‘The Ritual’ Movie Review: Not Even Pacino Can Enliven This Generic Bore
Photo from XYZ Films
From Jeremy Kibler
It’s just by nature that a lot of possession/exorcism movies following 1973’s The Exorcist simply pale in comparison. Tired, drab, and derivative, The Ritual might be the most misbegotten of the lot, committing the cardinal sin of any horror movie, let alone any movie: it’s boring!
It wants to be the first and last movie on the subject, purporting to be “based on true events” representing “the most thoroughly documented case of demonic possession in American history.” A title card can only do so much convincing because The Ritual fails to give viewers anything worthwhile, not even the name value of Al Pacino, Dan Stevens, Ashley Greene, and Patricia Heaton when none of them are done any favors.
Anyway, the supposed truth is that Iowa woman Emma Schmidt (Abigail Cowen) was possessed by a demon in 1928, and an exorcism needed to be performed. She is brought to the parish of Father Joseph Steiger (Dan Stevens), who is skeptical that Emma needs anything more than psychological treatment. Enter elderly Father Theophilus Riesinger (Al Pacino), who has known Emma since she was a child and insists that he be the one to lead the “solemn sacrament.” In carrying out the deed, Father Riesinger will still need the assistance of Joseph, as well as Sister Rose (Ashley Greene) and Mother Superior (Patricia Heaton). Lots of bone-breaking, thrashing, self-inflicted wounds, and profane words surely ensue, and you’ve seen all of it before.
Writer-director David Midell (The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain) and co-writer Enrico Natale want to legitimize this case, but they end up throwing out ambiguity for the standard horror stuff. Every would-be creepy moment is overly punctuated with a loud musical stinger in case we would ever miss it. What’s more, Midell employs a restless, handheld shooting style, possibly to bring a little verisimilitude. What the shaky camerawork does instead is distract and annoy. Initially, this would seem to be a found-footage film or perhaps a mockumentary, but it’s neither, and the aesthetic doesn’t make any of it feel any more real or any less rote.
Performances are effortful but hardly memorable, including Abigail Cowen, who isn’t given much of a character as Emma. Al Pacino isn’t even terrible enough to make this worth watching as campy fun, but he is giving one of his sleepier performances.
The biggest takeaway with The Ritual isn’t that it provokes questions about the intersection between spirituality and psychiatric care, or that the Catholic Church is represented through a critical lens. No, it makes one question what drew this solid cast to this material besides a nice paycheck.
Even the title is a misnomer, as there are multiple rituals—yes, plural—performed to exorcise Emma. Tension should be rising, but it all just becomes tedious after a while. If someone wants to make a compelling new take on an old tale, it can be done (i.e. The Exorcism of Emily Rose), but The Ritual is a dull, generic regurgitation.
Rating: 1/5
The Ritual is currently in theaters.
