HDC Movie of the Week #5 - The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005)

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A thought-provoking film in which horror actually takes a side seat, yet has enough of it to unsettle general viewers and make horror fans squirm. Jennifer Carpenter is excellent as the possessed titular lady, while the strong supporting cast rally around a superb Laura Linney.

I thought it was a well-made film, worthy of a recommendation. What do you say?

[hammerfan]

I would have to watch it again before offering an opinion. I know I've seen it, but honestly can't remember a damn thing about it!

[Sculpt]

Watched it once when it first came out, and was impressed by the depth and unique elements of the story. I wasn't expecting much. Most "exorcism" films since The Exorcist seemed to be rip-offs trying to boil down the horror elements into candybar. Instead, Emily Rose is it's own story; very well acted and made.

It's best to approach the film as a stand alone film, without any preconceptions or expectations to The Exorcist. That's probably a difficult task, but a rewarding mindset to be in before seeing the film (or any film, I suppose).

[roshiq]

Great movie, loved it too.

[The Villain]

Haven't seen it. I'll watch it and get back to you. By the way I'm really glad you're still doing this and the debate thread V.

[Sculpt]

Haven't seen it. I'll watch it and get back to you. By the way I'm really glad you're still doing this and the debate thread V.
Look forward to getting your (and others) opinion, Villain.

[The Villain]

I really liked this. The scary parts were done really well. They did a great job of building up a scary atmosphere and the exorcism scenes weren't forced or boring. Jennifer Carpenter did a great job. Besides the horror parts of the movie, i also really enjoyed the courtroom drama aspects of it and i thought the religion vs. science aspect of the film was also done really well and everything in the movie was displayed in a way were it could be either or. Both sides of the debate were done without either sounded ignorant or insulting.

Ultimately i found it to be a creepy, thought provoking, entertaining exorcism movie that is able to not just be a lame rip-off of The Exorcist like so many others. Exorcism movies all tend to end up the same but this one is able to stand on it's own. I definitely recommend this one.

[Giganticface]

The first time I saw it I was disappointed. I was really looking forward to it, and was hoping for more horror and less TV courtroom drama.

The second time I knew what to expect, but still thought some the courtroom stuff was too dramatic, a bit TV-ish.

I watched it for a third time just recently and actually liked it a lot. The scary parts are actually pretty scary, and you really feel for Jennifer Carpenter's character. And the courtroom stuff is fairly well done. Definitely a step above TV drama, and you really gotta hate that guy with the moustache. If you think of it as a Crichton-style courtroom movie with some horror elements, I think it plays much better.

[Fearonsarms]

I really enjoyed this I thought the build up and pacing of the horror elements were done really well. I agree with people saying this stands above a lot of Exorcism type movies. It's a solid, thought provoking film and I recommend it to anyone.