Demons are once again haunting the cinema, waiting to be exorcised by brave priests. Even if the based on true events "The Rite - Das Ritual" is not really a worthy successor to the classic "The Exorcist", the mysterious thriller by Mikael Håfström ("Room 1408") provides thanks to good actors and an atmospheric production here and there for a little goosebumps.
Just before completing his seminary studies, young Michael Kovak (Colin O`Donoghe) begins to have doubts about his faith, so he decides to drop out. However, his teacher (Toby Jones) convinces him to go to Rome for some time to participate in exorcist training at the Vatican. If he still wants to quit after that, his decision would be accepted. Reluctantly, Michael agrees and flies to Rome. There he meets the rather unorthodox Father Lucas (Anthony Hopkins), who immediately takes him to see some allegedly possessed people, whom the aging clergyman is trying to rid of their demons. At first, all that Michael comes to see can be rationally explained. But the case of a young pregnant girl leads the skeptic into some particularly dark depths of his own faith.
"The Rite - The Ritual" is a mix of religious thriller and mystery horror. The thriller elements work quite well thanks to the atmospheric camerawork and ominous soundtrack. The horror and mystery elements, on the other hand, sometimes seem a bit thick and almost unintentionally comical - especially when evil appears in the form of a red-eyed donkey. That's not to say, however, that Håfström isn't able to provide a decent goosebump in many a moment. A few scenes are quite effective in this regard. But unlike "The Exorcist", to which this film must inevitably be compared, Håfström's film lacks the all-dominating menacing atmosphere that just can't be established by effective shock moments alone.
The actors can convince throughout. Anthony Hopkins in particular plays his role with a mixture of necessary seriousness and tongue-in-cheek exaggeration that once again makes his performance a real pleasure. But also Irish newcomer Colin O`Donoghe ("The Tudors") does a very convincing job as the doubting seminarian. The good acting performances are embedded in very atmospheric locations in Rome and Budapest. And it is this combination that then makes "The Rite - Das Ritual" quite an effective thriller overall, despite its weak points.
How much truth there may be to this story now and how much is just the imagination of Matt Baglio, the author of the book, and Michael Petroni ("The Chronicles of Narnia 3"), the screenwriter, on the other hand plays a rather minor role. Surely, the remark that the movie is based on true events is supposed to give the viewer a particularly intense goosebumps. But this doesn't really work, because the fantastic elements of the movie don't really work and just seem to be overdone. So the bottom line is that "The Rite - Das Ritual" is a decent thriller with good actors, which can convince as an exorcism horror but only limited. All in all but still just worth seeing!
Ein Artikel von Frankfurt-Tipp
