Friday, January 28, 2010
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Friday, January 28, 2010
MOVIE REVIEW
The Rite
In Jesus Camp, The Devil Dances
Anthony Hopkins as Father Lucas in "The Rite",
directed by Mikael Håfström.
Warner Brothers
by
Omar P.L. Moore/PopcornReel.com
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Friday, January 28, 2010
"The Rite" will be familiar to audiences who have seen "Rosemary's Baby", "The
Exorcist" or "The Omen". All tread the terrain of exorcism and
horror more adeptly than Mikael Håfström's thriller, which opened across the U.S. and
Canada today.
Michael (Colin O'Donoghue) wants to quit seminary school. Deeply skeptical
of the power of faith, he believes science and psychology can cure the
maladies lurking within the human heart. After giving comfort to someone
in distress, he's persuaded to take a two-month course on exorcism in Rome at
the Vatican. He soon encounters Father Lucas (Anthony Hopkins), a priest
and an exorcist. Lucas, we're told, is an unorthodox fellow when it comes
to exorcism. (Oh, Christ.)
Mr. Håfström's film begins promisingly, immersing us in moments of reasoned
conversation about good and evil and its fine, precarious line. The film
is lavish and inviting, tasting like a high-priced entree at Gary Danko.
How filling is it? For a while,
very satisfying.
Michael's beliefs are inevitably tested by Fr. Lucas. The conversation and
build-up around these affairs holds interest until late in act two when Mr.
Hopkins' exorcist yields to campy court jester extraordinaire. The film
abandons its issues. (Is sin inherent in the human condition? And
how, if at all, is it best cured? Does faith corrupt? Is evil
present in good people and in faith worship? The movie dangles the
obvious answer throughout: evil can infect anyone given the chance.)
Nonetheless, you wait for the discussion to unfold more thoroughly into the
contours of this thriller, but it doesn't. Instead "The Rite"
falls apart on cue like timed dominoes, flopping into melodrama and a showcase
for Mr. Hopkins' ham act, which while initially amusing quickly goes stale.
The characters (specifically Michael, who's smarter than everyone else) are
sidelined spectators, forced to watch theatrics ensue in service of the
predictable and empty
payoff that the movie's poster advertises. The filmmakers are unable to sustain
the film's best elements and see them through to the finish line. It's a
pity, because what transpires for an hour is entertaining.
Purportedly based on true events, "The Rite" is stuck in the trappings of
its overblown symbolism. The film forces both unconvincing atmosphere and
suspense via obvious clichés and props while abandoning any intellectual
potential. Undeniably "The Rite" flaunts rich decor and natty production values.
Its cinematography is stunning. I was absorbed and enticed by the film's
look and feel, but when the film got cold feet in its hasty retreat from its
exploration of the film's subject matter, so did I.
Furthermore, "The Rite" takes itself only half-seriously. Hollywood movies
have long mocked faith and religion, and "The Rite" does so in a playful if
distracting way. It also mocks exorcism, including one bit of dialogue
that references "The Exorcist". With "The Rite" you know when the sudden
jolts of fright will come. The film's cynicism is played up cruelly in three scenes
involving Father Lucas. The convenient placement of stock types (seers,
journalists and a victim inhabited by the devil) dominate when they should be
relegated in service of the film's two main characters.
The film's smaller roles feature Toby Jones, Ciarán Hinds (effective in last
year's supernatural thriller
"The Eclipse") and an unrecognizable Rutger Hauer (who looks a little
like the filmmaker Werner Herzog in one scene.) Mr. O'Donoghue, a fine
presence in his feature film debut, does very well and is memorable as Michael.
Mr. Hopkins' main function is to ham things up and unleash his inner Hannibal
Lecter (from "The Silence Of The Lambs", "Hannibal", "Red Dragon".)
Everyone watching "The Rite" awaits the ham slam. The menu of items in Mr. Håfström's film needed more appealing appetizers.
Audiences will enjoy "The Rite", but its largely unfilled promise make it an
overall let-down. Beyond the introductory discussions of sin and the devil
there's little else to hook into. With all that occurs, the characters
aren't as challenged as they should be. Even in the film's closing stages,
Michael doesn't really confront a meaningful crossroads in his own personal
affairs. By this point "The Rite" effectively subverts itself, ringing hollow. Evil is turned on
and off like The Clapper. Or the clicking fingers of The Addams Family. Morticia, are you there? (Click click.)
With: Alice Braga, Marta Gastini, Maria Grazia Cucinotta, Arianna Veronesi,
Andrea Calligari, Chris Marquette, Torrey DeVitto, Ben Cheetham, Marija Karan,
Rosa Pianeta.
"The Rite"
is rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture
Association Of America for disturbing thematic material, violence, frightening
images, and language including sexual references. The film's
running time is one hour and 52 minutes.
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