Exorcist: The Beginning

R 5.1
2004 1 hr 54 min Horror , Thriller , Mystery

Years before Father Merrin helped save Regan MacNeil’s soul, he first encounters the demon Pazuzu in East Africa.

  • Cast:
    Stellan Skarsgård , Izabella Scorupco , James D'Arcy , Julian Wadham , Remy Sweeney , Andrew French , Antonie Kamerling

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Reviews

ShangLuda
2004/08/20

Admirable film.

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Odelecol
2004/08/21

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

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Fairaher
2004/08/22

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

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Scarlet
2004/08/23

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

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hellholehorror
2004/08/24

I would like to start by saying that this is far better than Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977) but absolutely nothing compared to The Exorcist (1973) or The Exorcist III (1990). You know that there is going to be an exorcism and they don't let you think otherwise at any point. The problem is that the build up to this finale is not looking at the social aspects and the introverted paranoia associated with such confusion but instead focuses on confusing the issue. It feels painful as this has been done before so much better. This is boring with little development until near the end with an interesting twist and some cool scenes. The biggest gripe is that this film is laced with computer effects designed to impress the audience. You don't need to be impressed, you need to be scared. This film isn't that bad, it simply doesn't deliver.

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earsie1977
2004/08/25

In the same way that Columbus discovered "America"--a giant place that was there for millions of years; Marrin discovered churches in east Africa. The problem is that Christianity factually entered that area during the 3-4th centuries. The first church in that region--Debre Damo--was built in the late 500's A.C.E. It is worth noting that Christianity actually started in the east and then spread to Rome.. not the other way around. Aside from that, as an atheist, I don't take much of the movie seriously. I do like the horror genre so I try my best to appreciate a good story line either way.I was drawn to the side-story that "bad things" were happening during the filming of this movie back in 2003. I am not certain as to whether they were trying to use the same "supernatural appeal" that Blair Witch had a few years earlier.

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Bonehead-XL
2004/08/26

Making a prequel to "The Exorcist" is an interesting idea. Though briefly touched upon in "Exorcist II: The Heretic," a movie most would ignore anyway, the full details of Father Merrin's first encounter with the demon all that time ago in African had never been elaborated upon. Prequels were still hot business in 2005, as well, before that cycle turned to the current reboot cycle where in now. Of course now, we all know what a massive mess the production of "Exorcist: The Beginning" was. The original director died before production started, the version shot by Paul Schrader was discarded by Morgan Creek for being too noncommercial and too bloodless, and Renny Harlin was brought in to shoot an entirely different movie. Neither version was critically or financially successful, making the whole ordeal look like a totally wasted endeavor. Of the two, "The Beginning" has always been considered the worst, which is why I've avoided it until now.After witnessing Nazi atrocities in World War II, Father Merrin lost his faith and abandoned the cloth. Instead, he turns to archeology as a career. He is sent to Africa to find further information about a casting of a Sumerian demon. There, he discovers an ancient Christian church, buried underground and left in perfect condition. The church is full of blasphemous desecration. Soon, strange events begin to happen in the village around the church. A boy acts strangely, seemingly under the sway of something. Tension rises between the African natives and the British army, leading to war. Merrin soon realizes the devil is responsible and must regain his faith to fight back the demon.There's many things I dislike about "Exoricst: The Beginning" but I'll start with the nonsensical plot. The movie breaks continuity with "Exoricst II: The Heretic" wildly, which is not surprising. However, that the movie dispenses entirely with established lore is frustrating. Kokumo is not mentioned and Merrin does not perform an exorcism on a little boy. The plot revolving around the abandoned church goes wildly awry. It is revealed that a massacre occurred in this spot years ago and that the Catholic Church believes this to be the spot where Satan fell from heaven. As a result of this, everyone around the church goes violently insane. Eventually, the English soldiers and the native Africans get into a bloody battle together as a result of this, with plenty of suicides. None of this has much to do with the mythology of "The Exorcist." The plot is mostly a collection of unrelated gory sequence, the faithless Father Merrin and the boy he believes to be possessed wandering around the edges of the story."Exorcist: The Beginning" is also an awful horror movie. The movie indulges in all the worst excesses of modern studio horror. The film is packed full of obnoxious jump scares, loud noises or musical stings or sudden appearances screaming at the audience all the time. Morgan Creek reportedly refilmed the movie because they wanted more gore in it. Director Renny Harlin, he of "Die Hard 2" fame, gave them just that. The movie is loaded with sickening violence. A psychic force breaks men's fingers and arms, the bone stabbing through the flesh. A body is found with a huge chunk of meat taken out of the middle. Another dangles from his entrails. The movie is loaded with CGI head shots. I can't even enjoy this stuff from the perspective of a gorehound, partially because of the crappy CGI but mostly because the violence so nihilistic and thoughtless in its use. Speaking of crappy special effects, what about those CGI hyenas? Who thought that was a good idea? In its last half-hour, "Exorcist: The Beginning" remembers that it's a prequel to "The Exorcist." In a cheap plot twist, the character we've been led to believe is possessed is not. Instead, a character that has shown no previous symptoms is revealed to be possessed. Set inside the abandoned church, what follows is a melodramatic battle between Merrin and the demon. The possessed person gains the same sickly skin, scars, and voice as Linda Blair did back in 1973. Using modern special effects, the possessed bends their body at painful angles, screams limp profanity, and slithers around on the wall. Merrin regains his faith spontaneously, his character arc coming to a blunt resolution. Because this movie was made by idiots, Merrin exerting the power of God over the demon is shown literally by waves of "power" blasting and twisting the demon's body.Despite being an otherwise terrible movie, "Exorcist: The Beginning" does have a pretty good cast. One of the few reoccurring faces between both versions is Stellen Skarsgaard as Merrin. The flashbacks to the war, the event that made the priest loose his faith, are melodramatically presented and cut into the present story in inelegant ways. Skarsgaard does his best though, doing professional work with the material he's given. I also like Izabella Scorupco, who has chemistry with Skarsgaard. The conversations between the two actors, and the slow way her history is revealed, are the only times the movie begins to feel like a real film."The Exorcist" was a horror film for adults, struggling with serious and complex issues. "Exorcist: The Beginning" is a horror film for stupid teenagers, full of senseless gore and a thoughtless story. It's so dumb that it actually ends with a sequel hook, Merrin now dressed as a priest and walking off like a superhero. That one of the best horror films of all time is associated with this massive piece of tripe is an insult to every living creature on the planet.

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Maurice Boyd
2004/08/27

I wasn't really expecting that much, but this movie really surprised me. Going into it i was unsure if it was going to stack up to its earlier counterpart, but i was pleasantly surprised. The writer of this movie must have been seriously disturbed as a child. The script is fantastic and the movie all together is flawless(the cgi was a bit spotty, but was forgivable). The conflicts in the movie add even more suspense to this already suspenseful movie. Father Merine has lost his faith in God and anything supernatural and throughout the entire movie is looking for a logical answer for everything that is happening around him. This film also had one of the most disturbing scenes i have ever seen, with a young child being mauled by a pack of hyenas. It was brutal. But this movie is a great compliment to its cult classic sequel. A must see.

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