LT Features

Hopefully Not the Last Exorcism First let me explain my title – as I mentioned yesterday, I was lucky enough to see an advance screening of The Last Exorcism - jealous? - and I sincerely hope that this is not the last we see of this story.  If I had a corporate card (hint, hint boss) then I would order an official L.T. approval stamp and pound it all over the film’s poster that we have hanging in our office.  The movie had the perfect amount of terror, suspense and surprise – basically it is, in my humble yet official opinion, what horror movies today should be like.  Obviously Daniel Stamm (the remarkable Director) and Eli Roth (the famous multi-talented Producer) were in the same boat as me and had had enough with the student-film-esque gratuitous blood and guts that have been flooding the cinemas recently and decided to take a more mature approach.  Why bother making a movie about ghosts and goblins when you can tackle something much more real and thus much more terrifying? I attended the panel discussion of the movie while at Comic-Con and one film fact sticks out in my memory – no special effects were used.  The body twisting and neck cracking was all done naturally which only further heightens the sense of fear because it makes everything possible.  Yes, she could be possessed, but it is also absolutely probable that she is faking it.  I walked out of the theatre feeling proud of myself for withstanding my urge to cover my eyes during the fleeting but nonetheless image-burning-into-your-brain moments and was surprised by the air of composure I had been able to maintain.  Perhaps fueled by the fact that I was sitting in between two co-workers, (and heaven forbid I let the real, slightly un-professional L.T slip out), I watched in amazement as my eyes darted around the screen waiting for the next scare to jump out at me.  Now that 24 hours have passed (and it isn’t dark outside) I can look back on the film and really reflect on all of the different layers that were presented.  You may think that The Last Exorcism is going to be reminiscent of its predecessor; the creepy crucifix-loving, head-spinning, barfing little girl in The Exorcist, but it’s not.  Originally titled Cotton after the film’s lead Reverend Cotton Marcus, the movie is much more about religion and belief than about exorcising anyone.  Nell, the girl who appears to be possessed, obviously needs to be saved but the question is from who - a demon, her father, her brother, her Pastor… herself?  Forget my two cents, here is the whole dollar – I believe the best part of the film is that every person who sees it will walk away with a different interpretation of it’s meaning.  The ultimate message and conclusion can be twisted to fit any belief system or personal experience.  Being raised Catholic and having lived in Louisiana (where the film is set) I had an extremely different take on the film than some of my EPIX peers.  But even the atheist New Yorkers amongst us walked away questioning the film and – dare I say – themselves! I’m going to stop myself now because I don’t want to spoil it for you, but trust me when I say it shouldn’t be missed.  Whenever someone says “trust me” I immediately disregard whatever it is they just said.  So… don’t do that!  Believe me! I kind of want to thank God for this movie but now, just like Cotton, I’m starting to think I should be thanking someone else… Maybe I’ll start with Daniel and Eli.   Thanks, boys!  Keep ‘em coming. All this talk and I still haven’t even mentioned the press interviews we had this morning with Daniel and Eli!  They even signed an EPIX hat which I am going to have a contest and give away - Wahooey!  Stay tuned for my next blog, which will be all about free prizes and less about my endless praise.  L.T.

Hopefully Not the Last Exorcism

First let me explain my title – as I mentioned yesterday, I was lucky enough to see an advance screening of The Last Exorcism - jealous? - and I sincerely hope that this is not the last we see of this story.  If I had a corporate card (hint, hint boss) then I would order an official L.T. approval stamp and pound it all over the film’s poster that we have hanging in our office.  The movie had the perfect amount of terror, suspense and surprise – basically it is, in my humble yet official opinion, what horror movies today should be like.  Obviously Daniel Stamm (the remarkable Director) and Eli Roth (the famous multi-talented Producer) were in the same boat as me and had had enough with the student-film-esque gratuitous blood and guts that have been flooding the cinemas recently and decided to take a more mature approach.  Why bother making a movie about ghosts and goblins when you can tackle something much more real and thus much more terrifying?

I attended the panel discussion of the movie while at Comic-Con and one film fact sticks out in my memory – no special effects were used.  The body twisting and neck cracking was all done naturally which only further heightens the sense of fear because it makes everything possible.  Yes, she could be possessed, but it is also absolutely probable that she is faking it.  I walked out of the theatre feeling proud of myself for withstanding my urge to cover my eyes during the fleeting but nonetheless image-burning-into-your-brain moments and was surprised by the air of composure I had been able to maintain.  Perhaps fueled by the fact that I was sitting in between two co-workers, (and heaven forbid I let the real, slightly un-professional L.T slip out), I watched in amazement as my eyes darted around the screen waiting for the next scare to jump out at me. 

Now that 24 hours have passed (and it isn’t dark outside) I can look back on the film and really reflect on all of the different layers that were presented.  You may think that The Last Exorcism is going to be reminiscent of its predecessor; the creepy crucifix-loving, head-spinning, barfing little girl in The Exorcist, but it’s not.  Originally titled Cotton after the film’s lead Reverend Cotton Marcus, the movie is much more about religion and belief than about exorcising anyone.  Nell, the girl who appears to be possessed, obviously needs to be saved but the question is from who - a demon, her father, her brother, her Pastor… herself? 

Forget my two cents, here is the whole dollar – I believe the best part of the film is that every person who sees it will walk away with a different interpretation of it’s meaning.  The ultimate message and conclusion can be twisted to fit any belief system or personal experience.  Being raised Catholic and having lived in Louisiana (where the film is set) I had an extremely different take on the film than some of my EPIX peers.  But even the atheist New Yorkers amongst us walked away questioning the film and – dare I say – themselves!

I’m going to stop myself now because I don’t want to spoil it for you, but trust me when I say it shouldn’t be missed.  Whenever someone says “trust me” I immediately disregard whatever it is they just said.  So… don’t do that!  Believe me! I kind of want to thank God for this movie but now, just like Cotton, I’m starting to think I should be thanking someone else… Maybe I’ll start with Daniel and Eli.   Thanks, boys!  Keep ‘em coming.

All this talk and I still haven’t even mentioned the press interviews we had this morning with Daniel and Eli!  They even signed an EPIX hat which I am going to have a contest and give away - Wahooey!  Stay tuned for my next blog, which will be all about free prizes and less about my endless praise. 

L.T.


Notes