Happy Tuesday Horror Fans! Grab some holy water because this one may make you turn further from God, if that's your thing. Godless: The Eastfield Exorcism is based on a true story. This film follows Lara and her husband Ron as they deal with the death of their young son. We see early on that Lara is having a tougher time than Ron with this grief. He finds her dancing in the moonlight naked, much the nod to movies like The Witch and any high school reading The Crucible. Lara also seems very tired, she has a low appetite and seems to have large mood swings. She also seems to have these intense hallucinations.
Early on we see our couple at a therapist's office where Lara is diagnosed with schizophrenia and given medication. Ron is a bit combative with the therapist and doesn't seem to be supportive of his wife getting better unless it's under his circumstances. Dear Reader, what does Ron think will be best for Lara? If you guessed an exorcism you get 5 points.
We find out Ron only agreed to the therapist visits because they need a referral from a mental health professional to be able to have a sanctioned exorcism. After the therapist refuses to give the referral Ron turns to a member of his church about his struggles and this is when we meet Daniel James King. Daniel is an ‘instrument’ of God, a self-proclaimed tuba in God's menagerie of instruments.
Daniel brings in other members of the congregation and they perform an unsanctioned exorcism on Lara. This part of the film may be heavy for some people so please take a minute to think about if religious horror and the abuse that comes from these unsanctioned exorcisms is something you will be okay with watching. The last 30ish minutes revolve around the ending stages of the exorcism and may be tough to watch for some people.
Overall I enjoyed Godless: The Eastfield Exorcism. I find religious fanaticism really interesting to examine. Additionally, this movie really forces the audience to think about whether Lara is really possessed or if she is struggling with mental health issues. At the end, the film also makes a point to highlight others who have been through these unsanctioned exorcisms. I think the tension throughout the film is solid for holding the audience's attention. For a lower-budget movie, I thought there were some amazing shots/imagery throughout.
If you are a fan of exorcism movies I think this one should definitely be added to your list. This film was meant to start a dialogue about religious fanfare and while the movie itself isnt super horrifying, the real-life implications of religious fanaticism is the real horror.
7 out of 10 Screams
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