The Rite... Was 'Right' On!

I'm a horror fanatic. You can probably tell by how much I love Halloween. Nevertheless, a new movie sparked my interest recently. To say the least, I wasn't really sure what The Rite was about. I saw a glimpse of the previews which showed Anthony Hopkins as a preist and was set in Rome. That enough was all it took for me to head over to the theater. And to be specifically clear, this movie wasn't a horror, but it very well could be- it just depends on the person.

When the movie started, it was a little creepy. A young boy whose father was a mortician? Not what I was expecting... but that led to the boy entering the priesthood as an adult. The man was quite a skeptic for a priest (or potential priest) and caught the eyes of his superiors. They sent him to the vatican as a "last chance" mission to test his faith, more or less. He was to attend classes on exorcisms. 

Quickly, the vatican realized his skepticisms and decided to send him to a local "legend" in the exorcism professions, Father Lucas. Lucas, played by Hopkins, is a normal- quite humorous priest who, what seemed like a daily basis, performed exorcists on local civilians.

From then on, the young skeptic, Kovak, is tested in his faith and ultimately faces the horrific demon who has been possessing the locals, only to find out that it's ultimate target is...?

Sir Anthony Hopkins as Father Lucas

To shortly review the movie: It starts off very interesting, but definitely fast pasted. It maybe takes Lucas 15 minutes of the movie to get to The Vatican. Twenty minutes before you witness the first exorcist. Even though this is not what I was expecting the movie to be about, although now when I fully watch the previews it specifically portrays exorcisms, it was Excellent. I've seen them all- The Exorcist, The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Possession, The Last Exorcist, to name a few, and I haven't been impressed with either of them. None of the movies have seemed realistic, but this one did. There was no head spinning- all the way, that is. No impossible bodily positions. It was basic- but visually terrifying. 

I wouldn't classify this as a Horror movie, but as a Thriller. So if you are up for a good Thriller than definitely go see The Rite. If seeing a movie about exorcisms that is based on true events scares the hell out of you, then this movie will scare the hell out of you. The movie is based on true facts, and does say so in the beginning and end of the film. Also, both of the priests in the movie are based on real people and are still living today. Go check them out- and the movie too!