‘The Rite’ isn’t that bad. The film by ‘Room 1408’ director Mikael Hafstrom is adequately filmed, offers a dark atmosphere that matches the theme and has a few good actors. However, for anyone who’s ever seen an exorcism horror or two, it’s terribly boring. Because the story – even though it is supposedly based on true events – is from the start neither convincing nor compelling, but completely predictable and full of familiar situations and character types.
“The Rite – Das Ritual” can be seen today, March 6, 2024 at 10:10 PM on Tele 5. The station shows a repeat that same night at 2:40 am. Alternatively, you can currently watch the film with a Netflix streaming subscription. DVD and Blu-ray titled FSK-16 are currently only available as antiquarian copies or imports. However, it is available anytime as paid video on demand:
In addition to two-time Oscar winner Anthony Hopkins (“The Silence of the Lambs”, “The Father”), other renowned stars also appeared in front of Hafstrom’s camera. Included were Colin O’Donoghue (“Once Upon A Time”), Alice Braga (“City Of God”), Ciarán Hinds (“There Will Be Blood”), Toby Jones (“Queen, King, Ace, Spy). ” ), Rutger Hauer (“Blade Runner”) and Maria Grazia Cucinotta from “James Bond 007 – The World Is Not Enough”.
“The Rite” on Tele 5: that’s the story
Theology student Michael Kovak (O’Donoghue) questions the strength of his faith and seriously considers refusing his upcoming ordination as a priest. At the last minute, his mentor Father Matthew (Jones) convinces him to participate in a two-week exorcism seminar in Rome. Although Michael does not believe in the existence of demons, he leaves for Italy.
During the first days of the course, he stands out mainly for his critical questions and cynical comments. But then Michael meets Father Lucas Trevant (Hopkins), who has worked as an exorcist for decades, and his entire worldview begins to shake. The young man attends an exorcism of demons by 16-year-old Rosaria (Marta Gastini) and from that moment on begins to doubt not his faith, but his rational beliefs…
A boring devil’s story
He looked intense and tense for most of it, reciting a few seemingly cryptic verses and making meaningful hand movements – the demon exorcism role certainly hardly posed serious challenges for one of cinema history’s greatest actors. Furthermore, neither Michael Petroni’s script (“The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader”) nor Mikael Hafstrom’s production approaches were particularly original. Did Anthony Hopkins still see more potential in the project? Otherwise, you can definitely get the feeling that the star was only there because of the rumors of a generous paycheck.
Our FILMSTARTS review, which earned only a disappointing 1.5 out of a possible 5 stars, absolutely sums up the impression “The Rite” gives. Author Christian Horn calls the film a boring devil’s story in which neither the transformation of main character Michael nor the extremely unspectacular horror scenes with Hopkins can captivate the viewer.
If you’re still in the mood for an exorcism shocker tonight, invest a few bucks for one Paid stream*from William Friedkin’s genre-defining classic ‘The Exorcist’ or watch ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’ on Netflix, which at least lead actor Russell Crowe clearly had fun with.
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