by Shane Conto, Staff Writer
Are you ready for yet another exorcism movie? After the release of The Exorcist, Hollywood’s unhealthy love affair with the exorcism subgenre began. There is only so much that you can do with this specific setup. A child or woman (it’s always one of the two) is possessed by the devil, a demon, or some other malevolent entity, and a priest who probably has some baggage must step up and go toe-to-toe in a spiritual battle with said entity. No matter how many of these films come out, we always get more. But the world of film is finally bringing the most famous, well-documented, and early exorcisms to the big screen.
Writer/director of The Ritual,David Midell, tackles this classic structure with a fresh take, filming it with a documentary style. Cinematographer Adam Biddle leverages this handheld approach to get the audience up close and personal with the events going on, which captures the subtlety in some of the performances. With the documentary style camera work, the visual experience is quite muted and somber. There are so many shades of muted gray colors, giving this film such an unremarkable feel.
Though it does feature some quality reaction shots as well, which build some tension and suspense, unfortunately, there just aren’t enough of those in The Ritual to make it stand out. So many other exorcism films capture the horror of the situation, but this one lacks bite. It is a weighty and dark film that goes for dread, but is still lacking.
The screenplay from Midell and Enrico Natale doesn’t offer anything new either. Even though this is a true story that has influenced most of the famous exorcism films out there, it just does not feel fresh or interesting in 2025. It’s filled with plenty of tropes. Dan Stevens’ Father Steiger is the protagonist who has trauma from his brother’s death, and a bit of a flirty dynamic with Ashley Greene’s Sister Rose. Outside of that, he does not have much characterization at all. Al Pacino’s Father Theophilus Riesinger is just that old school type of priest who is all faith and no brakes. Not much to him either. Even when it comes to the manifestations of the possession, most of what happens has played out on screen before. There are a few gnarly moments set up in the film, and they do deliver at least, but no characters really stand out at all. A few fleeting ideas, like a dark cloaked entity taunting Father Riesinger, pop up, but they are not memorable enough to make this film noteworthy.
As for the cast which brings the unremarkable characters to life, Stevens is such a great actor, and he deserves more interesting roles than this. He only has fleeting moments of charm and a few big emotional moments, which he obviously nails. The performance is solid at least. Meanwhile, Pacino is much more subdued than most of his performances in the last 30 years. His accent just sounds like the same generic one he has done recently when playing foreign characters. When he starts yelling at the possessive entity, that is the only real glimpse of the Pacino we know.
Greene is a fine member of the cast, and Abigail Cowen dives headlong into that “I’m possessed” performance. Patrick Fabian and Patricia Heaton are in supporting roles that give them little to work with, but they are at least welcomed additions to the cast.
The Ritual is definitely not the exorcism film that will finally break the mold. Even with the weight of being directly based on the most famous American exorcism of all time, this film manages to be much too familiar and uninspired. It is just more of the same.
Rating: Didn’t Like It
The Ritual is currently playing in theaters
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