| Movie of the Day - 1/29/2007 |
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Requiem
I admit to being a bit baffled behind the intent of The Exorcism of Emily Rose. The idea of basing a movie around the very true events of Anneliese Michel is an intriguing idea and could make for some heavy theological debates. However, when you start tweaking the screenplay and start to deviate from the source material... Well, you are left with a work of fiction. Fair enough. We've seen that countless times in the genre and in every other genre as well. The problem was that the point of the film seemed to be that the girl's story had to be told. The world had to know what happened to her. There is the central problem. When a film is made to get the story out there and then changes the story in question, what is the point?
Another interesting idea would have been to turn the 1970's story on its head and use it to examine very current social issues. The plot basically involves faith versus science, which just happens to be a current political and social issue in America. Why not use the material to explore that subject and give the audience something to think about, one way or another?
Alas, unfortunately the answer for the questions above was probably simply for the sake on entertainment and box-office dollars. Faith versus science is a hot topic and bound to create a little controversy whichever way the film leaned. And the true story was more ground in reality than the supernatural, which would have lent itself more to a drama. Don't get me wrong. I liked The Exorcism of Emily Rose, if for nothing else the spirited (pun unintended) performance of Jennifer Carpenter. But at the end of the film, the only real question I was asking myself is why there were so many missed opportunities.
Finally, to the film in question - Requiem. Perhaps writer Bernd Lange and director Hans-Christian Schmid were asking the same questions I was after Emily Rose. Or perhaps it was completely coincidental that they were making a movie about Anneliese Michel at the same time. I don't know the answer to that one. I do know that they seemed to be more interested in staying closer to the source material than the Hollywood version did. I do have to quickly note that they also changed names and locations for their film as well, but they are completely upfront about that from the start and don't just use the simple “Based on a true story” tag.
I'm not going to rehash the entire story of Anneliese Michel. If you are interested in reading it, just google the name and there are plenty of sites out there with all the details. For the sake of this article though, I do have to point out the basic story. Michel was a very devout Catholic who also suffered from epilepsy. During her fits, she claimed to hear and see demons talking to her. After initially refusing, the Catholic church finally agreed that an exorcism was in order and the girl was taken off her medication and a series of exorcisms began. As they progressed over a long amount of time, Michel stopped eating and grew malnourished and ultimately ended up dying. The parents and priests involved were charged and tried by German authorities of negligent homicide. The authorities argued that the girl's psychosis was fed by talk of exorcisms and demons that coincided with her deeply-rooted religious beliefs and that shunning medical treatment cost the girl her life. The group was found guilty of negligent manslaughter and sentenced to six months in jail and probation. Despite the fact that the German Bishop-Conference would later declare that there was no demonic possession, the issue is still a dividing point between traditionalists of the Catholic church and the more modern facets. Her grave is still visited for deeply devout followers and the family has become something of martyrs.
Requiem attempts to take a more neutral standpoint on whether the girl was possessed or not. We are not treated to the supernatural visions that the girl suffered and instead only watch as she slowly deteriorates before our eyes. I said attempts because the film does seem to slightly sway towards the latter, despite its efforts in neutrality. There are a few scenes that seem to point that way more than the other. When the subject of possession is first approached (a ways into the film), the girl is seen to be watching intently with a look of understanding and relief. Up until that point, the girl just thinks that she is being tested by God, so the idea of demon controlling her actions would have been a great relief instead of feeling like something of a failure. There is also a friend from school who insists she needs medical help and tries to encourage her to get it and stop with the spiritual nonsense. There are a few scenes that try to counter this, but these are the moments that particularly stuck out to me. The subsequent trial (which was wildly fictionalized in The Exorcism of Emily Rose) is not even mentioned in this version.
Despite using no special effects and/or shock tactics and taking its time to tell the story, Requiem was a much more engaging film than The Exorcism of Emily Rose. Despite its fairly slow narrative, I felt I was right there with the family and friends watching the girl's decline. What makes it really stand out though is the interesting line it draws in the sand. If you are inclined to believe that the girl was possessed by demons, the film plays out like an understated horror film. However, if you follow it as if the girl was simply sick and the exorcism was a tragic mistake, the film becomes more of a drama. It is all a matter of perspective. Though I said that I thought the story actually leaned more in the medical explanation world, I can honestly see how people would chose to believe the opposite. Perhaps my own interpretations says more about me than the film. Food for thought. The very thing I thought The Exorcism of Emily Rose was missing.
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January 29, 2007, 3:02 pm |
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