The same ‘creatives’ behind the destruction of the Halloween franchise paid a lot of money setting their sights on destroying another legacy IP. This film has all the air of a studio-mandate, focus tested, sanitized for consumption ‘product’ as opposed to crafting an actual film. One can almost hear the ‘pitch meeting’: what's scarier than a little girl being possessed by demons? TWO little girls possessed by demons! GENIUS! What was once the focus of a catholic rite is now a community-based free-for-all, even moving beyond ‘faith’ and championing the power of friendship and community spirit to banish evil. However, the messaging here gets a bit muddled, taking plentiful shots at the catholic church and making exorcism cross-faith inclusive, yet… <spoiler> the rite fails and the demons achieve their win condition </spoiler> A truckload of money apparently convinced Ellen Burstyn to play along for a rather anticlimactic cameo, showing up long enough to trigger nostalgia, then be brutally taken out of the equation. The pacing and scripting is atrocious, with an entirely unnecessary 30 minute prologue and a coda doubling down on nostalgia bait in anticipation of sequels to come. Any of these singular points might be forgiven were there a single fright or fear to be had, but there are none. It makes one long for a demonic nun to show up just to inflict a jump scare or two. This is insulting to the source, insulting to fans of the franchise, insulting to the actors, and absolutely insulting to the viewers.
Exorcist - Believer (2023)