I remember seeing the trailer for this scary movie, I recognised the leading male actor, and I thought it had a clever title, I chose to ignore any negative reviews it was getting and to make my own mind up, directed by Daniel Stamm (The Last Exorcism). Basically, due to a rise in demonic possessions around the world, the Catholic Church reopens exorcism schools outside of Rome to train priests in the Rite of Exorcism. Although nuns are forbidden to perform exorcisms, at St. Michael the Archangel School of Exorcism in Boston, Father Quinn (Colin Salmon) sees that Sister Ann (Jacqueline Byers) has a gift. He recognises she is empathetic with possessed victims of demons and agrees to train her. Along with fellow student Father Dante (Christian Navarro), they are thrust onto the spiritual frontline. Beneath the school is a facility holding several victims of possession, including many children. One such victim is a young girl named Natalie (introducing Posy Taylor), and Ann joins the battle to exorcise the evil spirit. Through the encounters with the possessed Natalie however, the demon may be the same evil spirit that possessed and tormented Ann's mentally unstable mother (Koyna Ruseva) years ago. There is resistance from staff members, including leading psychotherapist Dr. Peters (Candyman's Virginia Madsen), as Ann attends classes, while the priests find it amusing. Frightening events begin to happen to her, such as disturbing visions and memories. One day, whilst bathing an elderly patient, Clark (Keith Bartlett), he is momentarily possessed and harasses her, trapping her in the room and dancing with her against her will. Terrified, she attacks the old man, just as he is returned to his regular form, and he is frightened. But Sister Ann persists in her quest, delving into secret archives with the help of Father Dante. She finds several historical "terminal cases" and evidence of many patients being sent to the Vatican and dying. But she finds the name of one woman who survived demonic possession, recovering before she could be sent to the Vatican, and was released from the institute. Ann helps exorcise Dante's troubled sister, Emilia (Cora Kirk), which is apparently successful. However, the next morning, the school's leadership and Cardinal Matthews (Ben Cross, in his final film) tell her that Dante's sister killed herself. Ann unhappily concludes that, in response to the tragedy, she should go back to her old convent. However, Father Dante visits her, telling her that Natalie, who had recovered and left the school, has had a relapse, and may be sent to the Vatican as a "terminal case". He convinces her to sneak into the school with him and exorcise Natalie. Ann is shocked to find out that Natalie is in fact her daughter, she was given up for adoption years ago; she was pregnant as a teenager while her mother was being abusive. The anguish of abandonment has made Natalie subject to demonic possession. Eventually, the demon leaves Natalie but possesses Ann, who falls into a large pool of holy water. She fights through the anguish of her troubled history and eventually frees herself from the demon. The school's leadership reward her with an academic fellowship to the Vatican. However, while in a taxi, Ann finds that the driver is Clark who had harassed her under demonic influence. The taxi stops in the street, and a sinister-looking woman, the one released from the institute, stares at her from the street. Sister Ann grabs her crucifix as the driver snarls and lunges at her. Also starring Lisa Palfrey as Sister Euphemia, Nicholas Ralph as Father Raymond, Debora Zhecheva as Young Ann, Elizabeth Gibson as Sister Kylie, and Velizar Binev as Father Bernhard. Byers is alright, Salmon is always reliable, and Madsen is reasonable as the head of the school. The film might have some memorable images, including hair being sucked down throats and the old man with white eyes and a long tongue, but the exorcism sequences are predictable, the story is rather familiar but not terrible, it is only mildly tense when it needs to be but otherwise it is a little dull and unscary, I've seen better, a disappointing but not completely dismal psychological horror. Adequate!
Review of Prey for the Devil
