Rated
PG-13 (Horror Violence, Terror and Brief Language)
Running
Time: 1 Hour & 28 Minutes
Cast-
Ashley
Bell-Nell Sweetzer
Julia
Garner-Gwen
Spencer
Treat Clark-Chris
Muse
Watson-Frank Merle
Tarra
Riggs-Cecile
David
Jensen-Calder
E.
Roger Mitchell-Jeffrey
Erica
Michelle-Daphne
Sharice
Angelle Williams-Mo
Louis
Herthum-Louis Sweetzer
Directed
by Ed Gass-Donnelly
 |
Ashley Bell reprises her role as Nell Sweetzer in "The Last Exorcism Part II."
|
Note: At AMC Loews 34th Street 14.
Have
you ever noticed how every film dealing with demonic possession has always centered
on a female being the possessed? Off the top of my head, the only one to
involve a male is 2011's "The Rite" starring Anthony Hopkins. Of
course, you can't talk about such films without at least mentioning "The
Exorcist" and despite being released almost forty years ago, William
Friedkin's horror classic continues to cast a large shadow over the exorcism
subgenre. No other film has yet come close to matching it but that hasn't
stopped Hollywood from trying. Three years ago, Lionsgate released "The
Last Exorcism" and while it was obviously an attempt to cash-in on the
success of "Paranormal Activity," the film managed to receive
surprisingly positive reviews (73% on Rotten Tomatoes). Shot as a mockumentary
by German director Daniel Stamm, the film's story focused on a disillusioned
reverend who wants to expose exorcism as a fraud. With a small film crew in
tow, the reverend drives out to a remote farm in Louisiana to perform his last
'exorcism' on a young girl but instead finds out that she is truly possessed. Although
bereft of any actual scares, what put "The Last Exorcism" above the
usual cookie-cutter fare was its focus on the characters, particularly Patrick
Fabian's Cotton Marcus. His charismatic performance allowed you to remain
invested even when the ending completely goes off the rails. Since the film
made almost forty times its $1.8 million production budget ($67.7 million
worldwide), a sequel was green-lit even though nobody asked for one.
Unfortunately, "The Last Exorcism Part II" jettisons everything that
made the original a success. Ashley Bell remains the sole bright spot in a film
that bores more than it thrills…and don't even get me started on what's wrong
with the title!
Picking up immediately after the events of the first film, a
couple wakes up to find a feral Nell Sweetzer (Ashley Bell) inhabiting their
kitchen. Catatonic and with barely any memory of what happened in Ivanwood, she
is soon placed into the care of Frank Merle (Muse Watson), who runs a halfway
house for troubled teenage girls in New Orleans. Convinced that her ordeal was
nothing more than a delusion brought about by cult abuse, Nell resolves to put
her past behind her and slowly begins to build a new life for herself. She makes
significant progress over the next several months, quickly acclimating to the
outside world that was previously unknown to her. There's even a potential
boyfriend, Chris (Spencer Treat Clark), whom she meets at her new job as a
hotel housekeeper. However, Nell's newfound bliss is short-lived as she starts having
nightmares and waking hallucinations of her dead father, Louis (Louis Herthum).
The demon Abalam has returned to haunt her and this time, it won't let her go
that easily.
The original "Last Exorcism" didn't exactly reinvent the
wheel when it came to found-footage films but its story was told from a unique
point-of-view and had characters that were grounded in reality. For some
inexplicable reason, the sequel abandons this in favor of a more conventional
approach. That wouldn't be so bad if it actually had a story to tell. "The
Last Exorcism Part II" is very much a tacked-on follow-up as the film goes
nowhere for much of the first hour, recycling the same jump-scares and lame
fake-outs that plague the horror genre today, especially the PG-13 ones. It's
just so bland to the point where I almost dozed off. Even worse is that the
characters from the original are swept under the rug as if they've never
existed. Sure, their footage shows up on YouTube but why does it contain all
the dramatic bits? As this is an 'exorcism' film, one is awkwardly shoehorned
in where a voodoo priestess named Cecile (Tarra Riggs) just seemingly pops out
of nowhere and starts speaking of prophecies and the 'end of days.' Not surprisingly,
the film ends on a cliffhanger but it does leave Nell at an interesting place.
It'll likely invite mixed reactions yet I feel it was an improvement compared
to how the first one ended. What's really disappointing is that "Part
II" had the potential to be a decent horror film. Ed Gass-Donnelly's
direction is competent, the drama isn't half-bad and the script from newcomer
Damien Chazelle has a few good ideas. Unfortunately, all this is undone by the
film's failure to follow its own logic. The demon Abalam is revealed to be 'in
love' with Nell but can only be free if she only gives herself to him by
choice. Considering that Abalam is pleasuring her while she's asleep, consent
seems to be the least of his worries. It's supposed to represent Nell's sexual
awakening but none of it makes any sense the more you try to connect the dots.
This is just further proof that "The Last Exorcism Part II" has no
reason existing in the first place and was only made to cash-in on the first
film.
The one thing I can praise without reservation is Ashley Bell's performance.
Bringing a sense of vulnerability and innocent naiveté to her character, Bell
truly deserves a much better film to showcase her talents. Also returning from
the first film is Louis Herthum as her father but his inclusion is largely
perfunctory. The rest of the supporting cast includes Julia Garner (from "
Martha Marcy May Marlene"), Spencer Treat Clark and Muse Watson. They're
all fine in their roles yet the story gives them little to do. Faring even
worse are the exorcists as Tarra Riggs, David Jensen, and E. Roger Mitchell are
squandered in the worst way possible.
Released on March 1, 2013, "The Last
Exorcism Part II" was not screened for critics in advance, so its 13%
rating on Rotten Tomatoes should come as no surprise. It grossed only $8
million over opening weekend, a fraction of the original but the film should
still turn a small profit for CBS Films since this is a micro-budget production
(around $5 million). During an afternoon showing, the theater sat virtually
empty. Competent direction aside, "The Last Exorcism Part II" is
ultimately a lumbering bore even at 88 minutes and not only does the film waste
Ashley Bell's talents but it's also an unnecessary sequel that's neither needed
not wanted. Let's hope that this is truly the "Last Exorcism" because
I have zero interest in seeing a third one, no matter how funny the titles may
be.
Final
Rating: 2 out of 5
"He's still out there…the demon…Abalam."
Posts
