-burner and lacking in genuine scares, but "The Rite" is fairly gripping, and it delivers the chills and some truly disturbing images in its final act. Anthony Hopkins is unsurprisingly brilliant as the confident, and devoted Father Lucas, but it's Marta Gastini as the pregnant girl Rosaria, who makes the biggest impression, despite her limited screen time - she's portrays demonic possession to perfection! Colin O'Donoghue, on the other hand, not only looks like a plastic doll, but his performance as the seminary student is unbelievably stiff, dull and emotionless.

Overall summary: Mikael Håfström's "The Rite" won't make you believe the devil really exists, but it will certainly entertain you for a few hours with its chilling atmosphere, dark and creepy visuals, well-written dialogues and Anthony Hopkins' convincingly devilish performance.

10 comments:

Maynard Morrissey said...

ah, totally forgot about The Rite. Need to watch it soon

LoneIslander said...

Not my kind of film.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I'll check it out on NetFlix. I know - that's my answer for everything!

M Pax said...

Thanks for the review. Sounds intriguing and entertaining.

Unknown said...

I have been wanting to see this film and hopefully my editor will let me review the DVD. It sounds like Hopkins was his usual stellar self and you've made me excited to check out Marta's performance. O'Donoghue appeared stiff from the trailers.

Terrific review, sweetie!

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

Thanks, Mel.

I enjoyed it more than I thought I would.. it was slow, but gripping nonetheless. Oh, and Marta blew me away - she was so believable!

I hope your editor will let you review it - and I bet you'll do an awesome job with the review. You always do :)

FilmMattic said...

Nice review. Glad to see Hopkins is back to giving it his best.

I like your whole disclaimer: "if you try not to take the film too seriously, you might have a great time with it" because sometimes, ridiculous cinema can be the most fun. Well-said.

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

Thanks, mate ;) So far this year, Sir Anthony Hopkins gives stellar performances!
Absolutely, ridiculous cinema can be a lot of fun!

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

Maynard, you should. It's kinda good.

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

@LoneIslander, as you say so...

@Alex, LOL. You're funny, dude. :)

@M Pax, it IN intriguing and entertaining, so you'd better give it a shot :)