The Exorcism of Emily Rose

THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE (2005) - Sept. 9, 2005
A creepy film about a priest who attempts to perform an exorcism, fails, and is forced to go on trial. Tom Wilkinson was really good (as usual) as the priest, as was Laura Linney as his lawyer. Most of the film is the trial itself, with the exorcism and such being seen in flashbacks. The movie is somewhat slow paced; the first creepy moment doesn't come until at least twenty minutes into it. But the pace worked, and I found that the courtroom stuff was just as effective as some of the scarier moments. But (and perhaps it helps that I scare very easily) this was still a really scary movie. It wasn't so much scary in a flat-out Ring sort of way, it was more eerie and unnerving. It helps that the movie avoids over-the-top supernatural stuff like the 360 head-turning and projectile vomiting of the Exorcist. The movie was really well directed, and some of the scenes were really suspenseful. In fact, when the credits rolled I noticed that my back and neck felt unusually tight; I must have been tensing up for extended periods without even realizing. ***1/2