Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist
Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: May 20, 2005 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
55
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 16 Critic Reviews
Positive:
6
Mixed:
8
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
The material is right up Schrader's alley, and while his vision of the first "Exorcist" chapter isn't a masterpiece, it's far superior to the Renny Harlin prequel to "The Exorcist" released last year. Read full review
80
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
It may not have been what the producers had in mind, but they asked for a Paul Schrader movie, and that's exactly what he delivered. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Instead of cheap thrills, Schrader gives us a frightening vision of a good priest who fears goodness may not be enough. Read full review
70
L.A. WeeklyScott Foundas
The strengths of Dominion, however, have been little diminished by its long shelf life and, in fact, may have grown stronger with age. Read full review
70
SlateDavid Edelstein
It's a good, thoughtful horror picture--and thiiis close to being a very good one. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
Not bad. It actually might have been considered pretty good had it been made 30 years ago, when people might have cared about the backstory of Father Merrin. Read full review
60
VarietyLeslie Felperin
Result is hardly a diabolical failure, if not quite a heavenly masterpiece. Schrader's intelligent, quietly subversive pic emphasizes spiritual agony over horror ecstasy, while paying occasional lip-service to the need for scares. Read full review
50
Village VoiceMichael Atkinson
The film will come to share the video store shelf with Harlin's infinitely stupider rendition soon enough, but it's a shame they couldn't have been released theatrically head-to-head -- a death match-cum-clinical trial that might've supplied some objective stats on how much condescension the American moviegoer actually enjoys. Read full review
50
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
Schrader, in Auto Focus, displayed a devious sense of sin, but in Dominion the Calvinist schoolboy in him insists on trumping sin with guilt. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesKevin Crust
Instantly forgettable. Read full review
50
New York PostKyle Smith
Maybe nothing here is supposed to be as scary as in the 1973 movie because this is merely the opening act. That's the problem with prequels, isn't it? It's like being asked to pay full price just to watch batting practice. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterMichael Rechtshaffen
Awfully dull, with scant evidence of the sort of things that make horror movies attractive -- like mounting suspense and spine-tingling creepiness and, oh yeah, the element of horror. Read full review
40
The New York TimesStephen Holden
There's no escaping that "Dominion" is finally an act of commercial scavenging. You may retrieve the eggshells, coffee grounds and banana peels from your trash and assemble them into a cute, novelty gift basket. But if you bend down and take a whiff, your nose is still met with the scent of garbage. Read full review
40
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
The verdict: More thoughtful than Harlin's version, but hardly the invigorating mix of shocks and metaphysical horror needed to revitalize the Exorcist franchise. Read full review
30
Dallas ObserverRobert Wilonsky
It's chatty when it wants to pretend it's deep and spiritual, messy when it's striving for chaotic and thrilling, and boring when it has no other options left. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChroniclePeter Hartlaub
Devoid of thrills, and with nothing even vaguely frightening to distract moviegoers, it becomes clear that the story wasn't worth telling in the first place. Read full review
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