The Rite

Disclaimer: I am not a fan of horror movies.

That aside, I didn't find The Rite, starring Anthony Hopkins, too scary. Granted, of all horror movies, the ones that feature demonic things are those that frighten me the most, because, ghosts and goblins and fantastical serial killers may be spooky, but a lot are just figments of writers' extremely violent imaginations. On the other hand, demons and the devil, to my highly Catholic consciousness, are very very VERY real.

I'm not sure if it was the general lack of gore or the fact that I HAVE watched The Exorcist, the grand-daddy of demonic possession films. My love for Anthony Hopkins could have overridden my fear... although at one point, I turned to my husband and giddily whispered, "It's Hannibal!" Or it could've been my frustration with the lead character. I mean, DUH. HELLO? It's "shown" itself to you FIVE MILLION TIMES! (I exaggerate. Meh.) Not even science has developed a voice changer that good, yet.

A similar frustration also plagued me and friends of mine when we watched the first Paranormal Activity. Okay, people from developed countries who aren't really as versed in the occult as most of us in the Eastern world are, first of all, when your wife/child/niece/etc. complains about weird things happening in the house, give them the benefit of the doubt? Secondly, when you actually SEE things happening via video, like when the ouija board unexplainably bursts into flame, consult a priest. Or a spirit healer. CONSULT SOMEBODY. Get out of your house when things escalate, and if you're still stubborn about staying, for the love of God, at least TURN YOUR LIGHTS ON!

I digress. (Sorry, I just HAD to get that out of my chest.)

Going back to The Rite, my one-line opinion: It wasn't so bad. The story was very straightforward. The cinematography was appropriately dark and creepy. Using the Vatican as a background definitely struck a chord of realism. But, I don't know what the producers or the director was aiming for with regards to audience impact. Was I supposed to jump out of my seat? Were they supposed to be better than The Exorcist? Was I supposed to learn something? Was it just to prove the acting prowess of Sir Anthony? Shucks, I knew that already.

I'll just sum up my reaction with what I told my husband when the credits started rolling.

"Baby, I'm going to mass this Sunday."

Of course, I never did.