THE LAST EXORCISM

The Last Exorcism

Daniel Stamm's THE LAST EXORCISM is the latest entry into what I call the "Dramamine Squad", a series of films shot in a faux-documentary, shaky cam fashion designed to create the illusion of spontaneous action and unscripted reality. When done correctly, this style of film can be incredibly effective, breathing new life into what would otherwise be standard genre entries. Films like CLOVERFIELD and [REC] really don't break new ground but their presentation makes them feel fresh and more immediate. The style doesn't just inform the on-screen action, it enhances it.


With THE LAST EXORCIST, the demon possession flick enters the world of the faux-documentary. It's largely a successful fusion, I will admit. It features some of the best acting I've seen in a horror film in recent years and manages to invoke some genuine chills through it's running time. The presentation fits the material incredibly well - without it, it would have been just another THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE - and it stands as a great example of how a simply stylistic choice can make standard material shine. But, for all that praise, the film ultimately fails. And it fails for a very unexpected reason. More on that in a second. First, a brief synopsis.


The Last Exorcism

Cotton Marcus is a preacher on the outs with his faith. Preaching has been a family business for him his entire life but a crisis of faith, or rather a crisis of conscience, has led him out of the flock. After reading a newspaper account of how a young child was killed during an exorcism, Cotton decides to debunk the whole business of expelling demons in hopes that people will wake up and see these possessions for what they really are, mental illnesses that need psychiatric, not religious, treatment. With a camera crew in tow, he makes his way to the isolated home of Louis Sweetzer and his family. Louis lives alone with his two children, Nell and Caleb. Louis has been beset my rather strange phenomenon. His cattle are being systematically killed, there have been strange occurrences in the home, and, most troubling of all, Nell has been experiencing bouts of sudden, frequent psychosis. All of these things point to one thing for Louis. His daughter is possessed and needs an exorcism.


Noticing the pattern similarities between Nell's behavior and the behavior of other people Cotton has "exorcised", Cotton accepts. He loads up a few props - speakers that play demonic noises, think strings that rattle picture frames, a crucifix that produces a symbolic puff of smoke - and begins. Once the routine is completed, Cotton pronounces her cured and the crew make their way to a motel for the night. They are awoken in the middle of the night. Nell has somehow found them. They take the nearly catatonic girl to the local hospital. Louis arrives at the hospital and immediately takes his daughter home. Cotton decides to pay a visit to a local priest in order to find some support for his desire to talk to Louis about getting his daughter some psychiatric help. The priest agrees and Cotton and company make their way back to the Sweetzer home, only to find things much worse than when they left.


The Last Exorcism

That pretty much encompasses the first half of the film and it's this first half that is the strongest. Stamm's carefully edited exorcism sequence is the highlight of the film. We see how the illusions are being created, through cut-aways and inserts, as the scene progresses. These tricks are usually the highlights of the demon possession flicks and Stamm peels back the veil of deception, effectively deconstructing the demon possession flick as the scene goes along. This level of self-awareness is one of the best aspects of the film's screenplay. Even the final confrontation with Nell is handled in an interesting way. What would be a cliched event in any film about a young girl possessed by the devil, the profane sexual dialogue, is used in a clever way. The bit of dialogue about oral sex doesn't shock Cotton, it provides him with the final clue as to the nature of her possession.


The kind of possession this film offers is a bit different than what we are used to seeing. Having effectively rendered the standard shocks and awes of the demon possession film moot, Stamm presents Nell's affliction as merely one of uncontrolled aggression and violence. This makes for a much more interesting - though less spectacular - series of showdowns as the film comes to a close and helps keep that feeling of reality that Stamm and company have worked so hard to produce intact. So while fans of the more splattery aspects of these kinds of films might be disappointed that no vomit gets spewed or beds get levitated, the low key, no fuss possession aspects on display here makes the final confrontation feel much more lethal and frightening. It also makes much more sense when we're presented with the final explanation of Nell's affliction.


Wait... did I say "final"?


And that, dear reader, brings me to the reason why THE LAST EXORCIST falls from the ranks of great horror films and into the ranks of the poor.


The Last Exorcism

The film has two endings, a false ending and a surprise ending. Though the false ending is a bit of a groaner, it brings the film to a close in a serviceable fashion. Had the film ended there, with Cotton and the film crew driving home, THE LAST EXORCIST would have still been a good film, though the revelation would have left you a bit wanting. But Stamm doesn't stop there. He has them return to the house after a brief stop at a diner and it's here, folks, that Stamm steps so completely off the deep end that everything you have just witnessed - and probably enjoyed - is ruined.


I won't say what the surprise at the end is but I will say that nothing can quite prepare you for the sudden shift in tone and the ridiculous handling of the final scene. I kept thinking to myself as it played out "why would he do this?" It feels like someone said to him "if you end the film THIS way, we will give you more money" and Stamm merely shrugged his shoulders, sold his soul, and went along with it. It simply makes no sense. It doesn't need to be there and it brings absolutely nothing more to the film. What it is is a major sell-out and a total cop-out.


And it drops this film from a "recommended" to a "not recommended".