another catholic horror movie, huh? these things were really big for a while back in the 90's. writers would find one strange belief from a couple hundred years ago in the catholic church, and then exploit and extrapolate on that, trying to make it as strange and creepy as possible. well, this one is a bit more basic. it deals with the practice of exorcism as it is today. we follow a young man as he enters the training to become a priest even though he doesnt really believe. after nearly completing the program he submits his resignation letter, citing his lack of belief. at this, his headmaster invites him to spend some time with one of the priests in the area who he might be able to learn something from. this particular priest, played with scenery-chewing gusto, by anthony hopkins. this film rises above the rest of those older catholic horror movies by taking the act of faith seriously. through out the movie our main character is always skeptical, never really accepting the 'religious' reasoning behind what is going on. this period of doubt and questioning creates an opportunity to deal with what faith is and if it is important to actually believe, or if you can get away with just 'talking the talk'. it is a bit 'by the numbers', but anthony hopkins is, as always, fun to watch!
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