The Pope's Exorcist

Screen Gems | Release Date: April 14, 2023

5.8	USER SCORE Mixed or average reviews based on 73 Ratings

USER RATING DISTRIBUTION

Positive:

Mixed:

Negative:

Watch Now

Stream On

Expand

Review this movie

VOTE NOW

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Please sign in or create an account before writing a review.

Check box if your review contains spoilers

0 characters (5000 max)

User Reviews

User score By date Most helpful

Rebecca31May 2, 2023

Russell Crowe is back in Rome, but instead of battling gladiators, he’s battling demons. His own and the scary possessive kind. When a mother and her two children move into the super creepy and so totally not haunted Abbey in Spain they veryRussell Crowe is back in Rome, but instead of battling gladiators, he’s battling demons. His own and the scary possessive kind. When a mother and her two children move into the super creepy and so totally not haunted Abbey in Spain they very quickly start to feel an evil presence and it’s not long before her son Henry shows signs of possession. With the doctors baffled and insisting there is nothing physically wrong with the boy, it’s now time to call in a professional and who better to get than the best of the best, the Pope’s Exorcist himself to save the child. Cue Russell Crowe on his little scooter and honestly that image alone might be enough to scare the demon away.

While he admits that many of the cases he deals with are people with mental health issues, in some rare cases, he is faced with unspeakable evil that must be handled delicately before it’s too late. With the help of the local priest he confronts the malevolent force that has taken hold of Henry and begins to uncover a conspiracy that the Vatican tried to keep secret (sounds about right). Turns out when Crowe looks hard enough, quite a few skeletons come tumbling out of the Vatican’s closet.

Right if you’re expecting The Exorcist then throw those hopes right out the window because in terms of standard The Pope’s Exorcist doesn’t even come close. Hell it’s not even as scary as the first two Conjuring movies. In fact it’s not scary at all, seasoned horror movie fans won’t scare easy but The Pope’s Exorcist might be the least scariest horror movie I’ve ever seen. At no point does it create any sense of terror or dread. The possessed child (aside from saying all sorts of lewd comments), with his monster voice and manic grin just made the whole sequence seem very silly. Even the most recent Conjuring movie, which was a mess, featured a good opening scene with a child possession that was a standout piece for the film. It’s got the usual stuff you’d expect, lights flickering, upside down crucifixes, people sent flying across rooms, etc. All the possession stuff that happens in this movie is badly executed, not scary and tries its very best to shock you and fails at every attempt. So why bother seeing it at all then? Well for some mad reason this is one of the most entertaining exorcism movies due to Russell Crowe as Father Gabriele Amorth (yes he’s based on the real life character), I don’t know why it works so well but it does. For all the wrong reasons it’s entertaining and funny. He’s clearly having a lot of fun with the character, he’s showing off his unique Italian accent and brings unexpected humour to what otherwise would have been a snoozefest.

The Pope’s Exorcist is a generic and “seen this done before only better” exorcism movie but is made watchable by Crowe flying around Italy and Spain on his little Vespa, with a case full of tricks ready to exorcise the demons whilst also facing his own. Arguably Crowe’s attempt at the horror genre has gone better this time compared his performance as Dr. Jekyll in The Mummy. Though the bar wasn’t very high. He’s clearly won over some fans and considering it’s financial success don’t be surprised if a new horror franchise is born.

The Pope’s Exorcist is far better than it has any right to be and I’ll recommend it to Russell Crowe fans or those who enjoy goofy horror movies. But if you’re looking for something to scare you, then look elsewhere because The Pope’s Exorcist will not do the job. Evil Dead Rise might be more successful at that.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

All this user's reviews

TAPRApr 18, 2023

Percebi algumas inspirações de "O Exorcista", mas o final foi completamente "A Morte do Demônio". Gostei do filme apesar dele tentar criar um mistério e suspense nada interessante. Destaque pra atuação e maquiagem do garoto possuído.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

All this user's reviews

royalguy07Apr 15, 2023

Russell Crowe is a whole funny little vibe in this, Mainly due to the scooter shots. The tension is ok but the scares are pretty light.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

All this user's reviews

alanpotter17Aug 14, 2023

Eu esperava que fosse uma bomba maior, tanto que relutei em assistir em tela grande e esperei chegar no streaming. Tudo bem que me decepcionou não ter cenas mais claustrofóbicas do exorcista no quarto com a criança, mas ao amenos o enredoEu esperava que fosse uma bomba maior, tanto que relutei em assistir em tela grande e esperei chegar no streaming. Tudo bem que me decepcionou não ter cenas mais claustrofóbicas do exorcista no quarto com a criança, mas ao amenos o enredo apresentando outras cenas com uma história que faz sentido e é ao mesmo tempo simples, fez com que essa falta nem fosse tão sentida.
Russel Crowe também está muito bem, de Gladiador a exorcista ele luta com demônios de forma imorrível mesmo. Então, passando o pano para o roteiro que exagera em algumas cenas, especialmente quando o demônio resolve dar o ar da graça para além do espaço físico do possuído, o filme entrega uma atmosfera imersiva, é capaz de você cerrar os olhos tal qual o Crowe o faça quando tenta enxergar no poço algum vestígio do passado, ou vai torcendo para que a oração em latim funcione, tamanho o envolvimento.
Acredito que aqui ajudou também a escalação do elenco, parece que todos os personagens estão bem no papel, mesmo que um ou outro personagem irritante (a filha mais velha) destoe do todo.
No geral, o filme consegue se destacar em meio a tanta banalidade por apresentar um discurso que é respeitoso à crença cristã mas que não se furta em tecer certos comentários críticos. Aliás, o roteiro poderia explorar melhor o passado da igreja, mas entendo a adequada decisão, seria pesar demais para um filme que se propôs a dar sustos em sua plateia. Eu particularmente não achei tão amedrontador assim, e de fato são sustos genéricos. Mas como dito, a ambientação é bem construída, o que torna mais fácil evocar os sentimentos de se importar pelos personagens.
Achei o clímax exagerado e comum, com um show pirotécnico e dos efeitos especiais, mas tenho a impressão que entregam o suficiente para o público médio.
De certa forma, é um filme eficiente, com um personagem que tenta ser popular. Nesse sentido, me lembrou muito a aspiração de "A múmia", com um herói desbravando segredos obscuros, mas no lugar da aventura com comédia, entraria o terror com drama religioso. Falta-lhe robustez para sustentar uma continuação, mas o roteiro deu a entender exatamente isso, como se o projeto fosse rodado para ser uma franquia.
Assim, veja que elementos externos à história vão ressonando no roteiro visto, e não sei qual o futuro desse filme, mas por divertir e ter algo ainda a explorar (o passado da Igreja), até que não soa ruim se tiver continuação. Sem pretensão, apenas pelo divertimento, ou nesse caso, pelos sustos, sejam eles feitos com elementos exagerados ou sustos reais de uma igreja que, por certo tempo, era porta voz da verdade no mundo ocidental.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

All this user's reviews

Mauro_LanariMay 14, 2023

(Mauro Lanari)
If Screen Gems purchased the rights to Gabriele Amorth's books in October 2020, Avery does not know what to do with it and finally provides an almost 60-year-old Crowe with permission for a disengaged role as a gascon, a(Mauro Lanari)
If Screen Gems purchased the rights to Gabriele Amorth's books in October 2020, Avery does not know what to do with it and finally provides an almost 60-year-old Crowe with permission for a disengaged role as a gascon, a braggart, a sly: the Bruce Willis of "Die Hard". Unexpected fun as much as guaranteed, just do not fixate with the idea that you are watching a horror film or a sequel to the progenitor signed by Friedkin [which anyway, when I saw it at the cinema with one of my brothers, made us laugh out loud: everyone has the fears he deserves]. Furthermore, the caricaturity that pervades the movie was perhaps the price to pay to touch on serious topics: the opening scene that should be set in Tropea in '87 while instead represents a pre-war Italy serves to justify a family with a pig, in turn necessary to stage the episode that recurs in the Synoptics (Mark 5:9-13; Luke 8:30-33; Matthew 8:28-32). The distance between the mysticism of pope Wojtyla and the theological rationality of Cardinal Ratzinger is history. The inability to reconcile demonology and soteriology, divine predeterminism and free will (was the Inquisition a diabolical or human work?) still afflicts Vatican doctrine. A real flaw I found? I know of no exorcism that does not begin by invoking the protection of the archangel Michael. After that one should have to interpret such phenomena from completely different points of view, but this is another "film".… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

All this user's reviews

AmateurfilmVWRAug 22, 2023

Hokie but entertaining. Russell Crowe is great and hella likable as the main protagonist. I also throughly enjoyed alot of the body horror and use of practical effects during the more intense scenes. Its not perfect but its certainlyHokie but entertaining. Russell Crowe is great and hella likable as the main protagonist. I also throughly enjoyed alot of the body horror and use of practical effects during the more intense scenes. Its not perfect but its certainly entertaining as hell… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

All this user's reviews